Solid Waste & Recycling June/July 2010

a gy nt er va En nt Co -to- Pla 6 1 te ra as ga ge W a pa Ni —

Solid Waste & Recycling Canada’s magazine on collection, hauling, processing and disposal June/July 2010 $10.00

CPMP No. 40069240

An EcoLog Group Publication

CONTAINER STARS

Beverage container recovery across Canada — page 8

CleanTech Canada supplement — pages 19-26

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Solid Waste & Recycling

CONTENTS June/July 2010 Volume 15, Number 3

Canada’s magazine on collection, hauling, processing & disposal

COVER STORY

Container Stars!

8 Cover art by Charles Jaffé

Our performance update on different programs to divert used beverage containers in Canada spotlights some stars.

by Clarissa Morawski

FEATURES COVER STORY SIDEBAR: PACKAGING History of packaging innovation.

by Catherine Leighton

15

CleanTech Canada

WASTE-TO-ENERGY: COVANTA Covanta’s plant in Niagara Falls, NY.

by Guy Crittenden

16

RECYCLING: CARS

EDITORIAL: GREENHOUSE GAS Carbon compliance strategies.

End-of-life vehicle management.

by Anne Wordsworth

27

20

by Teresa Meadows COVER STORY: FUNDING

WASTE INDUSTRY: TRAINING

British Columbia's ICE Funds.

ECO Canada’s report — a preview.

by Carl Friesen

31

COLLECTION: ORGANICS

Ottawa Green Bin marketing program.

by Rod Muir

39

DEPARTMENTS Editorial Up Front Composting Matters Waste Business

(PAGES 19-26)

by Guy Crittenden

21

CLEANTECH NEWS

23

WASTE WATER TREATMENT: MINES Genomics treatment for mining wastewater.

by Rachael Froese Zamperini

4 6 33 35

Regulation Roundup Products Ad Index Blog

37 43 45 46

24

TECHNOLOGY PROFILES: BIOTEQ Treatment for acid mine drainage.

25

by Brad Marchant

NEXT EDITION

Supplement: Composting Systems & Services; Waste industry study. Scrap metal recycling. Collection efficiency. Landfill capping and closure. Baler technology.

Bonus Distribution: Official Show Guide — The Composting Council of Canada Annual Conference Space closing: July 22; Artwork required: July 25. Advertisers, contact Publisher Brad O’Brien at 1-888-702-1111 ext. 2.

Waste to Energy, pg. 16

BC’s ICE Funds, pg. 21

New products, pg. 43

June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 3

by Guy Crittenden

EDITORIAL

“The Adams Mine Lake Act continues to have a pernicious effect.”

The Politics of Garbage

I

n April I had lunch with Gordon McGuinty — the man responsible for the proposal to develop the Adams Mine in Northern Ontario into a large-scale landfill for Toronto’s municipal waste, and other communities.

McGuinty has written a book about his 14-year odyssey in the realm of discards. Entitled Trashed: How Political Garbage Made the United States Canada’s Largest Dump, the book was co-authored by long-time assistant Elizabeth Fournier and has a forward by Paul Godfrey.

Elevation Press’s news release for Trashed describes the Adams Mine as “a world-class waste management project that would have provided millions of dollars in economic stimulus to the region, and helped to eliminate Ontario’s garbage disposal crisis...

A botched billion-dollar contract, environmental terrorism and a tale of political cowardice...”

McGuinty says his project “survived fourteen years of environmental assessments, four provincial governments, five municipal elections and an international cross-border trucking dispute, only to be trashed by the stroke of the political pen of Premier Dalton McGuinty. The roles of Mike Harris, Bob Rae, Jack Layton and Mel Lastman are laid bare for all to read.”

The project was killed at the political level

by Toronto in 2000, and what McGuinty says were personal political agendas in the Ontario government in 2004.

“History continues to show that today’s politicians are more concerned with getting reelected than making the right decisions for the environment,” says McGuinty.

This fits with my observations. Whatever one thinks of the Adams Mine project, several things are indisputable (and disturbing).

First, the project met all the criteria of the very challenging Environmental Assessment Act and had its Certificate of Approval. This is no mean feat. And the project had that rarest of things: a willing host community (Kirkland Lake). It’s reasonable to ask, What’s the point of getting an EA if politicians can cancel your project at the eleventh hour?

This question still haunts waste planning departments and discourages entrepreneurs and investors in the province.

Second is the way Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty (second cousin to Gordon McGuinty, ironically) drove a stake through the heart of the Adams Mine, lest it ever attempt to rise from its crypt. The story is too complicated to tell here (you’ll have to buy the book) about how Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman — during a municipal election in 2000 — refused to negotiate the final elements of a deal that would have seen the Adams Mine move ahead. It’s clearly an account of politicians caving to intimidation during a dicey election. But the consortium — C of A in hand — carried along as a private proposal. In 2004 the McGuinty Lib4 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

erals passed the churlishly named Adams Mine Lake Act, which uses clever language to essentially prohibit worked-out quarries ever becoming landfills (despite the fact that these are often the most suitable spots).

The Act defines a lake as “a body of surface water that results from human activities and directly influences or is directly influenced by ground water.”

The net (absurd) effect of this is to deem man-made holes in the ground unsuitable for waste disposal just because they’re partly filled with rain water, or perhaps some inward flowing groundwater.

The legislation continues to have a pernicious effect. This spring, Site 41 — a proposed landfill in Simcoe County that was in the works for decades and had an EA and C of A — was canceled by politicians. I happen to think that in this case the location may not have been good but, again, one has to wonder what’s the point of EA when this happens. Ray Millar, Chair of the Site 41 Community Monitoring Committee, minis wrote a letter to the current environment minister that underlines the effect of the legislation: “Not unlike the Adams Mine, absent extensive de dewatering, the excavation required for cell development at Site 41, will certainly result in the creation of a ‘body of surface water.’ Given the acceptance of this definition, the provincial deci government has already made the policy decision that prevents the development of Site 41 as Ad a landfill. Again, as was the case with the Adsepar ams Mine proposal, the policy decision is separate and distinct from the technical debate with environ respect to site safety, engineering or environmental safeguards.”

