Originally published Mar 11/20 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

Headlines that include the words ‘recycling’ or ‘garbage’ always catch my attention.
There have been many recently. There were the negative reports about ‘recycling’ being returned from foreign countries, and only one of three bales of plastic tracked was actually recycled.

Others have focused on how recycling is contaminated and ending up in landfills because people are mixing in non-recyclables like diapers and containers with peanut butter.

A recent headline ‘Your Lifestyle is making Blue Box Recycling Unsustainable’ confirmed what our statistics have shown. The weight and value of materials is dropping with fewer hard copies of newspapers and more plastics from prepared or prepackaged foods.

Today’s inspiration came from the headline ‘Let’s put the idea of garbage in the trash’. It focused on viewing waste as a resource and public space recycling.

There are recycling bins on Main St. in Flin Flon and community parks. This gives the positive message that our community recycles.

The contents of these public bins are not pretty. One quarter to one third is garbage. Many beverage containers were not empty when placed in the bin creating a mess. Any paper products mixed in are usually too contaminated to recycle.

Unlike some communities that don’t tolerate the mess and send them to landfill, we reclaim what is recyclable to honour the desire of those using the bins to recycle.

A garbage bin beside the recycling bin reduces contamination significantly and the contents of many locations are cleaner than in the past.

We continue to get the information out, and it is making a difference.
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There are several newspaper articles and some pictures are on our Facebook page: Flin Flon Recycling. Check it out.

Originally published Mar 4/20  The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

​The Recycling Centre is operated by the Flin Flon & District Environment Council, Inc., a non-profit organization. As a non-profit, all the money that comes in is used to cover costs.

It is a good thing profit is not the goal. Sale prices for recyclables were non-existent by the end of 2019. Total sales were 5.5% of the revenue in 2019 with 67% of that coming from beer returns.

The recycling support grants from Flin Flon, Creighton, Denare Beach and individual lake residents provided 23.5% of the revenue.

This is down from 27% in 2018 as the subsidies from Multi-material Stewardship Manitoba (MMSM), the producer responsible organization for Packaging and Print materials increased significantly from 21% of revenue to 31%.

The subsidy is a rate per tonne based on tonnage two years ago. A change that year allowed us to report all the cardboard so tonnage went up significantly.

The rate also increased significantly because of the drop in prices as it is calculated to cover 75% of processing costs with revenue from sales factored in.

This increase has allowed us to ‘weather the storm’.  

The Recycling Centre charges fees to cover the cost of pickup services.  In 2019, 16.5% of revenue came from these fees and the sale of red bags.

The Recycling Centre owns our building. Rent from our tenant provided 13% of the revenue.

The surplus from the Environment Council’s contract to operate the Flin Flon Landfill provided 5% of revenues.

Miscellaneous revenue including the student grant, donations and payment for electronic and paint recycling provided 5%.
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The stability provided by these funds means recycling will continue to make a difference in our community.

Originally published Feb 26/20  The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

Recent studies show there are 100 batteries in the average Canadian household in remote controllers, watches, children’s toys, power tools, computers, alarm clocks and many other things.

Batteries are also used in industry and community infrastructure. For example, batteries provide phone service when the power is off. 

There are three types of batteries.  Wet cell batteries are used mostly in vehicles. Dry cell and rechargeable batteries are most common in households and workplaces.

A chemical reaction inside batteries creates the power.  Chemicals include copper, cadmium, mercury, zinc, lead, nickel and lithium depending on the kind of battery.
Button batteries contain the most valuable materials. 

All batteries should be recycled to prevent these chemicals and metals from damaging the environment and human health.

Vehicle batteries are recycled from local landfills. 

The Flin Flon Recycling Centre began collecting dry cell, small sealed lead acid and rechargeable batteries of all shapes and sizes for recycling in 2014.

Batteries should be in a sealed bag or container when they are sent to the Recycling Centre so they can be separated from the other recyclables.

The batteries are collected and shipped through the Call 2 Recycle program. This program is paid for by industry and an Environmental Handling Fee (EHF) that was added to household batteries February 1, 2017.

