Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Recycling is OUR Business

It is everyone's responsibility to look after our planet.

It is everyone's responsibility to look after their community.

When everyone does their part, no matter how small or big, we will all benefit.



...rethink, reduce, reuse, recycle your refuse


Refuse to get rid of Refuse Rightly?

Did you know you can get a fine for being a Litterbug?


The minimum fine is $337.50 for the first offense. For the second offense you will pay $675.00 and for a third or more offense you will pay $1250.00 each time.
If you are caught by a municipal officer employed to catch litterbugs you can be fined with a SOT( summary offense ticket) $445.00-$675.00.

But if you are caught illegally dumping refuse, fines can be up to $100,000 plus clean-up costs and crown can lay charges if there are witnesses.

If you are caught burning garbage on your property especially with harmful substances or packaging you could be fined $775.00 and reported for criminal charges.

Throwing litter from a moving vehicle is especially dangerous as it distracts the driver(s) behind the litterbug car. If you should see anyone doing this, take their license plate number and try to record as much of the action as possible-did you see who in the car did it: the driver, the passenger or the child in the back seat. Give this information to the local police detachment.


Who can afford to litter?
NOBODY!


If you do not 'pay' for littering today we will all pay
on another day in another way!


Image created at GlassGiant.com

ENVIRO-DEPOT



Enviro-Depots are independent businesses licensed to accept beverage containers and leftover paint from the public on behalf of RRFB Nova Scotia. RRFB Nova Scotia's Enviro-Depots are a key part of Nova Scotia's successful recycling programs.

RECYCLE RIGHT!

Refundable Recyclables...

Gable Tops Containers * NO milk/soy or rice drinks

Tetra Pak Cartons * NO milk/soy or rice drinks or milkshakes

Glass Beverage Bottles : juice, health/energy/diet drinks, pop/soft drinks,water, alcohol/imported beer

Plastic Beverage Containers: juice, health/energy/diet drinks, pop/soft drinks, water, alcohol,mini sip bags * NO milk jugs

Steel Beverage Cans: juice, energy/health/diet drinks
* NO food cans

Aluminum Beverage Cans: juice, energy/health/diet drinks, pop/soft drinks,alcohol

Refillable Beer Bottles: brown, green and clear domestic bottles ( tuck box tabs in and keep case in a dry place free form debris)

Non-Refundable Recyclables

Household Paint: latex and alkyd paint, pain cans, pails and aerosols

*** Please leave on labels, no empty or bulging cans, no marine or vehicle paints, no household hazardous waste. Also excluded from the refund program are: certain meal replacement, formulated liquid diets, baby formulas, beverage concentrates containers

Some Enviro-Depots accept automobile batteries, scrap metal, cardboard and other recycle materials. For a location nearest you, check out
www.rrfb.com



Containers

Deposit Paid

Refund

Non- liquor less than 5 litre

10 cents

5 cents

Liquor 500 ml or less

10 cents

5 cents

Liquor greater than 500 ml

10 cents

10 cents

10 cents

Deposits on refillable domestic beer bottle are refundable at $ 1.20 per dozen







RRFB

RRFB: RESOURCES RECOVERY FUND BOARD

www.rrfb.com


Check out this great website for more information about the history and objectives of recycling programs in Nova Scotia.

RRFB Nova Scotia is a non-profit corporation managed by a board of directors with representatives from the private sector and government. Our mission is to work with Nova Scotians to improve our environment, economy and quality of life by reducing, re-using, recycling and recovering resources.

Five mandates of RRFB Nova Scotia:

Mobius Icon Mandate 1 -Fund municipal waste diversion programs across the province

Mobius Icon Mandate 2 -Operate a deposit and refund system for beverage containers

Mobius Icon Mandate 3 -Develop and implement voluntary industry stewardship agreements

Mobius Icon Mandate 4 -Develop education and awareness programs

Mobius Icon Mandate 5 -Promote the development of value-added manufacturing



Each year RRFB Nova Scotia works with communities, schools, municipalities, businesses and individuals across the province to improve our environment, economy and quality of life. How? By providing the tools and support needed to reduce, reuse, recycle and recover waste-resources.



