Trenton - Poor weather wasn't enough to deter the efforts of 800 + Quinte residents and businesses as they took advantage of an opportunity to have their e-waste recycled for free. Quinte Waste Solutions (QWS), an approved collector under the Ontario Electronic Stewardship Program, partnered with the Belleville Green Task Force to bring this waste electronics recycling event to businesses and residents in the area this past Saturday May 8th at the Yardmen Arena.
Jennifer Salutari, Waste Electronics Program Supervisor for QWS was delighted at the quantity of e-waste received. "I was amazed to see so much collected Saturday, the more electronics we gather today will mean less in the landfill tomorrow" she explains. A total of five 53' tractor trailers were filled at the event. Gleaners Food Bank also received support from the community through donations of non-perishables as well as monetary donations.
The high participation at last Saturday's event suggests that another collection day may be necessary. Salutari figures it will be planned sometime in late summer, and reminds residents that they may drop off waste electronics at the Belleville Depot [75 Wallbridge Crescent], along with their Hazardous Waste on Tuesday's between 4pm and 7pm and Thursday's 8am until 2pm. Televisions are not accepted at the Depot because of the amount of space they take up and therefore require special events like the one held this past Saturday.
For more information on waste electronic recycling days, please visit http://www.quinterecycling.org/
Showing posts with label Recycling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recycling. Show all posts
Monday, May 10, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
GTA recycling woes haven't migrated to Quinte area
Regional – While media reports indicate Toronto and some surrounding municipalities are struggling to find markets for recycled materials, Quinte Waste Solutions (QWS) is not experiencing the same problems.
A Toronto Star article this week cited the recent closures of several major recyclers as an issue facing Greater Toronto Area (GTA) municipalities.
Manager Rick Clow said Quinte Waste Solutions has been affected by the closure of the Canadian Polystyrene Recycling Association in Mississauga, as it was the only Canadian recycler of polystyrene.
However those materials represent a relatively small portion of the items collected locally, Clow said.
"Currently we're stockpiling, but it's not a large amount," Clow said.
QWS is looking for a solution along with the Canadian Plastics Industry Association.
Clow said Unical Glass, which closed a new Brampton facility, dealt primarily with mixed broken glass from recycling systems in the GTA. QWS currently separates coloured glass from clear and sends it to a company called NexCycle in Guelph. QWS has also done business in the past with both Atlantic Packaging, which closed a Whitby facility, and Abitibi-Bowater, which has also made cuts to its operations.
"For some time now we've been sending our material to other mills," Clow said. He pointed out that there are three paper processing facilities in the local area – Strathcona Paper in Napanee, and Norampac and Sonoco in Trenton. "We should all be supportive of our local processors," Clow said.
He said if a situation arose where a plan to offer aid to Atlantic was proposed, it should also be offered to all Ontario processors. Clow said he has no immediate concerns about the recycling industry or the ability to find a market for recovered material. He said the problems with CPRA and Unical were, to the best of his knowledge, not related to the market, although Atlantic has cited high costs as the cause of its closure. "All our material is finding a home," Clow said. "We're certainly happy for that."
On average QWS collects 215 kg of recyclable material per household annually. Clow said the weight of material collected is staying about the same, which he attributes to both the current economy and the fact that manufacturers are looking to reduce the overall weight of their products.
This means that while more material might be collected the weight might not increase accordingly.
QWS is responsible for waste reduction in Belleville, Quinte West, Tyendinaga, Prince Edward County, Centre Hastings, Stirling-Rawdon,Tweed, Madoc Township and Marmora & Lake.
It is administered by the Centre & South Hastings Waste Services Board, made up of members from each of the municipalities. Along with blue box programs, Quinte Waste Solutions operates programs to handle hazardous waste and to divert organic materials, including food scraps, leaves and brush from landfill.
http://www.communitypress-online.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2551332
A Toronto Star article this week cited the recent closures of several major recyclers as an issue facing Greater Toronto Area (GTA) municipalities.
Manager Rick Clow said Quinte Waste Solutions has been affected by the closure of the Canadian Polystyrene Recycling Association in Mississauga, as it was the only Canadian recycler of polystyrene.
However those materials represent a relatively small portion of the items collected locally, Clow said.
"Currently we're stockpiling, but it's not a large amount," Clow said. QWS is looking for a solution along with the Canadian Plastics Industry Association.
Clow said Unical Glass, which closed a new Brampton facility, dealt primarily with mixed broken glass from recycling systems in the GTA. QWS currently separates coloured glass from clear and sends it to a company called NexCycle in Guelph. QWS has also done business in the past with both Atlantic Packaging, which closed a Whitby facility, and Abitibi-Bowater, which has also made cuts to its operations.
"For some time now we've been sending our material to other mills," Clow said. He pointed out that there are three paper processing facilities in the local area – Strathcona Paper in Napanee, and Norampac and Sonoco in Trenton. "We should all be supportive of our local processors," Clow said.
He said if a situation arose where a plan to offer aid to Atlantic was proposed, it should also be offered to all Ontario processors. Clow said he has no immediate concerns about the recycling industry or the ability to find a market for recovered material. He said the problems with CPRA and Unical were, to the best of his knowledge, not related to the market, although Atlantic has cited high costs as the cause of its closure. "All our material is finding a home," Clow said. "We're certainly happy for that."
On average QWS collects 215 kg of recyclable material per household annually. Clow said the weight of material collected is staying about the same, which he attributes to both the current economy and the fact that manufacturers are looking to reduce the overall weight of their products.
This means that while more material might be collected the weight might not increase accordingly.
QWS is responsible for waste reduction in Belleville, Quinte West, Tyendinaga, Prince Edward County, Centre Hastings, Stirling-Rawdon,Tweed, Madoc Township and Marmora & Lake.
It is administered by the Centre & South Hastings Waste Services Board, made up of members from each of the municipalities. Along with blue box programs, Quinte Waste Solutions operates programs to handle hazardous waste and to divert organic materials, including food scraps, leaves and brush from landfill.
http://www.communitypress-online.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2551332
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