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Opened in 1978, The
Hornby Island Recycling Depot is
now
celebrating 30 years of
recycling. We recycle and
reuse more
than 70% of our waste
stream.
.
In 2001 the Hornby
Island Recycling program was presented with a merit award from the
Recycling
Council of B.C. "for outstanding commitment to
waste reduction
in B.C.". The award, a plaque
made
of recycled glass, is on display at the
depot.
Depot Hours |
9am - 1pm |
Summer:
|
Winter: Friday - Sunday |
The recycling program is directed by the Hornby Island Recycling Committee, under the umbrella of the Hornby Island Residents' & Ratepayers' Association, HIRRA. Comox Valley Regional District allocates funds raised through local property taxation, and, through management contracts with HIRRA, supports the Hornby community in its recycling and reuse initiatives.
Hornby
Island Recycling Program Mission Statement
We will.......
- Encourage maximum diversion from landfill through reuse, recycling and composting of solid waste.
- Assure that the activities surrounding the collection of all materials are carried out in an environmentally responsible way.
- Continue public education on waste diversion methods.
- Assure safety in the workplace and public drop off areas of the depot.
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RECYCLING COMMITTEE 2009 |
HIRRA EXECUTIVE 2009 |
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HISTORY
In the late seventies as our population began to expand, the limits of a small island forced us to realize that there was no such place as 'away' when it came to garbage. This realization was a major impetus to the community to become one of the earliest pioneers in today's recycling movement.
One of those pioneers was Kathi Linnman. She explains that in 1978 she
was hired by the Hornby Island Ratepayers Association to set up and run a
Recycling Depot.
" The motivation for the island to try recycling was economic and I applied for the job for economical reasons too. I didn't want to see all that useful 'stuff' shipped off the island and become inaccessible. Where would we go to find a tail light for our vehicle or a damper for the stove, or a curtain rod , or ? There was little space at the Co-op for hardware, trips to town were infrequent and if your neighbour didn't have what you needed, there was always 'the dump', a great resource for all kinds of things. Here was a chance to organize other people's garbage into something useful to someone else and to keep our stuff out of someone else's landfill..."
Within a few weeks the old landfill site boasted glass and metal collection areas plus a shed for the ever-popular Free Store. A burner was added which has since been retired in favor of cleaner air, and paper recycling. We have grown into a thriving enterprise, gone through many adjustments and changes, including the addition of a composter to handle the large volume of organics we receive in the summer from our campgrounds and restaurants which cater to a thriving tourist industry.
Hornby Islanders should be proud of their achievements. Since opening the Recycling Depot in 1978, Hornby Island has played a leadership role in implementing reduction, reuse, and recycling services and community education programs in its community. Hornby Island residents now generate less than half a kilogram of garbage per person per day, much lower than the provincial average.
The Hornby Island Recycling Centre has generously shared its experience with communities and non-profits throughout BC and as far away as Ireland and Australia. The Centre's success points to the strength of volunteerism and community spirit that define not-for-profit organizations.
Today at least, the rest of the Province seems to be catching up with us, in declaring that it is no longer acceptable for Canada to produce more garbage per capita than any other country except the USA Communities that today are trying to set up systems such as ours have an uphill battle to wean people away from the ease of curbside pick-ups and throw away mentality. We can be grateful to those Islanders twenty-five years ago, who decided to do it the ' Hornby Way'. Thanks to all of them, and to all the people in the community who have been part of the struggle. Mother Earth is watching us, and we hope she approves.
Notes from the Depot July 2010.....
Summer has started and we are now open Thursdays thru Sundays from 9am to 1pm. We have also switched to our summer pricing for garbage disposal. Prices are as follows.
Small Size 16½ x 20" (42 x 51 cm) are $1.50. These are the “Kitchen Catchers” style bags.
Medium Size: 26 x 36" (66 x 91 cm) are $3.00. These are the regular green garbage bags.
Large Size 31 x 42" (78 x 107 cm) will be $5.00. These are the large orange garden and construction style bags
We have “Recycling Makes Me Hornby” T-Shirts in new colours available and this year we’ve added our very own “Hornby Island list of “R’s” on the back.
Thanks to everyone who submitted a resume for the summer work hours we have available. There has been a great response but unfortunately we can’t employ every one who applied this spring and thanks again to all who applied.
