Whether it’s at the landfill, recycling depot, local thrift store, or at home, residents across the region are doing their part to cut down on waste.
“I think, for the most part, the public is concerned about our environment and they want it to be what it was for themselves growing up, they want that for their kids, grandkids, and future generations,” expressed Brad Ollen, waste management supervisor for the MD of Bonnyville. “Everything that we do has an impact on the environment. If we can make our own footprint that much smaller, everyone can feel good that they’re doing their part to limit our negative effect on the environment.”
The Beaver River Regional Waste Management Commission has seen a dip in the amount of household waste collected in the Town and MD of Bonnyville, and the City of Cold Lake. According to Ollen, it has dropped from 18,685 tonnes in 2015 to 14,737 tonnes last year.
“Those decreases reflect the number of people in the area that have moved away and so there’s less waste in the area. But, I also think seeing a 700-tonne drop off from 2017 (15,644 tonnes) to 2018 (14,737 tonnes) probably reflects the fact that people are trying to do their part and have less of an impact on the environment,” continued Ollen.
That fact is supported by the increase in users at the MD’s waste transfer stations, he added.
Across the municipality’s seven landfills, there were 33,593 visits in 2018, which is up from the previous year.
“One thing we can conclude from that, is people are bringing more materials to divert from the waste stream,” noted Ollen.
Residents can drop off anything from mattresses, metal, wire, concrete, and tires. These items are recycled instead of being sent to the landfill.
“The fact that the number of people visiting the landfills and transfer stations is up is a good thing, because it means more people are looking to divert material, even things like ag plastics. We’re seeing an increase in the number of visits from our agricultural producers in our area who are bringing that material instead of landfilling it or possibly burning it, or finding other ways of disposing of it,” explained Ollen.
Interim CEO for the Dove Centre in Bonnyville, Robert Goulet, said their bottle depot has also seen a bit of a jump in users.
“With this being an oil town, our numbers fluctuate with the number of people that are in town. When the oil field went down our population dropped, so we saw a decrease in the number of people coming,” he noted. “It’s on an increase lately, so things seem to be looking better. We’re certainly showing it in our numbers this year compared to last year.”
He attributes the trend to families thinking twice before throwing recyclables into the trash.
“I think there are a lot of people where waste is a priority for them… We’re always going to have a number of people that maybe are insensitive to that type of thing. We want to promote using our depot and getting rid of plastics,” Goulet stated.
The Dove Centre also runs the Bargain Boutique, a thrift store in Bonnyville.
Goulet encourages families to not only consider what they can recycle at the depot, but also other items, such as clothing, that can be repurposed.
“I think there are a lot of people in an economic crunch that can benefit from those items. It could end up in a landfill when it still has purpose.”
Orbiting Trends, a consignment store located in Cold Lake, has seen usage grow over the last 30 years, which is one of the reasons why the Dr. Margaret Savage Crisis Centre (DMSCC) decided to open a second location called Ella’s Closet.
Executive director for the DMSCC, Susan White, believes their success is linked to families’ desire to reduce their waste.
“I think it’s amazing. Donations go, not just to the resale, which help supports the programs we run, but also to families in need… I know for me personally, I feel a whole lot better cleaning out my closet when I know that what I no longer wear is going to not only a good cause, but possibly someone in need,” she exclaimed. “I think everyone is becoming more and more aware of what we’re doing to the planet.”
Keeping this in mind, Dawn Weber, DMSCC social enterprise coordinator, said patrons are also expanding what they see as “something that you would send to the thrift store.”
She explained, “I think people are sending things now that they used to consider as something they would take to the landfill, because they know there’s a potential for it to be repurposed. A lot of people are taking items and turning them into something different altogether, or they’re stripping them down and refinishing them.”
Weber explained how people can “donate anything under the sun, including the kitchen sink.”
Using homeowners renovating their house as an example, Weber noted just because something, such as a sink, doesn’t fit anymore doesn’t mean it no longer serves a purpose.
“I’ve seen people take kitchen chairs and turn them into a planter for their outdoor garden. With the right finishing, you can completely transform anything into something new.”
White agreed.
“I think all-around, it makes so much more sense than putting it in a dumpster. There’s someone in need that can use it. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.”
From an environmental standpoint, the Lakeland Industry and Community Association (LICA) has seen increased interest.
Mason Unrau, education outreach assistant with the organization, explained.
“One of the things that we do at LICA, is we have a vermicompost workshop. Compost is one of the easiest ways to reduce the amount of waste we’re getting rid of.”
LICA also hosts shoreline cleanups in order to engage the public in a way that promotes reducing the amount of waste humans produce.
These two programs, Unrau said, have seen more people come out.
“There’s definitely a building interest in it, and those that are interested are pretty passionate about it. We hope that by holding these workshops and events… it gives people the tools and knowledge to go home and implement that in their own lives and hopefully it will continue to spread throughout the communities,” he detailed.
The Nouvelle asked readers on social media what they’re doing in their everyday lives to cutback on waste.
Vera Tootum Dumais said in their home, they recycle, take reusable bags to the grocery store, and donate clothing.
“I often look at the amount of recycling the two of us have (my son and I), and wonder if families larger than ours recycle? Imagine the positive impact if whole communities recycled? We need to do something to try and lessen the negative impact we’ve had on our earth. We need to increase or improve the ways in which we recycle.”
Candice Spanier offered a list of ways families in the area could contribute to the cause including composting, switching to electronic billing, using a glass water bottle instead of purchasing plastic, and taking care of everyday items instead of buying new ones.
“I never would have thought of myself as an environmentalist, but I do what I can to reduce our everyday waste. Even if it doesn’t make a difference, it makes me feel better knowing I’m doing my part,” she wrote.
Ollen expanded on how recycling not only helps the environment. It also reduces costs for municipalities.
“Landfilling, throwing garbage in a hole in the ground, while it may seem or sound like it doesn’t cost anything… there are lots of costs associated with that. We have to monitor our landfills, even after they’re closed, for 25 years to ensure they’re developed and being maintained in an environmentally responsible manner,” he outlined. “Construction and packing of the waste in the landfills and covering the waste, all of that is done on an ongoing basis and it costs a lot of money. It’s one thing that residents might not see, but the landfill operations itself cost a lot of money.”
He continued, “When we try and recycle and try to divert things away from landfills, it can eventually save everybody money… The cost of recycling doesn’t make a huge impact on the bottom line and it’s just good to do. There’s only so much space for landfills in Canada, in our province, and in our area. We want to make sure we’re using that space as efficiently as we can, because as that space starts to dry up, it’s only going to get more costly to provide waste services to residents.”
For LICA, being conscious of what we throw away is one way of helping the planet.
“The biggest thing is all of our waste ends up in a landfill and once it’s there… a lot of the waste there is decomposing, but it’s not doing so with oxygen. Due to that, there’s a lot of CO2 and methane being released from landfills. For our overall environment, it’s just not that great,” Unrau detailed. “By wasting less, we’re able to reduce the amount of space our landfills take up and make room for more natural environments.”
He added, “The more and more people getting involved and taking action to be conscious about what we’re consuming and putting into our landscapes is going to be a pretty important role in ensuring a long-term healthy region.”
Reader Desiray Ismond wrote, “Any little thing can make a difference. ‘We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions doing it imperfectly.’”
