Waste Management

The Town of Stettler is offering residential bi-weekly recycling pickup on Wednesdays.

Please place your green bin(s) out to the curb (or same place where waste is picked up).

If your bin(s) are too full, additional recycling must be put in an additional bin or a clear bag to be collected. Recycling put in black (or opaque) plastic bags will not be collected.

What is accepted in your recycling bin?

Cardboard

• Flatten corrugated cardboard boxes
• Flatten Cereal Boxes, food boxes and shoe boxes (remove plastic)
• Milk cartons (remove cap, rinse with water and flatten) or take to the Bottle Depot for $ deposit
• Juice Boxes (remove straw) or take to the Bottle Depot for $ deposit

Metals

• Aluminum cans (rinse, remove ends and trap inside can or discard)
• Aluminum containers (pie plates)
• Clean tin cans (juice, soup etc.)

Paper

• Catalogues and magazines
• Computer paper
• Envelopes
• Greeting cards and non-foil gift wrap
• Bundled newspaper, inserts, junk mail
• Paperback and hard cover books
• Paper bags
• Paper egg cartons
• Phone books
• Shredded paper (only accepted in clear plastic bags)

Plastics

• Beverage containers, milk jugs and pop bottles (or take to the Bottle Depot for $ deposit)
• Detergent and fabric softener bottles
• Household cleaner bottles
• Margarine and yogurt containers
• Plastic Bags (put together in one bag)

Recycling Tips

Bundle or tie loose cardboard
Put lighter items on the bottom of the recycling bins
Stuff all plastic grocery bags into one bag and tie

Non Recyclable Items

• Ceramics
• China
• Light Bulbs (except flourescents)
• Mirrors
• Paper Tissues or Paper Towel
• Styrofoam (food & drink containers, packing peanuts). The Stettler Transfer Site can take hard #6 for recycling
• Tupperware
• Waxed Cardboard

See the Stettler Transfer Site section for more information

Stettler Transfer Site
Open everyday (other than stat holidays) from 10am to 6pm.

Take it or Leave it Centre
Located at the Stettler Transfer Site (at 55 Ave. and 38 St.)

Leave large usable items for others to take.
(Small usable items go to Superfluity.)

Stettler Eco Centre

• Household batteries (tape lithium and all button batteries)
• Fluorescent bulbs/tubes and Ballasts
• Paints & spray paints
• Paint thinners/strippers
• All aerosols
• All Household Hazard Waste (anything with a WHMIS warning symbol on it)

Electronics Recycling Bin  (Accepts almost anything with a cord)

• Television & computer equipment & cables
• Printers, faxes, photocopiers
• Inkjets, laser toners
• Audio visual equipment & cables
• Small appliances
• All types of phones
• Power and air tools
• Electronic games, toys, music

Styrofoam Recycling Bin

• Large, white #6 hard packaging Styrofoam
  (No food or drink containers)
  (No packing peanuts)

Treated Wood Bin

• Painted, stained, varnished wood
• Wood treated with preservatives
• Plywood
• Particle Board

Misc Recycling or Responsible Disposal

• Mattresses
• Tires
• Fridges/air conditioners
• Metal
• Oil containers and filters (not oil)
  (Take used oil to UFA.)

Some garbage items:

• Light bulbs (except fluorescents)
• Styrofoam food & drink containers, packing peanuts (recycle hard #6)
• Paper towels, paper tissues
• Ceramics
• China
• Mirrors
• Tupperware

In the Bathroom:

• Shorter showers - Cutting your shower by 1 minutes can save 10 litres of water (3000 litres each month).
• Save while brushing - Turn off the water while brushing your teeth or shaving.  Before brushing, wet your brush, and fill a glass to rinse your mouth.
• Make every flush count - The toilet is the biggest water user in the house.
• Take showers instead of baths - A bathtub can hold up to 200 litres of water. A typical shower uses less than 75 litres.
• Make plants happy - When running the sink or shower for hot water, collect the water that runs before it gets hot to reuse for watering plants.

In the Kitchen:

• Keep drinking water in the fridge - Keep a container of drinking water in the refrigerator.  Running the tap to cool water for drinking loses 12 litres per minute.
• Save while cleaning - Don't let the faucet run while cleaning vegetables.  Instead, rinse them in a sink or bowl filled with clean water.  Savings --> 12 litres per minute.
• Use all the dishes - Wait until you have a full load before using your automatic dishwasher.

Outside:

• Sweep instead - Don't hose down your sidewalk, patio or driveway.  Use a rake or broom for cleaning and save hundreds of litres of water.
• Drive dirty - Washing the car uses 500 litres of water!  Turn off the hose while you swab the car.  Consider using products for washing your car that require no water at all.
• Encourage deep roots - If you do water trees, this should be done slowly, deeply and infrequently.  This encourages deep roots, making your tree healthier and helps to save water.
• Plant drought-resistant trees and plants - Many native plants can survive on rainwater alone.  Ask at your local garden centre for information on xeriscaping - or look out for the plants with the low water use sticker.
• If you must water, water early - You could be saving 65% more water.  Water your lawn early in the morning or at night to minimize evaporation losses.  It also achieves greater soil saturation and provides better absorption of the water.  Consider using a timer.
• Sprinklers are water inefficient - Install drip irrigation wherever possible or use a root irrigator for deep watering.  This brings water down to the roots where the plant needs it.
• Rain barrels - Use rain barrels for water storage to water gardens.

Elsewhere:

• Full loads - Wash full loads of laundry to save water, energy and time.  Research shows that many people under-fill their clothes washer by 30%.

Repair:

• Be a leak detector - Check taps, pipes and toilets for leaks.  If you find a leak, fix it immediately.  Leaks can waste 14% of all the water we use in our home. 
  
  A good way to check toilets for leaks is to put a little food colouring in the tank.  If the colouring appears in the bowl without flushing, then some repairs are needed.  If you can hear a toilet "running" all the time, it can lead to a very costly water bill!
• Report leaks in fire hydrants - Report leaks in hydrants, plumbing, or other public facilities so they can be repaired.

Retrofit/Replace:

• The Toilet - Adapt your toilet by installing one of the many water-saving devices now on the market.  Alternatively, replace your old toilet (up to 22 litres per flush) with a low-volume toilet (6 litres per flush).  
  
  
• Showerheads & Faucets - Standard showerheads have flow rates up to 20 litres per minute, while a low-flow showerhead can reduce water flow by half.
  Low-flow aerators in faucets can also reduce the flow-rate dramatically.
• Appliances - Did you know that Energy Star® dishwashers typically use less water than washing dishes by hand?  And they save on energy too.  Efficient washing machines are also gentler on clothes, require less detergent, rinse more thoroughly, and shorten drying time by spinning out more water.