A City team travelling throughout the community on electric bikes will soon begin random inspections of curbside recycling and yard waste carts.
The Environmental Outreach Ambassadors, who are hired as summer students, will perform audits to help improve our community’s sorting success rate. The goal is to identify recycling confusions and to educate residents on how to properly dispose of specific items.
If staff find an item in a recycle cart that doesn’t belong, they will place a ‘You’ve Been Spotted’ notice on the cart. This notice is purely educational and does not mean your cart will be skipped for collection.
The Ambassadors will also be auditing the recycling of each multi-unit residential building, leaving behind an audit tag and a clear bag filled with any materials that were incorrectly placed in the recycling. The multifamily contamination rate has reached 10.7 per cent, exceeding the maximum allowable 5 per cent contamination rate. The 2025 goal is lower the multifamily contamination rate to 8 per cent by the end of 2025 or face the possibility of fines.
Items not accepted for recycling include hard and soft cover books, glass, and clothing. Remember to place all recycling loosely in carts, not contained in any bags or boxes.
The Ambassadors will also host a booth at the Penticton Farmers’ Market, Downtown Market and other events throughout summer to educate residents on recycling best practices and water conservation measures.
They will also staff the bike valet each Saturday from 8 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. at the markets, which is located next to the outdoor ice rink. The bike valet service is free, allowing shoppers to park their bikes in a secure and monitored area.
For more information on recycling, visit penticton.ca/recycling and try the ‘What Goes Where’ tool, or phone the Recycle BC Hotline at 1-800-667-4321.