Mr. Speaker, Canadians produce more than 31 million tonnes of waste annually; that is 2.7 kg per person per day. Recycling all of our waste newsprint, cardboard, glass and metal can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 400 kg per person per year.
Across Canada, it costs $1.5 billion per year to dispose of garbage. Recycling one tonne of glass saves about 39 litres of fuel oil, and recycling one tonne of paper saves 19 trees.
Let us take advantage of this Waste Reduction Week to increase awareness of waste reduction. This awareness must lead to a more efficient use of our water and energy resources, which means avoiding waste and leveraging spinoffs from recycling.
In this context, and given how serious the environmental problem is worldwide, we must urgently reduce waste. Let us all do our part this week and, why not, throughout the—