At the opposite end of the spectrum, there are those who would prefer we have little or no need for disposal at all, if the goals of Zero Waste could be achieved (even if imperfectly). An important step in this direction is ending the municipal taxpayer subsidy to the management of packaging and end-of-life products via extended producer responsibility (EPR). Ontario Environment Minister Gerretsen and his staff spent months preparing a revised Waste Diversion Act that would have achieved something like EPR in the province; it was due for First Reading in the legislature in June, but was postponed indefinitely due to pressure from regulated industry, whose costs would (of course) increase. So even the best waste diversion plans, sadly, are affected by the politics of garbage.

To order the book Trashed: How Political Garbage Made the United States Canada’s Largest Dump visit www.gordonmcguinty.com Guy Crittenden is editor of this magazine. Contact Guy at gcrittenden@solidwastemag.com

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Solid Waste & Recycling

UPFRONT

Canada’s magazine on collection, hauling, processing & disposal

Guy Crittenden Editor gcrittenden@solidwastemag.com Brad O’Brien Publisher bobrien@solidwastemag.com Jamie Ross Account Manager jross@solidwastemag.com Sheila Wilson Art Director Kim Collins Market Production Selina Rahaman Circulation Manager Carol Bell-Lenoury Mgr EcoLog Group Bruce Creighton President Business Information Group Contributing Editors Michael Cant, Rosalind Cooper, Maria Kelleher, Clarissa Morawski, Usman Valiante, Paul van der Werf Award-winning magazine Solid Waste & Recycling magazine is published six times a year by EcoLog Information Resources Group, a divi­ sion of BIG Magazines LP, a div. of Glacier BIG Holdings Company Ltd., a leading Canadian business­to­business information services company that also publishes HazMat Management magazine and other information products.

The magazine is printed in Canada.

Solid Waste & Recycling provides strategic informa­ tion and perspectives on all aspects of Canadian solid waste collection, hauling, processing and disposal to waste managers, haulers, recycling coordinators, landfill and compost facility operators and other waste industry professionals.

Canadian Publications Mail Product Sales Agreement No. 40069240 Information contained in this publication has been com­ piled from sources believed to be reliable, thus Solid Waste & Recycling cannot be responsible for the absolute correctness or sufficiency of articles or editorial contained herein. Articles in this magazine are intended to convey information rather than give legal or other professional ad­ vice. Reprint and list rental services are arranged through the Publisher at (416) 510­6798.

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Circulation Department, Solid Waste & Recycling 12 Concorde Pl, Ste 800, Toronto, ON M3C 4J2 Call: (416) 442­5600 Fax: (416) 510­5148 E­mail: srahaman@bizinfogroup.ca From time to time we make our subscription list available to select companies and organizations whose product or service may interest you. If you do not wish your contact information to be made available, please contact us via one of the following methods: Phone: 1­800­268­7742 Fax: 416­510­5148 E­Mail: jhunter@businessinformationgroup.ca Mail to: Privacy Officer Business Information Group 12 Concorde Pl, Ste 800 Toronto, ON Canada M3C 4J2 Solid Waste & Recycling, USPS 018­886 is published bimonthly by Business Information Group. US office of publication: 2424 Niagara Falls Blvd, Niagara Falls, NY 14304­0357. Periodicals Postage Paid at Niagara Falls, NY. US postmaster: Send address changes to Solid Waste & Recycling, PO Box 1118, Niagara Falls, NY 14304.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. © 2010 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior consent.

Print edition: ISSN­1483­7714

Online edition: ISSN­1923­3388

PAP Registration No. 10991

OUR TOP LETTERS RE: “A WEEE Problem” (April/May 2010 edition) I appreciate the opportunity to respond to several aspects of your editorial column on Ontario’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) program.

We are proud of the fact that in a little over a year, OES has put in place more than 600 approved collection points across Ontario where people can drop off unwanted electronic items for recycling. That has led to more than 17,000 tonnes of potentially harmful electronic waste (including more than half a million TV sets) being diverted from landfill to OES-certified processors, who adhere to a set of stringent rules which ensure that this material is handled in an environmentally responsible manner.

Our mandate is to ensure that electronic waste — and the toxic components it can contain — doesn’t end up in Ontario’s landfills or shipped overseas for dumping with little or no regard to harm caused to people and the environment.

We are making solid progress toward our goal. This spring, we have already seen a 30 per cent increase in our monthly collection volumes. And, we have recently significantly expanded the range of unwanted items people can bring in to include cell phones, digital cameras and mp3 players, just to name a few.

We recognize that there are areas for improvement in the electronic waste recycling program’s operation, and that is why we are in the midst of a consultation with our processor partners and other service providers. We will soon put forward proposals for new incentives and other improvements to the system, so that we can collect and recycle even more electronic waste and ensure that it doesn’t end up being dumped here in Ontario or anywhere else in the global environment.

Individuals and businesses who want to ensure that their electronic waste is being safely and responsibly recycled should go to www.dowhatyoucan. ca/electronics to find their nearest OES-approved collector.

Sincerely

Carol Hochu, Executive Director Ontario Electronic Stewardship

MWA Spring Workshop

T

he Municipal Waste Association (MWA — formerly the AMRC) held its Spring Workshop on May 19-20, 2010 at the Hockley Valley Resort. Conference sessions took place on the second day; the morning featured an update by Phil Zigby, Chair MWA Markets, Operations & Contracts Committee on markets for recycled commodities, that was notably more upbeat than last year due to strengthening prices, an update on work that Continuous Improvement Fund (CIF) is doing on

diversion in the multiresidential sector and a panel on changes to organics collection and processing. The afterafter noon included sessions on the CIF and updates on the Waste Diversion Act (WDA) review and Ontario’s product stewardship programs for waste electronics, household hazardous waste and scrap tires. Time ran out for a discussion on the WDA review, which was then moved onto the internet as a conversation to take place there.

Visit www.municipalwaste.ca

The Forest Stewardship Council logo signifies that this magazine is printed on paper from responsibly managed forests. “To earn FSC certification and the right to use the FSC label, an organization must first adapt its management and operations to conform to all applicable FSC requirements.”

