A City of Ottawa committee says it hopes a new program to encourage business, industry and institutions to recycle more of their waste will help divert garbage from the Capital's crowded landfills.
While industry and commercial business account for about 70 per cent of all waste, only about 150 out of 26,000 businesses in the Capital currently participate in a municipal "yellow bag" program that picks up garbage and recycling for a fee.
Businesses that don't participate in the program have their garbage picked up by private companies and dumped into private landfills.
"We can't mandate that they do anything other than to control what comes in to the system," Albert Shamess of Ottawa Waste Services told CTV Ottawa.
Terry Scott of Spaceman Music says his shop goes through about 200 pounds of cardboard per week and it would be foolish not to participate in a recycling program.
"In these days, I mean it's just silly not to [recycle]," he said.
Shamess says it's only a matter of time before private disposal facilities see the value in waste diversion.
"What I feel is that over time . . . the outside disposal facilities will see the value of preserving their own capacity, they'll get involved in waste diversion programs," he said.
In the meantime, Shamess says the City is a long way from meeting their waste diversion target.
"The diversion of the industry and commercial waste is a little bit below 20 per cent," he said. "I think we're targeting 60 per cent . . . we've got a ways to go."
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Kate Eggins
