Focus on ... 2008 Waste Reduction in Saskatchewan

2008 was a rollercoaster -- ups and downs, twists and turns, and a general feeling of being out of control. Gas prices started out around the dollar mark, wobbled upward, spiking at nearly a dollar-fifty and then plummeting to their current ninety cents. The hot, hot housing market of 2007 started to slow down and by the end of 2008 was pretty much cold. Recycling prices bumbled around and then followed the economy and the dollar and tanked by the end of the year. This activity, good and bad, was caused by decisions made elsewhere -- the U.S., China, Europe... as with any rollercoaster, there is no driver.

The implications of this wild ride have been many. Several recycling programs have either shut down or curtailed their activities because of poor economics -- high costs (e.g. gas prices) and low returns (commodity prices). Many have renewed their call to the province for a stewardship program to cover the most common recyclables -- paper, plastics, glass and tin. Consultations on the provincial "Multi-Material Recycling Program" were finished mid-2007, leaving many decisions in the government's hands. In November of this year, the Ministry awarded a contract for data collection and newsprint recycling options. The contract is due March 31, so it will be some time (read: a couple of years?) yet before we see a whole new program that will help out struggling recyclers.

Current provincial stewardship programs are rolling along. The Sask. Scrap Tire Corp (SSTC) cleaned up 28 landfill tire piles in 2008. Nearly 300 municipal tire piles have been cleaned up in the last ten years. About 130,000 tires were recycled into rubberized asphalt to resurface 140 km of highway this year. The SSTC assisted 10 community groups with grants to install recycled rubber products like playground crumb and paving stones.

SARRC, the used oil materials recycling program, is in its 12th year of operation. They saw increasing rates of return in 2008, to over 84 percent for both used oil and filters. Container returns are up 15 percent over last year and are on track to reach about 36 percent. The recent closure of Impact Products' plastics recycling facility in Regina will have some implications for oil container recycling (and other plastic recycling programs) in the coming months.

SARCAN has seen record returns for beverage containers this year. Just when they think it can't get any higher, the record breaks again. (Must be all those beverages consumed at the Rider games.) SARCAN celebrated the return of the 4 billionth container this summer and also its 20th anniversary. They also built new depots in Regina and Swift Current.

The paint stewardship program, operated by Product Care, is doing well. The amount of paint collected has increased by 20 percent over last year. The reuse aspect of the program, where usable paint is set out for the public to take without charge, has been increasingly popular.

SWEEP, the electronics stewardship program, continues to grow. Computer and TV returns are up 28% over last year. SARCAN has added a third disassembly facility, in Estevan, to accommodate the increasing volumes. SWEEP is looking at what products it should add in the next phase of its program, and has been considering ways to promote electronics reuse.

[Source: November 2008 WasteWatch]

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