Member

For more information, visit www.fsc.org Canadian Business

Press

6 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

6TH NATIONAL WORKSHOP ON EPR

E

Final Panel from left to right: Scott Cassel (Product Stewardship Institute), Glenda Gies (Waste Diversion Ontario), David Lawes (British Columbia Ministry of

nvironment Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Environment co-hosted the 6th National Workshop on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) at the Marriot Eaton Centre Hotel in downtown Toronto, April 2729, 2010. About 150 delegates attended the workshop and came from all provinces, parts of the United States and Europe. While the majority of participants were from government and private sectors affected by EPR policy, other delegates included academics, consultants, NGOs and industry associations. The workshop was organized into eight sessions with topics that ranged from the development of EPR in Canada and the successes and challenges of EPR program implementation, to industry leadership in EPR and environmental sustainability. Panels varied from two to four speakers, and sessions often concluded with animated question and answer time periods that allowed for further discussion.

— Written by Catherine Leighton

Environment), Virginia MacLaren (University of Toronto), and Co-Chair Duncan Bury (Environment Canada).

W

Waste Expo 2010

aste Expo, North America’s largest event serving the $55 billion solid waste & recycling industry, was held May 3-6 in Atlanta, Georgia with a show that was well-received by both exhibitors and attendees. Waste Expo featured over 537 exhibitors (up from 486 in 2009) which includes 157 new exhibitors to the show. Networking special events occurred throughout the four days, and 40 conference sessions and workshops covering critical industry topics including tracks on recycling, green management, business & finance, and transportation. Despite the current challenge to the economy, Waste Expo 2010 was well attended and experienced a number of attendees parallel to previous years. Attendees were considered highly qualified and motivated to learn and experience what’s new in the industry.

Next year, Waste Expo exhibits will be on May 10-12 at the Dallas Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. Visit www.wasteexpo.com

New household haz-waste documentary

D

ocumentary filmmaker and activist Andrew Nisker is at it again. On June 1 the director of Garbage! The revolution starts at home previewed his new documentary Chemerical at the Cinemambiente environmental film festival in Turin, Italy. As the film’s promotional website states, “We’re confident you’ll be inspired to take an inventory of all your toxic cleaners, personal care products and cosmetics and rid your lives of them completely!”

The filmmaker is inviting viewers of the film to report to his website the toxic products they’ve gotten rid of (6500 as of early June and count-

ing). Chemerical profiles an ordinary suburban family as they agree to replace all the commer commercial chemical cleaning and other products under their sinks and in their closets with safer home homemade versions (e.g., vinegar, water, baking soda and simple perfume-free soaps). They learn they can get their home, clothes and bodies cleaner and save a ton of money, all the while better pro protecting their health and the environment. This is a great film to purchase online and screen in com communities trying to reduce household hazardous materials and wastes.

Visit www.chemicalnation.com June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 7

COVER STORY

by Clarissa Morawski “Unique to the Manitoba program is a specific performance target of at least 75 per cent recovery of beverage containers.”

Beverage container recycling in Canada, 2010

Ups E

very two years, CM Consulting publishes Who Pays What — An Analysis of Beverage Container Recovery and Costs in Canada — a comprehensive report on the status of performance and costs of beverage container recycling programs in each Canadian province.

Beverage containers are ubiquitous. In Canada, collectively, this worked out to about 1.5 million tonnes of scrap material collected for recycling, worth about $200 million in 2008.

It cost more to recover used beverage containers last year due to the economic downturn and deflated commodity prices. The substandard quality of some over-abundant materials may have required further processing, landfilling, or warehousing. High fuel and labour costs made the problem worse.

On a positive note, compaction technologies can help, reducing transportation costs by more than 40 per cent. Leading-edge measurement tools on the environmental benefits of recycling (from a life cycle perspective) continue to show the upstream benefits of recycling containers, including greenhouse gas reduction.

Throughout North America, deposit-refund programs are being expanded or newly introduced. Last year Alberta became the first province to place milk containers on deposit. Oregon, New York and Connecticut all expanded the scope of their deposit-refund schemes. In many non-deposit jurisdictions, the beverage in-

dustry is trying to recover more containers from public spaces and commercial establishments, and picking up some of the costs.

In central Canada (Ontario and Quebec) brandowners and first importers finance part of costs associated with container recovery and recycling. Here, industry pays municipalities to collect, process and market recyclables. Many municipalities have used these funds in part to introduce public space recycling bins and regular collection; these costs may also soon be absorbed by industry through proposed legislation.

Ontario and Quebec are moving toward 100 percent industry financing with high material-specific targets. Manitoba recently introduced an 80 per cent industry financing model (which commenced on April 1, 2010) that mandates 75 per cent recovery of beverage containers.

Canada’s overall recovery rate for refillable and non-refillable bottles is estimated at 66 per cent. About 98 per cent of refillable beer containers — a minority of total beverage sales (19 per cent) — are recovered. About 59 per cent of non-refillables — which make-up the majority of containers (81 per cent) — are recovered. (See Collection Rates: Table 1) Canadian deposit-refund systems combined have a total recovery rate of 83 per cent, while combined non-deposit systems have a total recovery rate of 41 per cent (accounting for containers sold and recovered at home and away-fromhome).(See Total Beverage Container Recovery Rates Deposit and NonDeposit Program: Chart 1).

These are interesting times for the beverage industry. As bottlers, distributors and retailers assume a greater responsibility in the end-of--life management of their packaging, they’re keen to lower costs, increase ef-

&

Downs

8 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

COVER STORY

Table 1: Collection Rates

BC

AB

SK

MB

(alcohol)

alcohol)

drink/beer)

QC (other beverages)

NS

NB

NF&L

PEI

YK

NWT

86%

80%

91%

59%

79%

40%

66%

—

84%

79%

69%

73%

81%

83%

Non-Refillable Glass 87%

86%

89%

35%

81%

73%

75%

57%

84%

79%

70%

82%

87%

—

PET Bottles

76%

70%

82%

49%

40%

44%

70%

45%

82%

81%

68%

84%

96%

—

Other Plastics

76%

53%

82%

18%

—

14%

—

—

27%

78%

68%

—

64%

80%

Bi-Metal

60%

65%

91%

48%

—

62%

—

24%

102%

—

79%

—

53%

36%

Gable/Tetra Pak

55%

55%

55%

18%

31%

18%

—

47%

63%

—

57%

44%

50%

48%

Other

35%

—

—

18%

—

—

—-

—

—

47%

—

44%

—

13%

TOTAL Non-Refillables 80%

75%

85%

50%

78%

40%

68%

45%

78%

75%

68%

74%

76%

83%

Refillable Beer

94%

95%

94%

97%

99%

—

98%

—

101%

102%

99%

101%

94%

97%

TOTAL CONTAINERS 81%

77%

87%

56%

91%

40%

82%

45%

83%

81%

78%

81%

78%

85%

Aluminum Cans

ON

ON (non- QC (Soft-

ficiency, and maintain consumer acceptance (i.e., not disrupt sales). (See Who Bears the Share of Program Costs: Chart 2) Let’s look at developments province by province.

