Recycling

All material from the PRRD is shipped out via backhaul, filling up trucks that would be heading south empty otherwise. Click through the slideshow below to learn more!

Information provided by Recycle-It Resource Recovery based on materials they process on behalf of the PRRD.

Recycle BC is a non-profit organization that uses fees paid by organizations to finance residential recycling programs in many areas across BC. These organizations include retailers and manufacturers that supply packaging and printed paper to BC residents. They are responsible for collecting and recycling these materials once residents are finished with them. This is called Extended Producer Responsibility, or EPR. These programs are offered directly or collaboratively with local governments, First Nations, private companies and other non-profit organizations.

Through these programs the manufacturers and retailers of items such as beverage containers, electronics, paint, used oil, tires and batteries are responsible for end-of-life management. EPR is a way for businesses to manage the environmental impact of products during each stage of the products lifecycle, from selecting the materials used in production through to collection and recycling of the product when it is no longer useful.

It varies depending where you recycle.

Rural Transfer Stations 

Household recycling collected through the Recycle BC program is hauled two different ways. For the big 50 and 40 yard bins are hauled by the transfer station contractor. Third party contractors managed by Recycle BC haul the mega bags.

Recycling Depots

Recycling is collected in various totes. The recycling contractor collects that materials from the bins and empties them into a truck with three compartments. The front compartment is where the glass is deposited. The second compartment is where the hard plastic and tin are deposited. Any loosely collected plastic film is placed in large bags. These large bags make it easy to separate from the hard plastic once the material is deposited on the floor at the recycle centre. The last compartment is where the paper goes. Third-party contractors collect cardboard from the cardboard bins.

Depending where you recycle there are different items and materials that can be recycled. There are two different recycling programs operated in the RD. At the Rural Transfer Stations, household printed paper and packaging material are collected, processed and marketed by Recycle BC for recycling. If you recycle in town by curbside or depot or use one of the unattended recycling depots, that material is collected, processed, and marketed by the Regional District Recycling Contractor.

The rural transfer stations operate the Recycle BC recycling program, a provincial stewardship program. The Peace River Regional District receives the revenue that is generated from the recycling collected. In 2017, the PRRD received $3,634.92 in revenue from Recycle BC material.

At the landfills there is no revenue received for tires that are collected; however, Tire Stewardship will pick up and haul away the tires for free to where they are recycled. Wood waste becomes cover material and to help construct roads. Metal waste and the revenue gained goes to the contractor as part of their operating contract. Cardboard and household recycling collected by the PRRD’s recycling contractor is processed and marketed through that contract. A part of the contract revenue from that material is given back to the PRRD.

The act of recycling costs money. There are costs to collect, transfer, haul and process material so that in can be used in new products. Even with the cost, recycling is better for the environment because it maximizes the use of resources that have already been extracted from the Earth.

The revenue paid for recycling fluctuates constantly depending on markets. This is because recycling is a commodity like many other things.