Currently we have not received any news on the proposed upgrade to the depot, mostly due to the lack of a solid waste manager in the Regional Districts office. The Regional District is trying to fill this position and we where informed that upon filling this position they would move forward with the depot upgrade.
Our aging back hoe, built in the 70’s, has been repaired and repaired over and over again with accumulative repair costs approaching the replacement cost of a much newer used machine. We have exhausted the 2010 budget for tool and equipment repair already this year and have decided to approach the Regional District to purchase a new used back hoe with the in 2008 approved capital equipment budget that they have not spent to date.
Our new brochure will be available this month. It was created by Charlie Wood of BRAINSTORM PRODUCTIONS and is filled with loads of recycling information. It will also be available as a downloadable PDF on our recycling website.
Another reminder that there “IS” a charge for large items left at the depot. If you bring furniture, mattresses, lawn chairs, arm chairs, tables, couches, washers, dryers, water heaters, fridges, stoves, kitchen islands, sideboards, beds, chest of drawers, and any other big items; please pay for their disposal.
And again well we would like to put out a “HUGE” thank you to all the volunteers who have been up at the “Free Store” every week trough out the year and have been sorting the merchandize as it comes in, regardless what the temperatures are like. Without the hard work these volunteers are doing we would not be able divert as much as we are. Thank you for all the time you give.
…………….Stani
You make choices
when you shop.
Consider the environmental effects of a product BEFORE you purchase it.
Here are some precycling suggestions:
- Buy items that can be reused rather than thrown away.
- Avoid disposals such as diapers. razors, lighters and pens, plastic foodware, paper plates, throwaway batteries. Each of these has a reusable alternative.
- Choose the least packaged item or buy in bulk.
- Buy milk, juice and beer in bottles.
- Tell your store manager when you see excessive packaging. Encourage local businesses to use and sell recycled content products.
- Bring your own grocery bag or box.
Buying recycled is the third step in the recycling loop -- without it, you're not really recycling.
Please do your part to increase market demand for recycled products by purchasing items which have recycled packaging or contents. This way companies will be encouraged to expand their usage of recycled components in manufactured goods.
If you're not buying recycled, you're not really recycling!
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A
thriving and very active component of |
SECOND HAND ROSE
By Janet LeBlancq
"Do I just take this?" he asked, holding a decent looking electric floor sweeper at arms length. It was as if he was expecting me to snatch it back, or at least tell him how much it cost. I loved telling him "Yes, you just take it."
This is the Free Store, you give and take. For us in the Use Again business, that is all there is to it. There are memorable stories about the best scores. Colleen Work once drove a truck that came from the free store used car lot. It was white with a wooden deck. Ran well, but only for one summer as I recall. When Paul and Carole were courting, I invited them for dinner. They wore identical shoes. I knew then that the romance was serious. Paul's Gucci shoes were Vancouver store bought while Carole's were Free Store found.
There I was at the RCBC convention banquet in Richmond, decked out in Free Store finery and they called on me to receive our award. Wendy Hanford once told me that her Free Store wardrobe was sufficient and more to see her through a realtor's convention in Vancouver.
And this month, an islander is on the quest for the perfect bra. How do you feel when you see your 2"d hand bra draped across the display area, with a baby stored in one cup while her mother shops? Oh God. "Twiggy, where are you? Come out, come back, wherever you are."
How do you feel on those occasions that you see your shirt walking around the Co-op wrapped around someone else? Now the politically correct thing to do is say nothing. Or you could exclaim, "That shirt looks great on you", while thinking, "Much better than it ever did on me." Or you might wonder why you ever gave it away. Be patient, you can get it back someday from the Free Store.
Save wool for Kay Inglis, she knits socks, and potential quilt squares for Una Keziere and the quitters. Gather plastic bits for Stevi's child artists in training; last spring, we also had a run on red shoes and musical instruments. One year we saved all toilets for the theater group who returned them in mint and polished condition. Yvonne from Denman harvests appliance parts. He can only take as much as he can carry on his bike. Emery Alstad finds lawn mower parts. Max Metal's old ambulance transmission is now in Don Cartwright's van. We cut the top off another van for Timber, tho I don't know the intended use. I just know it was Very Important.
Doug Nixon was compacting the Dumpster loads last summer when a bolt was lost from his backhoe shovel. We searched the Free Store and found a replacement bolt that worked fine.