Alberta Alberta increased minimum deposits from 5 to 10 cents (some deposits were already at 10 cents such as beer), and 20 to 25 cents as of November 1, 2008. After only 11 months, recovery went from 76 per cent to 81 per cent.

Notwithstanding the higher deposit (and recovery rate), sales steadily increased from 2006 through 2009, according to statistics reported by the Beverage Container Management Board (BCMB).

Also in June last year, Alberta became the first jurisdiction in North

America to introduce a deposit on all milk and liquid cream beverage containers. The deposits are the same for milk as all other beverages — 10 cents under one-litre and 25 cents over one litre. From January to March 2010, the recovery rate has surpassed 80 per cent for HDPE milk jugs and cartons over one litre. For the last three months of reported return data, milk jugs (all sizes) reached a combined recovery rate of 71 per cent and milk cartons of all sizes reached a combined recovery rate of 61 per cent.

Manitoba On September 24, 2009, Manitoba’s conservation minister approved a program plan for packaging and printed paper recovery to replace the previous program. The new program is modelled after the industry-

“In many places the beverage industry is trying to recover more containers from public spaces and commercial establishments.”

June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 9

COVER STORY

funding programs currently operating in Ontario and Quebec, where stewards (brandowers or first importers) of packaging, including all beverage-related consumer packaging, must finance a portion of recycling costs. In Manitoba’s case, that portion is 80 per cent.

The plan provides details on how waste packaging material and printed paper from households across Manitoba will be diverted from disposal. The plan defines a funding formula to calculate industry payments (stewardship fees) and outlines funding provisions to support market research, public education, and the promotion of waste reduction and recycling. The new program commenced on April 1, 2010.

Unique to the Manitoba program is a specific performance target of at least 75 per cent recovery of beverage containers. As such,

10 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

the plan contains enhanced programs for litter, plastic bags and beverage containers. In addition, Multi-Materials Stewardship Manitoba (MMSM) can deliver program elements like public space and event recycling, and education or full service recycling, whenever this is more cost effective than having municipalities do it.

The recently formed Canadian Beverage Container Recycling Association (CBCRA) is a voluntary organization made up of grocery stores and beverage companies. CBCRA is focused on implementing and financing an awayfrom-home recovery program which will help achieve the mandated 75 per cent. The program is funded through a two cent container recycling fee (CRF) that’s voluntarily paid by most (>90 per cent) of beverage companies, and in most cases is passed on to consumers

at the point of purchase. Together, these funds will finance both the away-from-home strategy in addition to the municipal curbside obligation (of 80 per cent).

Ontario Ontario’s expanded deposit-refund program for wine and spirit containers, first implemented in February 2007, is now in its fourth full-year. The program saw significant increases in overall recovery: 67 per cent in 2007-2008; 73 per cent in 2008-2009; and (estimated) 77 per cent in 2009-2010.

In October 2009, Ontario’s environment minister announced new waste policy directions for the province, with specific amendments being developed for the existing Waste Diversion Act. Suggested policy changes include making individual producers fully

COVER STORY

Total Beverage Container Recovery Rates Deposit and Non-Deposit Program: Chart 1 Total Beverage Container Collection Rates

(Deposit and Non-Deposit Programs) 90% 80% 70% 60%

83%

50% 40%

41%

30% 20% 10% 0%

Deposit Programs

Non-Deposit Programs

Veolia Environmental Services is a subsidiary of Veolia Environnement, the world’s largest provider of environmental services

Turnig Waste into a Resource www.veolia.com

June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 11

COVER STORY

responsible for waste diversion in both the residential and commercial sectors. In addition, producers will be required to meet outcome-based performance standards either on their own of through a third-party collective (and face penalties for non-compliance). Public consultation ended in February and draft regulatory amendments are expected this year.

The changes will likely mean 100 per cent financial responsibility for packaging recovery in Ontario by stewards (brandowners and first importers), and the expansion of beverage container recovery to away-from-home and commercial locations.

Quebec In November 2009, Quebec issued an official policy on residuals management that states a preference for the curbside collection and re-

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book? It’s from writing this What did I learn you are matter what side a little scary. No t the be concerned abou on, we should all g and makin ion al decis fragility of our politic rs themselves. the decision make d organized, well funde If small groups, well a -savvy, can stop and extremely media s Mine, what is next? project like the Adam miles Mine, the Adams And if a site like of thousands of acres from anyone, with used land, cannot be severely damaged where can we and can, what as a landfill, find solutions? ahead serious problems We have some so rs are so insecure, if our political leade cted, that they re-ele g gettin not afraid of for the right decisions can’t make the world The . lation the popu environment and media -driven, and the has become media das. drives political agen

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This is the true story of how the Adams Mine landfill project was killed by political mismanagement at the City of Toronto and by the Government of Inside Front Ontario.

Gordon McGuinty

Gordon McGuinty , Gordon for over thirty years An entrepreneur Cycle nsible for the Rail McGuinty was respo ed some of North includ which , North consortium corporations rail and waste nt America’s largest geme mana waste the largest and was awarded years McGuinty da. For fourteen contract in Cana landfill d the Adams Mine behin force the was garbage on to Ontario’s project as a soluti speaking to , when he is not disposal crisis. Today between he divides his time interested audiences, and his ta Alber the mountains of his residence in

Gordon McGuinty was responsible for the Rail Cycle North consortium, which included some of North America’s largest rail and waste corporations and was awarded the largest waste management contract in Canada. For fourteen years Front Cover McGuinty wasSpine the force behind the Adams Mine landfill project as a solution to Ontario’s garbage disposal crisis until it was TRASHED!

