Recycling is an evolving industry in Toronto. It has become so much easier to do. What wasn’t recyclable now is. More facilities are being built. More items are being accepted. Even with all this development, there are still materials that cannot be recycled.

Virtually every home and business are registered in Toronto’s blue bin program. This recycling program’s designed to collect recyclables. Unfortunately, contamination exists.

Cross-contamination is also a serious concern. When we include what is not recyclable in a collection of materials that is, it contaminates the whole batch. This reduces the value of our recyclables or renders them worthless.

How to be a better recycler starts with knowing what is and is not recyclable. When we recycle correctly, it saves money and is efficient. We also do right by our environment. Here’s what isn’t recycling in Toronto.

Styrofoam

Styrofoam is made from a type of plastic that is difficult to recycle. Due to the difficulty, a lot of cities won’t even bother with it. It is for this reason that styrofoam is not recyclable in Toronto.

Pizza boxes

Pizza boxes are cardboard stained with grease and covered in crumbs. They’re the perfect example of a recyclable contaminated and rendered worthless. Most food containers are unsuitable, for this reason.

Food

One of the worst contaminators of Toronto recycling is organic waste like apple cores and eggshells. These food scraps are better left in a compost bin. When thrown into a recycling bin, everything else soaks up the residue and particles from these scraps.

Plastic bags

Plastic bags are not recyclable. They clog up the sorting machines. They are also made from a type of plastic difficult to recycle, similar to how styrofoam is. This is much of the reason why Canada plans to ban plastic bags altogether.

Coffee cups

Tim Hortons coffee cups and Starbucks coffee cups are not recyclable in Toronto. Though the outside is made from paper, the inside has an oily plastic lining that contaminates the product. This renders it unrecyclable in our current recycling program.

Paper

Paper that has been soiled or coated with wax is not recyclable. Any sort of meat wrapping paper is also not considered recyclable. These are contaminated materials on their own and would contaminate a blue bin’s recycling if included.

Chip bags

Like coffee cups, chip bags are lined with polypropylene plastic. Though they are otherwise aluminum, the inside lining means they aren’t accepted in our single-stream recycling stream.

Aluminum foil

Aluminum is one of the most recycled materials in the world. Aluminum foil is technically recyclable. However, it cannot contain any grease or food residue. As you can imagine, all aluminum foil used to carry food is likely to end up contaminated.

Bubble wrap

Bubble wrap fits the same category as plastic grocery bags. They can be recycled. We simply don’t have an efficient way to do so. If we did pick up bubble wrap and plastic bags in our curbside recycling, they would damage the sorting machinery. This is why bubble wrap’s not included in the list of recyclables in Toronto.

Cling wrap

Cling wrap is made from polyvinyl chloride. This material is not recyclable, contaminated or otherwise. Any sort of household cling wrap should be placed in the garbage can with the other waste materials.

Coffee pods

Any coffee pods, including Keurig and Tassimo, are not recycled in Toronto. They are made with different materials that cannot be easily separated. The resulting composite material is a self-contaminated non-recyclable.

Clothing

Yes, that’s right. Any clothing or textiles are not considered recycling in Toronto. Like plastic, clothing gets caught in the sorting machine. This results in damaged equipment and potential workplace injuries. Any old clothes, shoes, blankets, or curtains you have can be donated to agencies, organizations, or local non-profits. This is what the city recommends.

Medical waste

Medical waste should be placed in the garbage. Medical waste shouldn’t ever be placed in recycling. This includes catheters, colostomy bags, tubes, and syringes. Ensure these waste materials are properly disposed of. If you’re unsure of how to get rid of specific medical waste, contact your local pharmacy.

Plastic toys

Plastic toys can be donated to a local non-profit. Toys are not recyclable in Toronto. Even if they show a recycling code, no plastic toy should be placed in the blue bin. No municipal waste program in Canada currently accepts plastic toys.

Light bulbs

Light bulbs are made from components that all of which can be recycled. Unfortunately, it requires special processes to separate the various materials that make up a light bulb. No municipal recycling program, including Toronto’s, has this technology. This makes light bulbs unrecyclable.

Black plastic

You may have seen black plastic used in takeout containers. Black plastic is not recyclable for two reasons. First, there isn’t a market for it. This means there’s no way to sell it. Even if there was a way to sell it, the second reason why black plastic cannot be recycled is that the sorting technology does not recognize it.

Ceramics

There are several categories of glass that we do not recycle in Toronto. Ceramics are one. Fortunately, there are private companies willing to accept ceramics. As they continue to grow, we hope to see ceramics included in Toronto’s recycling program.

Electrical cords, hoses, and cables

Electrical cords, hoses, and cables are easily tangled in recycling sorting machines. Electrical cords, fortunately, can be included with suitable electronics you intend to bring to an e-waste sorting facility. Any other hoses, cords, or cables should be put into the waste bin.

Tools

Old tools are not recyclable in Toronto. From power drills to hammers, screwdrivers, and cords, there are a lot of components to remove from them. Each component is in its own category of waste or recycling. This makes it an efficient recyclable. However, if your old tools are still functional, you may be able to donate them.

Recycling in Toronto relies on having the facilities to sort the materials and a market to sell them on. As recycling facilities continue to be built in Canada, we hope that more items will come to be accepted into the city’s blue bin program. The culture of recycling continues to change for the better. As large a city as Toronto is, there’s still a lot more work to do. The quality of recycling must change. Contamination must be reduced. Landfill diversion efforts must be prioritized.