Winnipeggers sending less waste to landfill

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This article was published 01/06/2017 (3079 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeggers recycling efforts are paying off and less waste is ending up in the landfill.

That’s one of the key findings from a report released Thursday by Peg, a community health indicator system for Winnipeg led by the United Way of Winnipeg and the International Institute for Sustainable Development.

The report found Winnipeggers reduced the total amount of waste sent to local landfills between 1997 and 2015 by recycling, composting and various other programs. The total amount of diverted waste tripled during the 15-year period.

Since 2005, there has been a downward trend in total residential waste produced.

“It is also important to note that the collective amount of residential waste, combining both waste sent to the landfill and waste diverted through recycling and compostable yard-waste programs, has seen an overall increase since 1997, despite a downward trend since 2005,” the report says under the heading, People’s Impact on the Environment.

The main focus of the report was how people affect the environment and, in turn, how the environment affects people. Results were measured using 13 indicators: air quality, water quality, parks and open spaces, dwelling density, core housing need, waste and water diversion, water use, greenhouse gas emissions, transportation, collision victims, active leisure time, activity limitation and perception of safety.

“It’s a collaborative project that we do on an ongoing basis, and once a year we dive deeper into specific indicators that we have that we are collecting data on in order to be able to tell a story and to open up conversations,” said Jennifer Temmer, project officer with the International Institute Sustainable Development’s Goals Knowledge Program.

The third-annual report was released in advance of World Environmental Day on June 5, which has a theme of Connecting People to Nature.

“There are two things, especially around water use and garbage and recycling. We, as Winnipeggers, are individually changing our habits and we’re lowering our consumption. Through our habits and through our daily activities as individuals, we are helping to work towards a more sustainable city,” Temmer said.

“On the other side of that, the city is also doing a very good job in promoting their recycling programs and yard-waste programs so that less waste is actually going to the landfill.”

Temmer said items such as low-flow toilets and high-efficiency washing machines and shower heads have helped Winnipeggers reduce water usage in homes.

Between 1995 and 2015, people in Winnipeg reduced their per-person water use by nearly 50 per cent, from 349 litres each day in 1995 to 234 per person in 2015.

“Something that’s really interesting is there’s a lot of interconnection between the indicators themselves,” Temmer said. “We found that air quality is going down slightly — the trend is that air quality is not as good. Air quality has an impact on peoples’ health, especially with asthma and respiratory problems. Things we’re doing to improve that are reflected in that greenhouse gasses have been dropping across the city. That has to do with greener buildings and our choice in transportation.”

She said that giving people more options and making public transportation accessible results in fewer vehicles on the road and lower greenhouse gas emissions, which ultimately improves air quality.

The report also showed a decrease in the amount of time people are spending being active, which was lower than the Canadian average. Between 2003 and 2014, about 34 per cent of Winnipeggers reported activity limitations — three per cent higher than the Canadian average.

Wellness report

wfpyoutube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeHh3_PFod0&feature=youtu.be:wfpyoutube