ACES

ACES: Atlantic Canada Electronic Stewardship

www.ACEStewardship.ca


ELECTRONICS RECYCLING

Beginning February 1, 2008, Nova Scotians will be able to recycle unwanted computers, monitors, printers, and televisions responsibly. Atlantic Canada Electronics Stewardship (ACES) has established a network of Drop-off Centres where residents and businesses can return select electronic products for recycling.

The ACES Program will divert electronics waste from our landfills and protect our environment. This Program will further Nova Scotia’s reputation as a leader in recycling and waste diversion.

This website contains information for everyone connected to the electronics program including consumers, manufacturers, retailers and recyclers.

Products and Fees

Rejected products Accepted Products
Companies Registered with ACES as "Pay on Purchase" (POP) Companies Registered with ACES as Remitters

An Environmental Handling Fee (EHF) will be applied to the sale of select electronic products, including computers, monitors, printers and televisions (Note: The EHF is subject to HST). Below is a list of products included in the ACES program and their associated EHF:

DESKTOP COMPUTERS – $10 EHF
Includes Central Processing Units (CPUs), mice, keyboards, cables and other components within the computer. This includes desktop computers, desktop computers acting as servers, and all associated keyboards and cabling.

MONITORS – $12 EHF
A display device used for displaying images from computers or other sources that does not meet the definition of a television. This includes traditional Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) and all flat panel display technologies such as LCD and plasma.

NOTEBOOK COMPUTERS – $5 EHF
Includes portable computers such as notebook, laptop and tablet PCs.

DESKTOP PRINTERS – $8 EHF
This includes printing devices that are designed to reside on a work surface, and includes various printing technologies, including Laser & LED (electrophotographic), ink jet, dot matrix, thermal, dye sublimation and “multifunction” devices that may copy, scan, fax, or print.

TELEVISIONS – $15 - $45 EHF
A video display device with an imbedded television tuner.This includes various display technologies, such as traditional Cathode Ray Tube (CRT), flat panel (LCD and plasma) or rear projection.


  • 18" or less - $15
  • 19" to 29" - $25
  • 30" to 45" - $30
  • 46" and up - $45

At the present time we are not set up to take electronics but hope to accommodate you in the near future.



EnviroMentality

Image created at GlassGiant.com



Most people are familiar with the word recycling. But sometimes we forget that it means more than just throwing the odd pop can into a recycling box.

What does recycling mean?

Recycling is a multi-stage process that describes:

  • People saving their recyclables for the curb or depot
  • The materials being collected and prepared for market
  • Industries buying those materials back
  • Transporting shipments of materials to buyers, and
  • People buying new products that have been made from recycled materials!

Have you seen this symbol before:

mobius recycle symbol

It's called a mobius loop (pronounced: mo-bi-us) and it is recognized around the world. Each arrow stands for the 3 main components of the recycling system:
  • The companies that make products and sell them to households and businesses
  • People who buy products and separate their recyclable trash, and
  • The recycling industry that collects, sorts and processes our recyclable materials, and gets them back to the manufacturers who will make new products from them.

Imagine each arrow supplying goods or materials to the next one. If one arrow stops doing its job, waste will result. It's the continuous cycle that makes the recycling system work.

Is recycling the only answer?

We all know the benefits of recycling, but remember the 3 R's?

Well, recycling is the 3rd 'R' - after reduce and reuse! Recycling is a great thing to do. Of course, it also uses energy and produces waste. For example: think of the fuel that is burned by all the trucks that collect and transport recyclable materials, the heat (energy) needed to melt plastic and aluminum for remanufacturing, and the sludge that results from newspaper de-inking.

