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September 25, 2008

Fast Food Chains Like McDonald's Recycle-In Canada

Trans-Canadian Roadtrip, originally uploaded by perlgurl.org.

I've been on a recycling rant here since our Trans-Canadian Roadtrip and I know-you're probably saying-can't she show us more pictures of crazed bighorn sheep and clearcut forests, enough pictures of recycle bins already!

I swear, this is my last one... for a while. After all, I just don't see enough recycling opportunities in the United States to take more pictures!

I always smile when I see a recycle bin in a new place-whether it's in a school or an airport or a national park or a highway rest stop.

It's pretty safe to say, I smiled all the way across Canada.

My husband is constantly having to listen to my "great green ideas". Like how we should require or provide adequate incentives to gas stations and big-box stores to provide recycling to their clients and visitors.

My personal feeling is that local communities, many of which have taken the step to require citizens to recycle should also mandate recycling in the business community. For example, why don't we have more local ordinances that make places of business over a certain square footage provide recycling bins (they are already often required to have trashcans)? This way, malls, airports, bus/train stations, and other places that often sell bottled drinks and paper stubs would be forced to recycle and keep this stuff out of landfills. It goes without saying that public and government buildings, like libraries and town halls, should do the same.

So imagine my surprise and delight this summer when I found that most of my great recycling ideas were already in action-IN CANADA.

Even fast food chains like McDonald's and hotel chains like Sheraton have recycling facilities in Canada.

When are we likely to see these same companies providing recycling in the US?

When local community governments, states and the federal government put laws in place to make them-just as they have for citizens.

Posted by sorsha at September 25, 2008 11:53 AM