Originally published June 5/19 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

Recycling has been in the news in the past two weeks. The containers of ‘recyclables’ being returned from the Philippines and Malaysia are examples.

Friends have forwarded several news items to me. There are some interesting details in what I have read.

First of all, the problem plastics are usually film plastic like plastic bags, wrap and the number six plastics which includes Styrofoam. These are low grade plastic and rarely are recycled.

Many programs included them because they could ship them overseas. These countries have shut down the marked as they realized it is garbage and recycling programs that included these materials are stuck with them.  

The other problem is garbage contamination.

We have never recycled these products and remove garbage.  The companies we ship would not accept them because they did not ship overseas.  Therefore we are not facing backlogs thankfully.

The good news is that the high quality #1, 2 and 5 plastics are still moving to mills in North America. Their prices have fallen which affects us indirectly by an increase in the sorting cost in Winnipeg. 

China’s closure is still affecting the corrugated cardboard market which is 50% of the recyclables that we ship.

North American mills are at capacity so the Emterra and Cascades, the companies we ship to in Winnipeg are stockpiling it. Unfortunately, we have no space so must ship every two weeks.

The price had increased some over the past year. In May it dropped to from $35.00 to $14/tonne at Emterra.  Cascades, is paying nothing for our bales and charging $10.00/tonne for the larger bales from local stores.

I’m told it will probably get worse before it gets better. 

Originally published May 29/19 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

I was challenged once by a young person when I picked up some garbage. “Why? It’s not your garbage.”  “But it is my community.”

It is obvious recently that many people in our community feel this way.  Pictures and posts on Facebook tell the story of garbage cleaned up from streets, roadways and the bush.

Actually they tell two stories.

The first story is one of community pride and appreciation for everyone who is willing to give their time, energy and resources like vehicles to make it happen.

The second story is the problem of littering. Why do people litter? Where do they think it will go?

More garbage/recycling bins have been added to our community in recent years. If there are spots that tend to collect a lot of garbage, garbage and recycling bins could be place there.

But the lack of a garbage bin is no excuse.

 If no garbage or recycling bins are available, people should put it in a pocket; leave it in a vehicle or hold on to it until they find one.

There is absolutely no excuse for deliberately dumping large items in the bush. The local landfills are close by. If the $10.00 is too much, wait for spring clean-up.

Litter does not break down very quickly.
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Here are some examples of how long it takes.
     Banana peels – 1 month
     Corn based plastic – 45 days
     Cigarette butts – up to 10 years
     Aluminium cans – 200 to 500 years
     Plastic bag – up to 1,000 years
     Styrofoam cup – 1 million years
 
Where should these items go?  Banana peels can be composted. Aluminium cans should be recycled. The rest go in the garbage. 

Originally published May 15/19 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

The community recycling program was started by a group of people who called themselves the Environment Committee. Members wanted to promote caring for the environment. Recycling was being done in many places and seemed like a good place to start.

As the program grew it needed money for space, shipping, equipment and employees. Some came from sale of recyclables but more was needed from municipalities and fundraising.

The Committee incorporated as Flin Flon & District Environment Council, Inc., a non-profit organization in 1995 to provide a legal framework for where the money was and how it was accounted for. It meant no one was personally profiting from recycling.

The activities of a non-profit organization are governed by a Board of Directors who volunteer to make decisions about operations of the recycling program. They may do the work or oversee people they hire to do the work and help out as they have time.

The knowledge and expertise of Board members make a big difference in an organization.

 Bob Lyons joined the Board of Directors in 2011. He brings a   variety of skills to the position.

 His official role is treasurer, overseeing financial transactions   and working with the budget committee.

 He has provided forklift operation training to staff and filled in   loading a trailer for shipping on one occasion. He does annual   maintenance on the forklift and has fixed wiring on the   recycling trailer. He is a great for consultant for mechanical repairs.
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Bob worked closely with Frontier Industries preparing for and installing the new baler which was a three day process.

Bob regularly stops by the Centre regularly and helps with little maintenance jobs.
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Thank you Bob for your valuable contributions. ​​

Originally published May 8/19 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

The Flin Flon & District Environment Council held its Annual General Meeting on Monday April 29.

The usual business of AGM’s like reviewing financial statements and electing Board members is not very exciting.
The first half of the meeting is designed to be interesting and informative by reviewing activities and honouring people who have played an important role at the Recycling Centre and the Flin Flon Landfill.

This year we recognized an employee, a volunteer and a Board member.
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Mike Anderson began working Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the landfill in January of 2010. At the time he was the only employee there. Shelter was in a small cement shack heated by a small wood stove that burned wood recovered from the landfill.
Mike would meet people as they arrived and direct them to the places their loads would go.

The landfill operations have changed. A heated trailer and a gate attendant were added in July 2012. The attendant gives people directions for dumping their loads. Mike is responsible to make sure that happens and to help as needed.

The landfill has become more organized. The oil recovery program was in place when he started. Tires, household and construction areas became more organized and the Household Hazardous waste depot was added.
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Mike collects beer cans for the Recycling Centre in his spare time while on the job.
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​Ray Berg has volunteered at the Recycling Centre eight days every month since 2013. He is a steady worker, getting recyclables ready for baling. As the volume of materials coming in has increased, his help is an important part of keeping up.
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Ray enjoys sharing ideas, and talking about sports teams. 

​Thank you Mike and Ray.

May total – 50,323 kg
       
        Aluminum – 472 kg
        Commingled* - 13,375 kg
        Office Paper – 3,737 kg
        Cardboard – 25,955 kg
        Glass – 5,414 kg
        Books –  712
        Other plastics – 591

Total for 2019 –  212,755 kg
Total for 2018 – 211,906 kg
Difference – +849 kg


Batteries – 90 kg

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


Comments – This month was a new record for kilograms in a month. It is the first time we are over 50.