So, keep on recycling ... but do these things first:

Reduce the amount of waste you generate. We can ask ourselves some important questions before we buy something new:

  • Do we really need it?
  • Can we use something else instead?
  • Can it be repaired if it breaks?
  • Can it be recycled?

Consuming less is still the best way to reduce waste and minimize pollution.

Watch out for packaging

  • Don't buy products that are over-packaged.
  • Purchase refillable products or products in recyclable containers.
  • Don't buy single-serve or convenience packages.

Buy environmentally-friendly products.

  • Avoid disposable items such as diapers, paper napkins and cups.
  • Purchase durable and repairable goods.
  • Make your own non-toxic household cleaning products.

Stay informed!

  • Become an advocate for the environment.
  • Keep looking for ways to minimize waste to reduce your impact on the environment.

Close the loop by buying recycled products.

  • Producing items from recycled materials takes less energy, produces less waste and reduces the need to cut more trees for paper, dig more mines for metal, and process more petroleum for plastic. Wherever possible, it is good to buy products that include recycled content rather than those made from brand new materials alone.

We can all do our part by putting things into our blue box at home and participating in a school or community recycling program. We can Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. And when we decide we really do need to buy a new product, we can look for recycled content and help close the recycling loop.



- that by taking your paints to the local Depot you keep paint out of our many streams and lakes

- that recycling creates jobs in transportation and in the processing of new products

- that over 3 million containers of paint are purchased every year in our province and up to 25% of that paint is never used

- that EARTH DAY is April 22

- that worms help with composting


- that in the past year Nova Scotians have:
  • recycled 268 million beverage containers


  • recovered over 1.1 million used tires


  • recycled 268,000 litres of leftover paint


  • composted 83,000 tonnes of organic material


  • recycled 46,000 tonnes of recyclable materials through municipal programs


  • kept 100,000 tonnes of construction and demolition waste out of landfills


  • cleaned up 1594 derelict vehicles from roadsides and properties around the province
Remember: symbols 1 and 2 go in the BLUE!





R... recycle, reuse, reduce as much as you can

E... environment will be destroyed more if you don't

C... community needs to own this issue

Y... young as in never too young to learn about recycling

C... caring is what happens when we do our part

L... learning the lessons to help our planet

I... intelligence is what we use to save the world

N... NOW is the time to start!

G... global is planet Earth which is affected by what we do and do not do today





Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Community for Change

Change from the Heart




The following organizations in the Eastern Passage and surrounding areas have a 'coin collection' as a fund raiser at Matt's Bottle Exchange.


Feel free to save your recyclables for these organizations when they come knocking door-to door or drop off your recyclables to the Depot and let us know which organization(s) you wish to donate your 'change' to.

Not For Profit Organizations:

Shearwater Blue Fins Swim Club
18 Dartmouth Lions Air Cadets
SCARS
Habitat for Humanity
Epilepsy Assoc/NS
Autism Society of NS
Cancer Society




Schools:


Colby Village Elementary
E.P. Educational Centre
Seaside Elementary



Call at 465-2828 or email at mattsbottleexchange@live.com to set up for a Bottle Drive!

In this Community

Matt's Bottle Exchange
Cow Bay Road, Eastern Passage 465-2828

Meet me and the Staff!


Matt:




Staff:


Hours of Operation:

Monday to Friday 9:30 am - 6:00pm

Saturday 9:00am - 6:00pm

mattsbottleexchange@live.com



PLEASE PLEASE remove the caps from your containers. They are not recyclable.

We all have to do our part to make sure recycling works the way it is supposed to. Removing caps before you drop off your bottles saves employee time and storage space at our facility.

If you keep your 'empties' stored outside make sure to rinse them very well, with soap is better. This will keep the ants and other creepy crawlies away from your recyclables until you can return them.



Don't forget...RECYCLING is EVERYONE'S Business!