The Manager of Solid Waste for Steinbach is reminding residents of the dos and don’ts of recycling during the Christmas season.

Brian Davis says wrapping paper is one of those things that should not be thrown into the recycle bin. 

“The Christmas wrapping paper has already been recycled so many times that there is actually no fiber left in the paper to reuse,” explains Davis. “It’s at the end of its lifespan.”

He notes another item that tends to be associated with a lot of Christmas gifts, but should not be recycled, is Styrofoam. 

When it comes to recycling at this time of year, Davis says it is important not to tip off thieves as to what was under your tree at Christmas. If you have large boxes from big-ticket items that you are placing in your recycle bin, Davis says it is important that you cut up those boxes to fit into the bin. He notes another option is to take those boxes directly to the Steinbach landfill, where items can be placed into recycle bins at no charge.

As for living Christmas trees, Davis says the city’s recycling crew will pick those up as well. However, he asks residents to hold onto them for at least another week.

“With your living Christmas trees, you can start putting them out January 2nd at your curb on your regular garbage day,” he says. “And we’ll be picking those up as time permits for our crew.”

Meanwhile, Davis reminds Steinbach residents that because of Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day all happening in the next 10 days, the city’s garbage and recycling calendar will be changing quite a bit. 

Davis says another thing to remember is that the Steinbach landfill will be closing at 2 pm on Christmas Eve.Â