Test Your Knowledge: Recycling in Calgary

Calgary is a city that loves its recycling. Before the City introduced a blue cart curbside program in 2009, 40,000 tonnes of recyclables were taken to local depots, by 2010 that number grew almost twofold to 70,000 tonnes. In the years following, the City has introduced a composting green bin pilot program and is in the process of making recommendations to council for a multi-family recycling strategy to meet the recycling needs of all Calgarians. How much do you know?

Answers are below the picture.

1>>Waste and Recycling Services is scheduled to report back to Calgary city council no later than February 2014 with recommendations for a multi-family recycling strategy in the city.

a. True
b. False

2>> Calgary's long-term goal for recycling includes reducing the amount of waste going to city landfills to what percentage?

a. 10 per cent
b. 20 per cent
c. 40 per cent
d. 50 per cent

3>> For homes utilizing Calgary's blue cart program, what products can you place in your cart?

a. Paper and cardboard
b. Plastic jugs, bottles and food containers
c. Metal food cans and foil
d. All of the above

4>> The City has a yearly leaf and pumpkin composting program. Yard waste makes up how much of the annual garbage from a home?

a. An eighth
b. A quarter
c. A third
d. A half

5>> When food and yard waste break down in a landfill with little oxygen they generate a roughly half and half mix of methane gas and carbon dioxide. Methane gas is how many more times potent than carbon dioxide?

a. Five per cent
b. 10 per cent
c. 15 per cent
d. 20 per cent

6>> There are several drop-off locations for electronic recycling in Calgary. Items that can be dropped off include what?

a. TVs
b. Desktop computers
c. Printers, scanners and fax machines
d. All of the above

7>> After the introduction of a green cart composting pilot program in four Calgary communities, how many kilograms of waste was collected in a year?

a. 500,000 kilograms
b. 687,000 kilograms
c. 899,000 kilograms
d. 1.9 million kilograms

8>> What percentage of pilot program residents support a citywide program?

a. 67 per cent
b. 79 per cent
c. 81 per cent
d. 91 per cent

9>> If approved, a citywide green cart program could be implemented across the city by what year?

a. 2015
b. 2017
c. 2019
d. 2021

10>> During Calgary's green cart pilot program, by what percentage did waste decrease in the four selected communities?

a. 25 per cent
b. 30 per cent
c. 40 per cent
d. 45 per cent