The Alberta Beverage Container Recycling Corporation (ABCRC) wants you to tell them where they should put their recycling bins. It recently launched the Place a Bin program, which runs till the end of September, to put bins in more convenient places around the province. It hopes to add thousands of new bins across the province to support the province’s network of 218 bottle depots.

Lack of convenience seems to be the main challenge to getting more people to recycle more empty beverage containers, says Cherie Cohen, vice-president of communications and marketing at ABCRC.

“Albertans are doing a fantastic job in recycling containers, but our research indicates that the single greatest barrier to more recycling is a lack of infrastructure and convenient bins. It’s not that Albertans don’t want to recycle, it’s that there’s often not a convenient place to do it, especially when they are not at home. So we’re asking people to tell us where they want recycling bins to be located, rather than us deciding where to put them.”

So if you know a good spot for a beverage recycling bin, go to www.dontbeatosser.com and make a suggestion through facebook. Their facebook site is even tracking the number of requested bins and the number of bins actually going out.

“We feel it’s a question of being in touch with Albertans. and we really want to know. People are open and warm to the idea, so far we’re very happy with the feedback, it’s generating a lot of e-mails and good suggestions.”

A lot of the suggestions revolve around people’s use of cars so they are getting suggestions about placing bins at gas stations, mini-marts and other retail outlets, where people buy beverages. Other prime locations seem to be parks, including provincial parks, and off-leash dog parks, so you can recycle that pop container you consumed while giving Rex his exercise.

Also, through the ABCRC’s Community Champion program, not-for-profit partners can place bins, keep an eye on them and keep the revenue that results from selling the collected containers.

Alberta has a good record when it comes to recycling beverage containers. In 2010 the province achieved an 84% recycling rate, up substantially from the 76.8% in rate in 2008.

acryderman@reddeerexpress.com