#1. Disposable Coffee Cups

Totally recyclable, right? Well, they used to be...

Now, a large majority of disposable coffee cups are wax lined - including those that come from major chains such as Starbucks, Tim Hortons and McDonald's - making them non-recyclable.

With recycling changes happening at the global level, less and less materials we pick up at the curb are being purchased. The reject pile includes most items that aren’t in a pure state and contamination free – including waxy, coffee-stained paper.  

There are still disposable cups that can still be recycled. Locate the recycling triangle found on the container and it can go in your blue bags for curbside collection. The lids can also be rinsed and tossed in with your other mixed recyclables.

#2. Plastic bags

Our rule of thumb for recycling plastics is usually “if you find the recycling triangle with the number 1-7 on it, toss it in.”  

Plastic bags are an exception to that rule. The thin plastic gets tangled in recycling equipment and conveyor belts.  Plastic bags also contaminate paper bales and may cause them to be rejected by paper mills.

You’re not totally out of luck though! We still accept them at our Eco Centre.

#3. Glass

Glass cannot be accepted curbside. It breaks and contaminates everything else in your blue bag. And unfortunately, with no market available to process glass, Aquatera is unable to continue the glass life cycle. 

However, refundable glass bottles, which are about 80% of all glass containers, are accepted through the Bottle Donation Program with collection bins located at the Aquatera Eco-Centre, Aquatera landfill and both Recycle Plus bottle depots.

#4. Styrofoam

Styrofoam is not accepted curbside. However, you can bring hard Styrofoam pieces – think TV or appliance packaging not packing peanuts – can be brought to our Eco Centre, where it is processed on-site!

#5. Pizza Boxes

Most paper products are recyclable. Other stuff, not so much.

The “other not so much” stuff:  foil wrapping paper, construction paper and carbon paper.

Cardboard is recyclable, so leave it curbside or bring it to our Eco Centre. UNLESS…  

It’s a pizza box. Or really anything covered in food, grease, or other gross stuff.  Even if you remove the crusty cheese and sauce the slices leave behind, grease will have already soaked into the cardboard, ruining it for recycling. And even on the off chance that the box really is contaminant free…we can’t tell from the outside of your blue bag when we come to collect.

The same goes for other dirtied paper products, including napkins, tissues, and paper towels.

Your waste = our power 

The good news?

Our landfill is a bioreactor landfill. That means that the paper, organics, yard waste etc. that you toss in your cart or leave at the curb is actually helping with the decomposition process and creating more naturally occurring methane gas.

We turn this gas into the electricity we need to completely power our adjacent Treatment Plants (and even sell some back to the grid!).

Still wondering about an item? Search it right here on our website!