As waste piles up during pandemic, online Earth Day event focuses on how Manitobans can live green

For the second year in a row, Winnipeg's Green Action Centreis moving its Earth Day event online a way to keeppeople connected even though the COVID-19 pandemic is keeping many apart.

Colleen Ans, theco-ordinator for the centre's sustainable living program, says it's a way of "making sure people know that the environment is still something we need to protect."

Ans is part of anoon-hour virtual panelto mark Earth Day on Thursday, aimed athelpingpeople find out how they can make green choices in their daily lives.

"Our goal is to get people to commit to one green action to start doing every day, in order to make every day Earth Day," said Ans.

People are staying inmore due to the pandemic, whichcan lead to morewaste at home as they order more takeout from restaurants, buy online, or throw away plastic itemsthey may have reused pre-COVID, she said.

WATCH | How Manitobans can live green:

Earth Day event focuses on how Manitobans can live green

3 years ago

Duration 1:54

For the second year in a row, Winnipeg's Green Action Centre is moving its Earth Day event online a way to keep people connected even though the COVID-19 pandemic is keeping many apart.

Mark Kinsley, the City of Winnipeg's supervisor of waste diversion, said the city collected about 12 per cent more garbage than usual in the last year.

"It's very likely that that's directly impacted by the pandemic," said Kinsley.

More items are also being picked up for recycling, he said.

Kinsley reminded Winnipeggers to find out what items are recyclablebefore throwing them in their blue bin. Disposable face masks and rubber gloves aren't recyclable, for example, but are ending up inrecycling bins instead of the garbage, he said.

"We're trying to get people to put less of the unacceptable [items] in the recycling, and then takethe recycling that's going into the garbage and get that into the recycling."

WATCH| CBC meteorologist John Sauder explains why Earth Day matters:

Why is Earth Day so important?

3 years ago

Duration 1:45

CBC meteorologist John Sauder explains the significance of this annual event and shares ways we can all help protect Mother Earth.

Ans said there are things people can do to reduce waste in the first place, including using reusable bags,shopping locally to reduce transportation and packaging, buying second-hand items, and asking your favourite restaurant to switch to recyclable takeout containers if they haven't already done so.

Meal planning and composting, she said, can help reduce the amount of food waste ending up in the garbage.

Even as people find ways to mark Earth Day this year, Glen Koroluk, the executive director of the Manitoba Eco-Network, said the pandemic has affected all sectors, including environmental organizations.

"There are groups out therewho raise money through fundraising activities like having dinners or socials.Those aren't happening anymore, so it's impacting the way organizations could raise money to keep operations flowing," Koroluk said.

People also haven't been able to gather in the same way to get their message out, he said, pointing to youth climate rallies as an example.

"Those rallies, you know, have been successful in raising awareness in Manitoba and across the world," Koroluk said. "We're hopeful that the youth will get back onto the streets."

The same goes for other organizations that hold public events to raise awareness of environmental issues, he said.

"They're not out there anymoregiving us, you know, the hope and the message that we need to change the way we are living on this planet right now."