Talking Trash: the politics of sustainability and waste management in Whistler, British Columbia

In 2005, the Resort Municipality of Whistler, British Columbia began shipping its solid waste to a landfill in Redmond, Washington as part of its solid waste management program. According to the municipality this practice is in line with Whistler 2020, its fifteen-year comprehensive sustainability plan, adopted in 2004. Whistler’s waste management policy and practices raise questions of municipal, citizen, business, and visitor responsibility regarding waste management and sustainability in resort communities. The research focuses specifically on the issue of waste management in Whistler, British Columbia, which has articulated a strong sustainability discourse based on The Natural Step framework. Through a process of discourse analysis, and in depth interviews, conclusions regarding responsibility for waste management and sustainability policy in Whistler, B.C. can be formed while considering implications for the adoption of sustainability policies in other resort communities.