Blue-box Walking is an exciting new grassroots, citizen-lead campaign that lets each of us make our own small contribution to improving our neighbourhoods and the environment. Whether you are a power-walker, a casual stroller or dog exerciser, Blue-box Walking transforms that everyday walk into your own personal community improvement and environmental caretaking project. Maybe you already enjoy a regular neighbourhood walk or are thinking about the benefits of a daily walk, Blue-box Walking adds an extra dimension to your walk.
All you need is a collection bag, a pair of garden gloves and sharp eyes. You can walk the same route or try a different route every time. You can specialize in one kind of blue box material, like plastic bottles, or you can collect whatever fills your bag. And you can Blue-box Walk every day or any day - there will be something to collect whenever you do it.
What makes a Blue-box Walk?
Blue-box Walking means keeping a lookout for recyclable material that has been left on the street or on the edge of someone’s lawn. Blue-box Walking invites you to spot it, stomp it, stow it.
Spot it: as you walk, look for items to collect. These will include: aluminum cans, plastic beverage bottles and cups, fast food packaging, cigarette packages, and anything else that you would normally put in your recycle bin.
Stomp it: before you pick up items, flatten them by stomping them as flat as you can. Stomping allows you to have as much room in your bag as possible. ( Naturally, the exception for stomping is items that are glass.)
Stow it: anything you collect can be stowed in the bag that you carry. If you want to separate items which are recyclable from those which are trash, you can carry more than one bag. Just make sure that the bags you use are also recyclable.
Where can I Blue-box Walk?
The simple answer is anywhere there is recyclable or garbage material left on the ground – which unfortunately means just about anywhere. There will usually be plenty to collect on the sidewalk, shoulder of the road, or gutter beside the sidewalk. We suggest you adopt the Blue-box Two-step rule to collect from private property. This means if you see something which you can pick up in no more than two steps from the sidewalk, then it’s okay to do so. In most locations, that part of private property is normally owned by the municipality anyway. Don’t go any further onto private property, unless you first gain permission from the owner. Of course you should always be alert to dogs, especially if you step onto private property.
Safety First
When you are doing Blue-box Walking, your biggest priority is your own safety. Walk a route which you can walk safely, without fear of adjacent traffic. Wear bright and reflective clothing. If you are also dog-walking, make sure your dog can be seen too. Limit your Blue-box Walking to daytime hours and your route to low-traffic times of day.
Use light weight garden gloves to pick up items. Items to avoid or to handle with care are: broken glass, any building materials that look to have metal hardware attached, or anything else that might puncture your skin. Never collect needles or other drug-related material, condoms or tampon tools. If you find such items, contact the owner or public health.
Sort It
Here's 1 walks haul. Arrival, dumped and sorted.
Make Yours A Blue-Box Walking Community
Blue-box Walking is an exciting new grassroots campaign that lets each of us make our own small contribution to improving our neighbourhoods and the environment. If you would like to know more or wish to promote blue box walking in your community, you can start today. All of the BBW materials, logos and so on are copyright-free and we encourage you to spread the word to your town or city.
We can provide larger size or custom name logos. Add them to tees or collection bags.
Watch this blog for more.
We are just starting and are active in Renfrew and Beachburg, Ontario. Join the walk today!
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