There has been a significant increase in single-use disposable items winding up in Metro Vancouver landfills, despite a push to encourage residents to use less because of the adverse environmental impact.
In 2024, overall single-use items -- including bags, cups, straws, utensils and takeout containers -- made up about three per cent of the total waste stream, up from 2.1 per cent in 2023, according to a Metro staff report to the zero-waste committee.
And that number is expected to increase given the popularity of food-delivery services.
Terry Fulton, a senior project engineer with Metro and an expert in waste composition, said there was a notable shift toward home-food delivery during and after COVID-19.
He said that while disposable items still make up a relatively small part of the waste stream at three per cent, the increase is a move in the wrong direction.
"Some of the concerns with single-use items, although by weight they're not a lot of the waste stream, is that they are quite numerous. They can have impacts on marine ecosystems, and they also can take up a lot of space, and especially public space receptacles after events and things," he said.
"And it's quite costly to collect those types of receptacles, so they're having a cost impact as well."
He urged residents to visit metrovancouver.org/superhabits for tips on how to reduce and reuse instead of continually ordering single-use items.
The most common items in the waste composition study were utensils, takeout containers and cups.
The report cites a 2023 report by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada that compares eat-in, home food delivery, takeout and drive-thru options. What it found was that home food-delivery sales increased to 38.1 per cent in 2022 from 27 per cent in 2019, while sales of takeout food orders more than doubled to 18.4 per cent from 6.5 per cent.
Moulded fibre utensils -- biodegradable single-use forks, knives and spoons made from plant-based fibres like bamboo -- began appearing in the waste stream in 2023 in what the report calls negligible amounts.
However, in 2024, there were so many in the garbage that Metro staff made a new category for tracking purposes.
Fulton said just because a single-use plastic item says it's biodegradable doesn't always mean it can be composted.
"In our region, the facilities that process organic material actually aren't able to process that type of material, so those actually just go in the garbage. So instead of using them it's much better to use a reusable item and then you don't even have to worry about what it's made of."
He added that Metro staff are still seeing a lot of wooden cutlery like bamboo forks and chopsticks in the garbage when those items can be put in the green waste.
Single-use plastic utensils and other plastic food-service accessories were banned in B.C. in 2023 but the report notes that in 2024 surplus bags of plastic utensils were chucked out likely by businesses that could no longer use them for take-aways.
The report also says there has been a notable shift from plastic bags to paper following a public shift away from using plastic bags and a decrease in foam takeout containers.
Single-use plastic shopping bags have been banned in B.C. since Jan. 15.
Single-use items cost taxpayers millions of dollars per year to collect from public waste bins and to clean up as litter in parks, streets and green spaces, according to the regional district. Reducing use can help protect vulnerable marine environments and reduce garbage in landfills.
Fulton said there are little things that Metro residents can do to reduce single-use items such as selecting the option for no-napkins or extra-chopsticks and cutlery when ordering food delivery.
Folks are also encouraged to keep a set of reusable utensils and straws in their bag or car for everyday use and to bring a reusable cup for beverages.
Residents in the region dispose of over a billion single-use items per year, or 358 per person, according to Metro.