Call 2 Recycle sends boxes lined with a non-flammable material. Plastic bags are provided for Li-Ion, SSLA/Pb and lithium primary batteries as they must be in a separate bag in the box for shipping to prevent fires. Button batteries are placed between two pieces of tape.

Batteries are packed in the boxes and shipped.  
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In 2019, the Recycling Centre shipped 875 kilograms of batteries for recycling.

Originally published Feb 19/20  The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

I had the privilege of giving a presentation to the Science class at Frontier Collegiate in Cranberry Portage last week.

I enjoy presentations.  The challenge is preparing them. They need to provide the information the audience wants to have and that I want them to know. It needs to be informative and interesting.

I start with an old presentation and add a few new things based on the audience. It usually begins with the facts that we are all travelers on spaceship earth and that everything we have comes from it. The three R’s of caring for our spaceship are reduce, reuse, recycle in that order.

There are pictures of what is recyclable and what is garbage which is useful information for at school and at home.  

These students wanted to know where the recyclables go, and what they become so there were pictures of our Recycling Centre (which is a Materials Recovery Facility or MRF) and of the larger MRF we ship to in Winnipeg.

We talked about recycling cardboard and paper into new cardboard and paper products. Plastics become car parts, flooring, fleece clothing, stuffing for futons and new plastic. Metals can be recycled many times.

We also talked about recycling tires, household and vehicle batteries, electronics, tires used oil, and hazardous waste.

Many students came from smaller remote communities where materials must be shipped out over winter roads. I had some pictures from recycling organizations (PRO’s) who are working together to ship several different items on one trailer.
 
I shared a picture of the crew preparing old vehicles for shipping from St. Theresa Point. Relatives of two of the students were in the picture.

That was definitely cool. 

Originally published Feb 5/20 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

Providing accurate information about recycling is ongoing in a variety of ways.
This Recycling Bin column has been sharing news and information since 2014.

Accuracy is important so a clarification about last week’s column is needed.

The column outlined the pros and cons of the different ways recyclables get to the Recycling Centre. The last sentence ‘It is not an easy decision’ implied decisions are being made regarding this issue in Flin Flon.

This is not the case. A more accurate conclusion would be ’It is not obvious which is best’.

There are several other ways information is shared with the community.

The sign beside Hapnot has had messages since 2013. It is an interesting challenging to find the right words for the message in the space available.

The internet is a popular place to find information. The Flin Flon Recycling Facebook group was started in 2013 to provide updates, information about recycling and waste reduction and to get feedback from recyclers. Pictures of recyclable items are pinned at the top of the page.

Our website www.flinflonrecycling.org was redone in 2015 with ongoing improvements and additions. There is information about what is and is not recyclable. Monthly statistics are posted in the News section.

In recent years we have run thirty second ads on CFAR radio. We also discuss recycling issues on the Morning show on a regular basis.

The most fun promotion is the booth at the Leisure Show at the end of April. We will be there again this year.

The quickest, easiest way to get information is to give us a call at (204)687-6169 or email us at recycled@mymts.net.
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We love to answer your questions.  

Originally published Jan 29/20 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

The City of Flin Flon purchased the recycling trailer parked in the empty lot by Canadian Tire in 2014 to provide more convenience for Flin Flon recyclers.

The City gave care and control of the trailer to the Recycling Centre. We are responsible for emptying it, maintaining it, providing snow removal and cleanup of the surrounding area.

It is well used. It is emptied Mondays and Fridays usually at the Recycling Centre. A truck load is removed once during the week or more as needed.

All recyclables in the trailer are supposed to be in closed bags or boxes. Unfortunately, much of the is in open boxes or just dumped in the trailer. Also, people enter the trailer and rip bags open. We assume they are looking for beer cans.

Loose materials increase the amount of time it takes to empty the trailer significantly and cause a litter problem.

Maintaining the trailer takes 6 – 8 hours a week of employee time. There will be a few extra hours in the spring when the snow melts.

Litter is also a result of loose materials left on the ground when the trailer is full. Recyclables should be dropped off at the Recycling Centre when this happens.

