Recycle Coach's targeted educational content aimed at residents results in significantly less contamination in recycling streams.
Background
Coffee cups, black plastic, paper towels and plastic bags: The City of Aurora, ON faced a host of common recycling problems. They needed to reduce their contamination rate, benchmarked at 24.4%, and increase the amount of materials entering the recycling stream. SolutionAfter an initial waste audit of 60 households, we helped develop and disseminate five highly targeted educational campaigns. The goal of these campaigns was to educate residents about recycling fundamentals, starting from the very basics of contamination and wish-cycling, and prompt a positive change in resident habits. Focusing on the key areas of concern, residents engaged in AI-driven and gamified educational campaigns to teach them about Aurora's recycling program.
Results
In our follow-up audit, households that participated in at least one campaign showed marked improvement. There was a 30% increase in actual recyclable materials collected and an overall 81% drop in contamination. The collective contamination rate plummeted to 3.5%, fueled by outstanding results in individual areas of concern.
Key Area Reductions:
- 99% reduction in food and liquids
- 99% fewer coffee cups
- 96% less black plastic
- 88% fewer paper towels
- 40% less plastic film- 69% fewer snack food bags
- 31% fewer foam trays
- 99% drop in masks and gloves (PPE)
Key Takeways
With the right education and tools, changing resident behavior is possible. Our data-driven approach helped reduce contamination by a significant amount in the City of Aurora, ON.
I find the app easy to navigate, and very useful in promoting recycling programs to the community and sending out educational updates. The Recycle Coach team is always available to assist and resolve issues.
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Let's work together
We’re a proud partner to 1,500+ municipalities across North America and beyond. From local problems to larger initiatives, we’d love to have a conversation. Send us a note and we’ll be in touch as soon as possible.