r contract, A botched billion-dolla rdice... ism, political cowa ct, environmental terror s Mine landfill proje of how the Adam This is the true story ffective solution to tally sound and cost-e tion the most environmen -class rail transporta sal crisis, and a world to dispo ge garba by the City of Toron Ontario’s mismanagement en killed by political opportunity were landfill survived fourte Mine s Adam The nt of Ontario. rs, four provincial and the Governme tende act contr and tal assessments er nmen -bord enviro cross of l years and an internationa municipal elections actions governments, five political pen. The by the stroke of a only to be trashed n McGuinty, trucking dispute, r politicians — Dalto , media and senio efforts of the st again of environmentalists set Mel Lastman — bing Rae, Jack Layton, io, weave a distur Mike Harris, Bob right thing for Ontar striving to do the ordinary citizens ge. tale of political garba io ns of tonnes of Ontar — and why millio , why it happened United States — How it happened to landfills in the day being trucked and garbage are to this le, perseverance is a story of peop been told before. politics. It has never

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and indemnity for the management of the program. The Act established that the share of industry compensation cannot exceed 70 per cent in 2010, 80 per cent in 2011-2012, and 90 per cent for 2013-2014.

This year also marks the half-way point in a four-year project funded by beverage and related industries to capture a greater number of containers consumed away-from-home. With its $6 million+ mandate, the initiative focuses on capturing increased volumes from municipal public spaces through the acquisition of bins (and bar/restaurant bins) and in some cases funding collection and processing of recyclables. A mid-term performance report is publicly available, but no official performance data is available.

Performance and total cost data will be of great interest to all members of the beverage

cycling of packaging, printed papers and softdrink containers. However, unless the beverage industry can prove it can achieve 70 per cent recovery through alternative mechanisms to the existing system, deposit-refund for beer and soft drinks will remain in place. In addition, in the short term, the environment ministry also stated that if recovery rates fail to increase to 70 per cent or greater in the next two years, the government may actually increase the container deposit.

On March 17, 2010, Quebec’s Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks tabled Bill 88, which establishes the framework for industry contributions toward municipal recycling programs. More specifically, the Act says industry’s contribution will cover a share of the costs associated with collection, transportation, sorting, conditioning,

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industry, especially since Ontario and Quebec have (or will have) regulations to ensure industry pays for away-from-home beverage container recovery costs.

Prince Edward Island In May 2008, the new deposit return program for non-refillables commenced on Prince Edward Island. Just prior to the implementation of this program, the province repealed the law which prohibited non-refillable soft drinks to be sold on the island. Shipments of refillables

by Coke or Pepsi ended in the fall of 2008.

North West Territories Starting February 15, 2010 the NWT’s recovery program was expanded to include all milk and liquid milk products, including milk jugs, milk and milk substitute cartons, yogurt drink bottles, condensed or evaporated milk cans, boxed milk substitutes and creamer bottles.

These containers are accepted at NWT bottle depots. Exclusions include infant formula and any container less than 30 ml.

National Starting in May 2010, Tetra Pak and Recupera-

tion Mauricie (RCM), along with three other capital funding groups, will use post-consumer plastic film, gabletop and asceptic packaging in a new process called “thermokinetic mixing” that combines all of these materials into one homogeneous mix that can be used to create flower pots, pallets, plastic lumber and many other products. According to Tetra Pak, this process will use the entire package with no residuals.

Clarissa Morawski is principal of CM Consulting in Peterborough, Ontario. Contact Clarissa at morawski@ca.inter.net

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A fAmily tRAdition of gRowth, seRviCe And innovAtion

14 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010 0431_RPC_CollectCombo_SWR_Jun10_r2.indd 1

5/27/10 5:22:32 PM

by Catherine Leighton “Market acceptance issues or excessive production costs, may have contributed to the demise of the World Bottle.”

A Short History of Packaging Innovation

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xamining historical methods of managing waste can inspire and inform modern day packaging innovations that prevent waste from entering a landfill. In North America during the 1880s, most packaging was reused. Broken packaging was mended or transformed into new products. For example, a barrel might be transformed into a chair. Previous generations conserved and reused materials, and thus produced less waste.

In the 1880s, many consumers were not comfortable discarding packaging once a product was used. Susan Strasser, author of Waste and Want, explains that dual-use packaging was purposely designed for a second use, so the material was not wasted. For example, a tin filled with tobacco could later be used as a lunch box. An Ocean Spray cranberry sauce container was designed to be used later as a savings bank. Similarly, parchment paper used to wrap butter could be washed and used for a variety of household needs, including washing dishes. Not only did this provide advertising for the respective company (in this case Paterson Parchment Paper), but, after it had been used for household tasks, could simply be burned in the fire.

Originating around 1910, flour-sack dresses were another innovative marketing strategy that promoted dual-use packaging. Flour companies, such as the Bemis Company, advertised that the cotton bags used to package their products could later be used as material to make dresses. The Bemis Company even advertised that the cotton bags came in a thousand different material patterns.

These dresses proved particularly popular during the 1930s’ Great Depression and were worn by women of different social classes (not only the poor).

According to Strasser, flour-sack dresses were a particularly long lasting initiative — for they were promoted until the 1960s.

After the Second World War the concept of “disposability” became increasing popular in marketing food-packaging products. New post-war technology provided innovative, easy-to-use product alternatives that hadn’t previously been available.

Disposable products became popular, such as aluminum pot-pie trays, paper napkins and tissues, and aluminum foil. These products were convenient because they reduced household workloads and prevented the need for hired help. In addition, there was a transition towards multilayer and single-use packaging, often made of plastic. When compared to glass, plastic was a technologically advanced material because it was lighter and unbreakable. However, a major disadvantage of plastic was that consumers could not repair it. As is well known, this new attitude towards disposability was widely

embraced; material conservation and reuse became associated with poverty and a digression from innovation.

Disposable packaging was not without its difficulties, and resulted in increased waste production and increased litter. In Holland during the 1960s, Heineken beer bottles were refilled.

However, Heineken produced single-use containers for its international market because it was impractical to return containers for refilling. These single-use containers were often littered, so Alfred Heineken designed a dual-use bottle that could be used as building material to support low-income housing. The interlocking “brick” bottles were designed to be stacked and held together with mortar as an alternative to traditional clay bricks. The World Bottles’ innovative dual-use design ensured the bottle had valuable post consumption and would not be littered. Over fifty thousand World Bottles were produced in 1963, but Heineken management eventually rejected the initiative. Daniel Imhoff, author of Paper or Packaging, speculates that a faulty bottle design, market acceptance issues or excessive production costs, may have contributed to the demise of the World Bottle.

