NEWS RELEASE
COUNTY OF SIMCOE
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The County of Simcoe is joining the world’s largest environmental movement to recognize our collective responsibility and to help accelerate the transition to an equitable, prosperous green economy for all this Earth Day on April 22, 2023.
This Earth Day, the county would also like to remind residents of a helpful tool located on the popular Simcoe County Collects app. Recently added to the app, the Simcoe Sorts game quizzes and helps educate residents on sorting their waste materials. Simcoe Sorts provides an interactive experience to help residents determine what materials go in each stream, and how we can all reduce garbage by growing the use of recycling and organics programs. Did you know that more than 50 per cent of the materials by weight in our garbage could still be diverted easily into our other existing programs or collection streams, particularly organics? Residents can download the free Simcoe County Collects app through Google Play or the App Store, inclusive of the Simcoe Sorts game.
“Earth Day is a significant reminder about how important our environment is to our habitat, economy, communities and daily lives,” said Warden Basil Clarke. “From leading the way in forestry stewardship and responsible waste management services, to supporting our farming sector and investing in green and sustainable infrastructure solutions, the county is committed to doing its part. We are proud of our leadership on green initiatives, and we will continue to drive change through our corporate climate action plan and unique ways to engage residents like the Simcoe County Collects app and Simcoe Sorts game.”
The County of Simcoe is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the corporation. The sustainable operations team is currently working on the corporate climate action plan to measure the county’s emissions and set fair and attainable targets to reduce emissions and build resilience to climate change. Find out more about the county’s sustainable operations: www.simcoe.ca/ProcurementFleetandProperty/Pages/so/Sustainable-Operations.aspx.
About Earth Day
The Earth Day 2023 theme is focused on engaging more than one billion people, governments, institutions, and businesses to participate in Earth Day. It is focused on reframing the conversation, accelerating action, and bringing everyone together to understand that this is within our reach if we work together. For more information on Earth Day 2023, the official theme, updates, and how to get involved, visit www.earthday.org/earth-day-2023.
Waste management
Diverting materials away from our landfills is key to reducing our ecological footprint. The county now ranks second in the province in diversion rate thanks to innovative and successful waste management programs. The county has fostered great success in projects that prevent waste going to landfill, diverting more than 70 per cent of materials received from commercial and residential customers away from landfill and helping to preserve the lifespan of our existing sites.
Sustainable operations
Over the past five years, the county has installed 31 electric vehicle charging points at various county locations, supporting greener ways to commute and travel in our communities.
Forestry
At approximately 33,000 acres and growing, the Simcoe County Forest is the largest municipally owned forest in Ontario and among the largest of its kind in Canada. Through our forestry program, and in partnership with local organizations, more than 20 million trees have been planted within the county forest since its inception in 1922.
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