A Statistics Canada report has found Newfoundland and Labrador is the worst province in Canada at recycling. (CBC)

A Statistics Canada report released Monday shows Newfoundland and Labrador recycles less than any other province in Canada.

The Households and the Environment Survey questioned Canadians about their recycling habits in 2007, but the results weren't released until now. It found Newfoundland and Labrador households had the worst access to recycling in Canada and that the province has limited ability to recycle the four types of recyclable materials: paper, glass, metal and plastic.

The study found just 71 per cent of homes in Newfoundland and Labrador had access to recycling services versus an average of 95 per cent of households in the rest of Canada. In P.E.I., 100 per cent of homes could access recycling.

Worse still was access to curbside recycling. Only 19 per cent of homes in Newfoundland and Labrador had access to curbside recycling, compared to 51 per cent in the rest of Canada and 78 per cent in Quebec.

Only 27 per cent of homes reported being able to recycle all four materials while 89 per cent of Canadians could recycle each. The numbers generally show that when the programs are available in Newfoundland and Labrador, households take advantage.

More than 90 per cent of N.L. households that have access to curbside recycling use it.

Despite the poor access, the report found 97 per cent of people in the St. John's census metropolitan area, and 93 per cent of people living outside it, made the effort to recycle.

Overall, 98 per cent of Canadians reported recycling in 2007, up from 86 per cent in 1994.

The report also asked people why they recycled. Those surveyed in Newfoundland and Labrador were far less likely to say they felt a "social responsibility" to recycle than other Canadians.