Convenient disposable products and packaging are ubiquitous in today’s society even though there are more environmentally friendly packaging alternatives. Consumers can purchase either singleuse sandwich bags or a reusable sandwich container, a 24-pack of single-use water bottles or a refillable bottle, and paper towel or a rag. Dual-use and reusable products are far less common than they once were. In a brief survey of a supermarket, tomato sauce held in a mason jar (a jar designed to be sanitized easily for a second use) was one of the only products designed for dual-use. Cereal boxes with games or puzzles printed on the cardboard interior could also be defined as dual-use. Examples of products that are still reused include refillable beer bottles and some large format water bottles.

Since landfill space is limited and the lifecycle of reusable packages is superior to any alternative, perhaps it’s time to re-examine how dual-use and other packaging innovations can be incorporated into modern society. There will always be challenges associated with change. At the end of the day, historical examples of packaging innovation are inspiring. We must wonder what other possibilities exist if we a little further outside the recycling box.

Catherine Leighton is a graduate of the University of Waterloo’s environment program. Contact Catherine at c2leight@uwaterloo.ca

June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 15

WA S T E - T O - E N E R G Y

by Guy Crittenden “Covanta will design, build and operate the 140,000 tonnes/year facility in Clarington using Martin GmbH combustion technology.”

Power to Burn Covanta’s plant in Niagara Falls, New York; a preview for Durham Region

F

airfield, New Jersey-based Covanta Energy currently owns and/or operates more than fifty waste-to-energy (WTE) plants in North America, Europe and Asia. It’s the top operator of large-scale municipal waste WTE facilities in the United States and recently acquired the North American assets of Montenay, including the WTE in Burnaby, BC. In addition to waste incinerators, the company has eight renewable biomass (wood) facilities in the US, five renewable biogas (landfill) facilities in the US, and four hydroelectric facilities in the US and Central America.

The company is actively pursuing opportunities to build more facilities or operate existing ones around the world, in places as diverse as Trezzo, Italy and Bangladesh.

Covanta says its facilities are fully compliant with emissions regulations 99.9 per cent of the time, operating 60 to 80 per cent below permit limits.

The company was chosen in a competitive bid process to construct the WTE plant planned for Durham Region, just east of Toronto, 16 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

Ontario. The mass burn moving grate technology in similar facilities have achieved nearly 100 per cent compliance and will feature state of the art air pollution control equipment and continuous emissions monitoring (CEM). Covanta says that WTE is preferable to landfill disposal and protects communities from the price uncertainty associated with export to distant landfills. Other benefits extolled by Covanta include: • Project will create $500 million+ of economic activity • Create 800 to 1,000 jobs during construction and high-paid permanent jobs • Competitively priced “renewable” energy and potential anchor for district heating steam loop or energy park Covanta will design, build and operate the 140,000 tonnes/year facility in Clarington using Martin GmbH combustion technology. The plant will generate 20 megawatts (gross) of energy — enough to power 11,000 to 14,500 homes. In addition to reducing waste volume by 90 per cent while generating power, the technology will allow diversion and recycling of thousands of tons of metals over the life of the project.

WA S T E - T O - E N E R G Y

Niagara Falls plant tour

In order to get a feeling for what such a facility might look like, in April I toured Covanta’s plant in Niagara Falls, New York. The Niagara plant is a commercial facility and — at 821,000 permitted tons per year — is much larger than the plant proposed for Durham.

Originally a first-generation RDF plant, the facility was converted to mass burn in 1996 and has the two largest waste-fired combustion units in North America. The main difference between the proposed Durham plant and the Niagara Falls plant is that the latter uses DBA roller grate technology and not the Martin GmbH system. (Company officials say their performance of both systems is excellent.)

The plant is ISO 14001 registered and is an OSHA VPP STAR Facility. It operates with a

The Covanta WTE plant process in Niagara Falls, New York.

Some footprints are bigger than others

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Recover Energy-from-Waste.

Each year, Canadians recycle approximately 8 million tonnes of waste, but still landfill an additional 27 million tonnes. Take that landfilled waste and turn it into energy and you could power approximately 1.7 million homes and offset 27 million tonnes of greenhouse gases, the equivalent of pulling over 5 million cars off the road for a year.

For more information, visit CovantaEnergy.com.

June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 17

WA S T E - T O - E N E R G Y

Title V permit and is MACT Compliant.

Key to the commercial success of the plant is cogeneration. Two 25 megawatt turbines generate electricity, and the plant sells steam to five industrial customers. Essentially, a plant like the Niagara Falls one is a power generation facility that unlike, say, a coal-fired plant, gets paid a tip fee for its raw fuel (instead of having to pay for the fuel).

As one would expect, waste is received under signed contract that specifies what may be delivered to the plant. Waste loads are checked for radioactivity, weighed at a scale house, and deposited on the tipping floor where random inspections are conducted on about 10 per cent of the material for unacceptable waste.

Any special wastes detected are separated for special handling and the remainder is blended in a pit via two enormous claws operated from a control booth, then automatically fed into the

combustion unit by a large hydraulic ram at the bottom of the feed hopper. The pit allows storage for up to four days of solid waste, and the area is maintained under negative draft to minimize odors. (Waste in the feed chute also provides an air seal for the boiler.)

Waste is spread evenly across the first roller grates where combustion begins. There are six roller grates at a 20 per cent incline.

Computers control the speed at which the grate turns and the amount of air supplied to the boiler. The fire on the grates is self sustaining and will reach temperatures of 2,500 degrees.

Ash remaining from the combustion process drops into the water-filled ash extractor, pushed out onto a conveyor and sent for special processing. About ten per cent of the original waste volume remains (20 per cent by mass), typically containing 2.5 per cent fer-

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rous and 0.25 per cent non-ferrous metals that are extracted and recycled.

Steam for the plant’s five industrial customers has been recorded as being 99.9 per cent available over the last 15 years. About 10 per cent of power production is utilized in-house and the remainder is sold to local utilities.