The most unusual Free Store score? It was a summer day at the depot and Kathi Linnman was doing an early bird visit. She sailed into the office, carrying a small plastic detergent pail. She handed me the pail and declared. "You won't believe this." I wouldn't have. Inside that Tide pail in a labeled bag were the "cremated remains of Jean Sheils". Because she had been a member of the Recycling Committee, we figured Jean was just checking in. Though we were tempted to keep her around, Jean did not remain with us. We laughed about this, but on the edge of a tear.
Recycled roosters have come through our revolving free store gate mostly just in time to avoid the pot, one transferred in from Galleon Beach to save the neighbors from 4 A.M. wake up calls. Arriving at the depot, the Rhode Island Red ran around admiring his image in shiny hubcaps! One rooster went AWOL, presumed possumed and two were recently adopted. We were fascinated by Yana's skill as he captured both birds with a fish net. They now enjoy life at Pethick Pastures. Lucy's dog was stranded 3 days in a Dumpster while everyone searched high and low. When rescued, the dog was fine and not very hungry.
The depot office is a treasure trove of Use Agains. The computer came from the R.C.M.P. offices in Courtenay: the filing cabinet was once in the government buildings in Victoria. The coffee maker made Java for the Radio Free Hornby gang before they were busted, the water taps used to be in the Hornby Clinic, and the table hails from up North. Dennis Zbirun rescued the big office chair from the Dumpster at the Pidgeon Lake landfill.
The kids are getting more into the Free Store rhythm each year. Often they come to the office and ask to be volunteers and "can I wear the badge?" They are usually assigned the children's section, and under the watchful eyes of the veterans, they learn to sort and tidy and not take everything they see on the first trip.
This really is a story about us. We've been recycled into this space and time, converging, we know not why, at Hornby's Free Store where the search and rescue of needful things continues.
LINKS
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THE COAST WASTE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION
The Hornby Island Recycling Depot is a member of The Coast Waste Management Association (CWMA), a nonprofit organization formed to represent the waste management interests of government, non-profits, and businesses on Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast and Central Coast of BC -
HIRRA (Hornby Island Residence ane Ratepayers Association)
HIRRA, along with our local Island Trustees, represents the interests of islanders with respect to local and regional issues. HIRRA is one of the principal service providers on our island, and has contracts with the Regional District of Comox-Strathcona for the provision of regional district services on Hornby Island. -
HORNBY ISLAND
More information and pictures of our beautiful island off the coast of British Columbia. -
RECYCLING COUNCIL OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (RCBC) Canada’s oldest recycling council. Founded in 1974 and registered provincially and federally as a non-profit organization. Starting out as an umbrella group for community based non-profit recycling societies, today the RCBC's 300 members include governments, businesses, non-profit societies, and interested individuals from all parts of British Columbia -- and beyond.
Thier mission is to be a non-profit organization that brings everyone together to work for environmental sustainability. They advocate waste avoidance and resource conservation through education and information services, and through participation in policy development.
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THE RECYCLER GALLERY
Ever think of recycling electronic images? A lot of people have video cameras connected to the Web. They aim the cameras at whatever is around them - their office, lab, city, parrot, bus stop - whatever. This site recycles all those mostly monotonous images into art. It even allows you to create your own recycled image and post it into an electronic gallery. You remember when Andy Warhol said that in the future everyone would be famous for 15 minutes? If we recycle we oughta be able to stretch it to around 20..... -
ENVIROLINK
An online environmental community with a wealth of contacts and information for the environmentally aware. Connected to this site is ENVIROARTS, a site featuring essays, poetry, interviews, and portfolios gleaned largely from the pages of the award-winning magazines.
- THE PLANET ARK RECYCLING
REPORT
A keystone document in Planet Ark's wider strategy to generate a renewed enthusiasm for recycling at public, corporate, media and governmental levels in Australia.
- ECO-CYCLE
A community based program in Boulder Colorado, Eco-Cycle is one of the oldest and is the largest of nonprofit community recyclers in the US Founded in 1976, Eco-Cycle continues to promote a strong conservation ethic.
- ANTI-RECYCLING MYTHS
Sponsored by The Environmental Defense Fund , this rebuttal to the New York Times article, "Recycling is Garbage" is an excellent read.
- VIRTUAL
RECYCLING
Manitoba's Product Stewardship Program (MPSP) provides financial assistance for household recycling programs throughout the province and sponsors this website designed for schools.
For further
information
Contact Recycling Program Manager
Stani Veselinovic
EMAIL: hiwmc@yahoo.com
Phone: 250 335-0550