WATCH: This item is but shouldn’t be in recycle bins

• RDCO needs to halve the number of contaminants, or non-recyclable items
• Workers will be coming around and inspecting neighbourhood bins
• Free app can help you decide what does and does not go in

Books are a welcome site in libraries and thrift stores.

And if Travis Kendel had one wish, it would be to not see them under your recycling bin.

“A lot of people mean well when they take a book and drop it in the recycling bin,” the engineer services manager for the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO) told Kelowna10. “It’s made out of paper and should be recyclable, but it is not included in the program and so that contributes a huge amount towards contamination.”

One of his task’s is to guide the region in cutting back on the number of contaminants, or non-recyclable objects, in the RDCO’s recycling collection program.

“I’d recommend to everybody, if you have books that you would like to recycle or reuse, donate them, sell them, do anything but put them in your curb side recycling bin,” he said.

That bit of information is part of the ongoing RDCO cart education and inspection campaign to combat recycling contamination, which is entering it’s fourth year.

You may see workers wearing high visibility vests wandering around your neighbourhood, checking under the lids as part of the program.

They may issue tags to educate residents should they find any unwanted items in recycling bins. For repeat offenders, it may lead to fines. But the focus, according to Kendel, is education.

Last year, the crew of two to four workers inspected dover 7,000 carts and around 22,000 since the program began. The recycling ambassadors plan to inspect even more this year.

The foot teams are not alone in inspecting bins. They are aided by collection trucks that now have advanced sensors, which can detect contaminates hidden in the pile.

“I would think twice if you are trying to hide a roll of carpet or some two-by-fours from a spring renovation project in the recycling bin. We will find them,” Kendel said.

These efforts are all to meet obligations to keep contamination below three per cent regionally. Currently contamination is more than twice that, at over seven per cent.

The downside to incorrect recycling from the community can be expensive. High contamination numbers can lead to fines from Recycle B.C., which impacts program costs that may trickle down to residents.

Flexible plastics, another contaminant, can end up tangling the equipment and make recycling harder.

Plus, throwing away the wrong materials can be hazardous to workers.

“I can mention at least one truck that’s lit on fire within the last 24 months because somebody had something that shouldn’t have been in that bin,” Kendel said.

If in doubt, he advises to not put an item in the cart. There’s also a handy app called Recycle Coach with an approved list of materials you can recycle. You can also visit RDCO.com/recycle.