Like all such modern facilities, the plant has pollution control equipment that includes: computer controls for efficient combustion; scrubber for acid gas control; active carbon injection for mercury control; urea injection system for NOx control; and, baghouse for particulate capture. In addition to the continuous emissions monitoring system, a NYDEC monitor is onsite, and stack tests are conducted annually for trace elements and equipment accuracy.

I asked company officials how they feel about the proposed WTE plant for Durham Region being so much smaller, given that economies of scale contribute greatly to the profitability of the large Niagara Falls plant.

They answered that, from a purely commercial point of view, they’d like to build a larger plant, but value the opportunity to showcase their technology in Ontario with a view to gaining public acceptance and building other plants in the future.

Guy Crittenden is editor of this magazine. Contact Guy at gcrittenden@solidwastemag.com

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CleanTech Canada

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CleanTech Canada editorial

Alberta’s lessons for CleanTech companies

A

CARBON MARKETS

lthough most Canadian CleanTech companies may think that selling the carbon credits/offsets generated by their products and services is more trouble than it’s worth, with emerging new carbon markets in Canada and the U.S., it may be time to reconsider. As Alberta introduced the first offset/credit trading system in Canada in 2007, it’s the only Canadian jurisdiction with experience in a carbon compliance market to date. Some of the lessons learned by sellers in Alberta may be instructive for CleanTech businesses thinking of becoming involved in the emerging emissions trading systems in jurisdictions such as British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec.

Sellers of carbon offsets or credits in the Alberta market have found that differing verification standards across different compliance and voluntary systems significantly limit the ability to readily transfer credits recognized in one regime to another.

Companies intending to engage in offset/credit sales need to understand, at the outset, the standards associated with the particular market, because failure to meet the specific standard will mean the credits/offsets will not be accepted to meet compliance requirements. Consequently, CleanTech companies contemplating the sale of carbon offsets/credits cannot “play the markets” — i.e., they can’t easily move the offsets/credits between the various compliance or voluntary markets to get the highest value.

In addition, given the limited number of qualified offset/ credit verifiers in Alberta, sellers learned that failing to allocate verification time and costs (including the seller’s own time and costs associated with gathering and providing the documentation required by the verifier) can quickly negate the potential gains associated with smaller sales. Alberta’s sellers have also indicated that to be verified and accepted in a compliance market, the ownership of credits (especially aggregated credits) must be clearly established, even though this is sometimes difficult to do.

“Alberta’s sellers found that a lack of price transparency can lead to depressed prices.”

by Teresa Meadows 20 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

Alberta’s sellers also learned that many buyers require clauses to address what happens when the seller cannot deliver the quantity of carbon offsets/credits itemized in the purchase agreement (i.e., what happens when the third-party verification reveals that the emissions reductions modeled and sold are less than the reductions actually realized and available for sale?).

Failed delivery typically results in increased costs to comply for the buyer because they’re returning to the market to purchase additional offsets/credits at the eleventh hour with a compliance deadline looming. Not surprisingly, buyers pass these increased costs onto the seller who failed to deliver.

In addition, sellers learned the hard lesson that, with no dispute resolution built into Alberta’s regulatory processes, the specific contractual terms contained in the offset/credit purchase agreement are essential to determining the parties’ rights and resolving their disputes. As these transactions are often considered unique, there’s no generally-accepted, standard form or “one size fits all” agreement that is readily applied.

Consequently, sellers should prepare their own draft of an appropriate purchase agreement prior to entering the market.

Lastly, Alberta’s sellers found that a lack of price transparency can lead to depressed prices, as participants assume that the pricing per tonne of offsets/credits must be lower than the cost of the compliance option of paying into Alberta’s technology fund (currently set at $15/tonne).

Although these issues may seem daunting to a CleanTech company thinking of participating in these markets, emerging regional and provincial initiatives are creating expanding opportunities in the low-carbon arena, and the growing markets beyond provincial borders may make the effort worthwhile.

Further, some of the lessons learned from the early jurisdictions, such as Alberta, are being incorporated into the newer regulatory schemes.

To take advantage of the emerging opportunities, CleanTech companies need to realistically assess the quantity, quality and verifiability of the carbon reductions they’re generating in the context of their participation in a specific regulatory or voluntary program. As Alberta’s sellers have learned, there may be issues to address, but with sales of credits/offsets estimated at over US $30 million in 2008 and the market expanding to other provinces, the time may be right for Canadian CleanTech companies to plan their approach to obtaining value for the low carbon attributes of their products and services.

Teresa Meadows, LL.B., is with of Miller Thomson, LLP in Edmonton, Alberta. Contact Teresa at tmeadows@millerthomson.com

CleanTech Canada

BC INNOVATIVE CLEAN ENERGY FUND INVESTS IN NEW CLEANTECH PROJECTS

ON ICE

B

ritish Columbia created the Innovative Clean Energy Fund in 2007 to encourage the development and commercialization of new technologies for clean energy in order to protect the environment and support local economies and in the province.

The fund showcases energy and environmental technologies that solve local problems, yet have international market potential. ICE focuses on pre-commercial technology or commercial technologies not currently used in BC.

Levy and governance The $25 million a year fund is collected through a 0.4 per cent levy on final sales of electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, propane and any other product prescribed by regulation as an energy product. (Transportation fuels including gasoline and diesel are exempt from the levy.) The levy is assessed on residential and commercial/industrial customers. Each year a family will typically about $3 a year for the levy on electricity, $5 on natural gas, and $8 on fuel oil. There’s a $100,000 annual cap for industrial customers.

The fund is governed by a committee comprised of senior government and external representatives.

Projects Initially two calls for application to the ICE Fund resulted in contributions of about $47 million towards 34 projects in communities across BC. These projects represent about $174 million of economic investment and showcase a variety of technologies that include solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, ocean wave, bioenergy and variable street lighting technology. Other projects have followed.

“The $25 million a year fund is collected through a 0.4 per cent levy on final sales of energy products, excluding transportation fuel.”

by Guy Crittenden

With $1.96-million from the ICE Fund, Lignol Innovations Ltd. evaluates biorefinery feedstocks, including beetlekilled pine, and demonstrates the production of enzymes and yeasts for ethanol production. The B.C. government has invested over $60 million — and leveraged over $235 milllion — in 41 clean tech projects across province.

