​Originally published Sept 5/18 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

1. Small Stuff

The box I went through this morning reminded me that small things won’t likely be recycled. They are messy, often ending up on the floor or being left behind in the baler.  Small things include metal and plastic bottle caps, hole punch confetti, paper scraps, business cards, tea bag envelopes and cash register receipts.

In Winnipeg (if they make it there) recyclables are loaded onto the sort line by front end loaders so these items will probably not make it to the line. If they do, the line moves quickly so workers wearing gloves are not able to grab these small items.

The box also had paper labels from tin cans which are not recyclable.

     2.    Summer

It has been a hot summer which is reflected in the amount of beverage containers we receive. Although we do not sort out plastic bottles, we do take out the aluminum cans and sell them separately as other prices have fallen.

We have baled 2,519 kg of aluminum in 2018. Over half, 1,332 kg, was baled in July and August.

Beer cans and bottles are separated and returned for deposit.  We have returned more in 2018 than in all of 2017.

The money is included with the revenue from selling cardboard, office paper and aluminum.  More than half of this revenue in 2018 is from beer returns.

      3.   Thanks

I frequently mention that we receive non-recyclable items. They are easy to notice. The other fact we often miss is that more and more bags and boxes of recyclables come in with very little garbage and clean containers. 
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We appreciate the time many recyclers take to doing it right. 

Originally published Aug 29/18 The Reminder. Flin Flon, Mb. Sponsored by North of 53 Consumers Coop.

Here are a few of my thoughts as I arrived at work Monday morning.

It has been five years since we began having someone work at the Recycling Centre on the weekends.

Many people in Flin Flon and from outlying areas leave their recycling on the loading dock at the Recycling Centre. When we were closed weekends, recyclables would be piled high and onto the ground by Monday mornings.

It created a huge mess. My worst fears were that somehow a cigarette butt would get into the mess with disastrous results.

We decided to take turns working weekends. One person had Friday afternoon off and worked three hours Sunday. Another worked four hours Saturday and had Monday morning off.  

As tonnages have increased we need everyone working Friday afternoon and Monday morning so our casual worker covers weekends.  

Every weekend seems to bring ‘wishcycle’ items to the dock. This morning it was a roll of carpet and an umbrella for a patio table.

I really can’t see anything on our list that resembles either of these items. Metal frames, plastic car seats, glass items are sort of understandable as we recycle tin cans, glass jars and bottles, and #2 plastic which many items are made from.

Canvas tents, wood of all types including a bed headboard are items that lead me to believe some people are too lazy or something to take things to the landfill. This creates more mess and more work for us. It reduces the space available for recyclables on the dock.

Instead of wishcycling please call (204)687-6169 and ask. We love to answer questions.

We can also provide information about the location and hours of the landfill. 

        Aluminum – 718 kg
        Co-mingled* - 11,594 kg
        Office Paper – 2,507 kg
        Cardboard – 23,580 kg
        Glass – 5,623 kg
        Books - 725

Total for 2018 – 352,077 kg
Total for 2017 – 310,722 kg
Difference – +41,355 kg

 
Batteries – 53  kg

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


Comments – The amount of commingled materials coming from households has remained static. The increase is mostly cardboard which is 37 tonnes ahead of last year.