‘Free’ curbside pickup is another way to provide convenience for recyclers. There would be more costs for employee time and vehicle expenses, and less for trailer maintenance.

Curbside pickup usually increases recycling rates. Tonnage went up 17 tonnes the first year Creighton provided curbside pickup (12 kg/person) and 7 tonnes when Denare Beach began the service (8.5kg/person).

This means less goes to landfill, reducing costs and increasing its life.
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It is not an easy decision. 

Originally published Jan 22/20 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

Here is a handy list of items that are not recyclable from the Simply Recycle website with revisions for our community.
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- Black plastics (i.e. heat-resistant microwavable trays, bedding plant containers)
- Bubble wrap packaging
- Car seats
- Coffee pods (single-serve)
- Coroplast signs (i.e. election signs, real estate signs, corrugated plastic)
- Dishes, ceramics, crystal or porcelain
- Drink plastic rings
- Foam packaging of any kind (i.e. Styrofoam)
- Pouch packaging for food, drinks and other items.
- Food waste
- Hangers
- Paper towels, tissues or napkins
- Pet food bags
- Photographs
- Plastic bags
- Plastic cards (i.e. expired credit cards, store loyalty cards, gift cards)
- Plastic flower pots
- Plastic furniture
- Sharps (i.e. razor blades, knives, used needles)
- Single-use plates and cutlery
- Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors
- Steel pots and pans – we sent these to the metal pile at the landfill
- Straws
- Take-out beverage cups - unless they are # 1 or # 5 plastic (McDonalds or Tim’s) please rinse.
- Textiles
- Toys
- Trophies
- VHS tapes, CD’s or cassette tapes
- Wax or foil coated paper
- Window glass, mirrors or broken glass
- Windshield wiper blades
- Wrapping paper with foil
- Yard waste
 
Check our website for information about what is recyclable. Or call (204)687-6169.

Originally published Jan 15/20 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

​Two events in the past week showed a large difference in the view people take towards recycling.

The first was actually two visits to the Centre by individuals who live at the lake. They stopped by to pay their recycling support fee for 2020. One realized he missed 2019 and paid for it too.

The municipal governments support recycling with grants based on a fee of $11.75/person. This is needed to help cover the cost of processing recycling at the Centre.

Since there is no governing body to pay that support for those living at the lake, we have asked lake residents to pay $25.00/household to support the processing of their recyclables.

These people understand that there are costs associated with recycling and are willing to help out.

The other was a phone call from an employee of a business. He said they had a pile of cardboard that was headed for the landfill. He asked if we would come pick it up.
I said we would if someone would pay the pick up fee of $23.00 plus GST.

He indicated the business was unlikely to pay. So, we didn’t pick it up unfortunately.
I mentioned that cardboard can be left in the trailer at the landfill. He indicated it wouldn’t be separated out. It was all headed to the landfill. I understood that it was going into the dumpster.

The Recycling Centre is operated by a non-profit organization but we need to cover the cost of owning and operating a vehicle and paying our employees.

Many understand that the financial costs of recycling are worth it. Others may need some regulations to get in the habit.  

April total – 40,871 kg
       
        Aluminum – 610 kg
        Commingled* - 10,589 kg
        Office Paper – 1,633 kg
        Cardboard – 23,552 kg
        Glass – 4,487 kg
  

Total for 2020 – 157,579 kg
Total for 2019 – 162,423 kg
Difference – -4,853 kg

Batteries – 123 kg

* Co-mingled is unsorted materials sent to Winnipeg for sorting


Comments – 

March total – 40,019 kg
       
        Aluminum – 471 kg
        Commingled* - 9,958 kg
        Office Paper – 2,242 kg
        Cardboard – 22,853 kg
        Glass – 3,726 kg
       
      
Total for 2020 – 116,708 kg
Total for 2019 – 162,423 kg
Difference – -3,455 kg


E – waste –  6.1 tonnes
 
Batteries – 101 kg

* Co-mingled is unsorted materials sent to Winnipeg for sorting


Comments –