VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA — (Marketwired) — 09/06/13 — Editor–s Note: There is a photo associated with this release.
Following outstanding results Encorp Pacific (Canada) is expanding a pilot beverage container recycling program to encourage even more beverage recycling in the City of Vancouver. Launched last summer in partnership with the City of Vancouver, the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation and in consultation with United We Can, the pilot program audits reported a 94 percent reduction in recyclable beverage containers in Vancouver garbage containers.
“We–ve invested more than $125,000 in this pilot program and are pleased to see its success,” according to Scott Fraser, Encorp Pacific President & CEO. “The pilot program in Vancouver will also serve as a model for potential future Encorp receptacle placements in other B.C. municipalities.”
100 new beverage container recycling bins will be added to Stanley Park and to busy street locations following the success of the first sixty installed at high-traffic Vancouver beaches and on Commercial Drive.
“This program has been incredibly successful,” said Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson. “By partnering with Encorp and working closely with United We Can, we–re moving one step closer to our Greenest City goal of reducing the amount of waste that goes to our landfills by 50 per cent, by 2020.These are the types of creative partnerships the City is working to enable more of.”
Over the last year, the beverage container bins were installed next to garbage bins at several Vancouver beaches and key points along Commercial Drive. Audits found that where the new recycling bins were installed, garbage bins had 94 percent fewer recyclable beverage containers than before, with these items being recycled instead of ending up in the landfill.
“The Park Board is committed to being a Leader in Greening through innovative programs that reduce the environmental footprint in our parks,” said Park Board Chair Sarah Blyth. “This is great news for Vancouver residents: more beverage container recycling bins are coming to Stanley Park and other busy park locations along the seawall.”
The bins are specially designed to enable easy access to recyclables for the binning community. Created with input from United We Can, a downtown organization which promotes the collection of recyclables, the bins provide open access to recyclable containers and can carry up to 144 aluminum cans or 75 plastic bottles each. The additional bins will be installed in high pedestrian traffic areas around the City, where binners go to collect and recycle containers.
“When used properly the new beverage container bins installed around the city provide the binning community with a quick, clean and safe way to collect the refundable containers left behind by the public without having to dig through garbage cans,” says Gerry Martin, General Manager of United We Can Bottle Depot.
Encorp–s data shows that recycling beverage containers in British Columbia saves enough energy to power 46,000 homes, takes the equivalent of 27,000 cars off the road, and reduces 96,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent being released into the atmosphere. Encorp, the largest stewardship organization in the Province, recycles one billion containers per year. B.C. is a leader in industry product stewardship, receiving the highest ranking among Canadian provinces from EPR Canada. For the full report, please see .
About Encorp Pacific
Encorp Pacific (Canada) is a product stewardship corporation with beverage container management as its core business. Encorp–s mandate is to develop, manage and improve systems to ensure that used containers are properly recycled and not land-filled or incinerated. For more information, please visit:
About the City of Vancouver
The City of Vancouver is renowned for its innovative programs in the areas of sustainability, accessibility and inclusivity. In February 2009, Mayor Gregor Robertson launched the Greenest City initiative with a goal to map out how we can earn the title of becoming the greenest city by 2020. For more information, please visit: vancouver.ca.
About Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation
Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation is responsible for providing services and programs that protect and maintain more than 200 parks, including community centres, swimming pools, skating rinks, fitness centres, golf courses, marinas and street trees. For more information, please visit: vancouver.ca.
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Contacts:
Encorp Pacific Canada
Sandy Sigmund
VP Development & CMO
604-473-2406
City of Vancouver
Corporate Communications
604.871.6336