On July 18, 2008 the province announced approval of 15 clean energy projects throughout BC, investing $25 million from the fund. On April 3, 2009 19 projects were approved for rural and off-grid communities. The approved projects represented over $96 million in total value and will create about 750 temporary and full-time jobs in over 25 communities. On the June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 21

CleanTech Canada

same date eight projects were approved to develop cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel, and biofuels technologies. Increased biofuels production will help meet the provincial standard of five per cent minimum annual average renewable content for gasoline and diesel used in B.C. by 2010.

Most recently, in March of this year, $6.6 million was invested in two cutting-edge CleanTech projects <ox2014> one that will create syngas from waste wood to generate heat and power, and another for windows that darken in sunlight and lighten at the flick of a switch.

“The Innovative Clean Energy Fund is helping entrepreneurs bring their new, clean energy technologies into the marketplace,” says Iain Black, Minister of Small Business, Technology and Economic Development. “The 41 projects supported so far — with more to be announced — are creating jobs for British Columbians and green energy solutions for communities across the province, and the world.”

Just over $2 million goes to SWITCH Materials Inc., developers of thin films based on patented organic materials that “switch” optical properties by darkening automatically when

exposed to sun, and rapidly bleaching on command when stimulated by electricity. The project will commercialize “smart” windows using this technology, creating 11 jobs immediately and more than 60 jobs by 2017.

Another $4.5 million will help the University of British Columbia and its project partners, Nexterra Systems Corp., GE Energy and FP Innovations, develop a system that uses biomass to create synthetic gas, which will be fired directly into a gas engine to produce both heat and energy for UBC’s Vancouver campus. The project will create 50 jobs immediately and almost 900 jobs by 2016. The project will lower greenhouse gas emissions by 4,500 tonnes per year, and similar plants could operate in B.C.’s remote northern forest communities and public institutions around the world.

The third call for funding proposals closes on July 5, 2010.

More information on the ICE Fund is available at www.sted.gov. bc.ca (Click on Innovative Clean Energy Fund on the right-hand navigation bar.) Readers can also email ICEFund@gov.bc.ca

Guy Crittenden is editor of this magazine.

You drive innovation.

We help enable it.

Miller Thomson llp’s CleanTech Practice Group applies its depth and breadth of knowledge and experience to help clients in a variety of industries. The CleanTech group provides integrated legal expertise in many areas, such as: • • • • •

Renewable energy project financing and development Innovative remediation technologies Waste and recycling programs Water and wastewater treatment projects Carbon credit verification and trading

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2010

REMEDIATION

technologiesymposium October 20-22, 2010 The Fairmont Banff Springs, Banff, Alberta

Delegate space still available Join Us Join us for the ninth annual Remediation Technologies Symposium 2010, the premier remediation technology transfer event for environmental professionals. Attendance at RemTech 2010 is highly recommended for all industry sectors that have a vested interest in the remediation of contaminated sites.

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www.esaa-events.com/remtech 22 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010 MT_CleanTech Canada Guide Ad_v4.indd 1

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CleanTech Canada

CLEANTECH NORTH NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS

O

n April 23, 2010 a new consortium in the CleanTech space announced that it’s now accepting applications from Canadian CleanTech companies looking to grow and expand their market reach. CleanTech North (CTN) says the sector is poised for exponential international growth over the next decade and Canadian clean technology companies are recognized as having some of the most advanced science and technology.

“The challenge for Canadian clean technology companies is that many have not yet demonstrated the ability for their technologies to reach their full commercial potential,” Henry Vehovec, the Executive Director of CTN says. “One of the primary goals of CleanTech North is to link innovative Canadian companies with a range of experienced industry partners in order to accelerate their revenue growth and guide them down the path to effective commercialization.”

CTN is a consortium of tier one corporate services providers representing a range of industry sectors (e.g., technology, finance, engineering, financial services, law, tax and accounting, business development, wealth management, etc.). CTN leverages the expertise of its members for the benefit of individual Canadian companies in order to define and expand their unique positions within the global CleanTech marketplace.

“The consortium provides innovative Canadian businesses with the support they need to achieve success in the global clean technology marketplace.”

According to its news release, CleanTech North “provides successful program participants with access to investment capital and leveraged distribution channels, and with guidance and assistance to overcome legislative, regulatory, and market challenges.”

“Canadians have a demonstrated history of developing cutting edge technologies, but all too often, we fail to commercialize these innovations on the global stage,” says Albert Behr, President of CTN. “We’ve brought together some of the brightest minds in the Canadian business world to help early-stage CleanTech companies reach their full potential. We want to make sure Canadian companies have access to what they need to succeed — whether that is business mentorship, legal advice, or help to raise capital.”

CleanTech North is officially open for business and is interested in working with Canadian companies with new and/ or emerging technologies. Companies interested in becoming involved with CleanTech North should visit the CTN website at www.cleantechnorth.com/intake/ The first step in the process is to provide a brief overview of your company and

CleanTech North (CTN) presented a well-attended seminar at the MaRS centre in Toronto on May 12, 2010 on the subject of markets and opportunities in wind power. CTN Executive Director Duncan Stewart led the panel through a lively exchange. Panelists (shown here left to right) were: Nicole Geneau, Nextera Energy Resources; Thomas Schneider, Schneider Power; John McIlveen, Jacob Securities; and Diana Hurdowar, Hatch. (Photo by John Nicholson Jr.)

technology. CTN will review this information as part of its initial screening and needs assessment process.

“Although we are officially launching our call for Canadian clean technology companies, we have been working with several companies over the last six months,” says David Berg, one of the principal founders of CTN. “By working with CTN, we have been able to elevate their positioning and prepare them to expand their market presence in the US and move one step closer to realizing their full commercialized potential. We are excited to be able to announce the beginning of our formal intake process.”

About CleanTech North The CleanTech North consortium provides innovative Canadian businesses with the support they need to achieve success in the global clean technology marketplace. CTN facilitates access to tier one service providers who can provide companies with expertise across a range of market areas, including technology, engineering, accountancy, corporate and intellectual property law, procurement, lean manufacturing, taxation, international trade, business development, finance, and operations.

CleanTech North focuses on the accelerated commercialization of Smart Grid Infrastructure, Water Treatment and Waste Management solutions. The following companies are members of CleanTech North: Behr and Associates, Cooley Godward Kronish LLP, GCI Group, Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, GrowthWorks, HUB International, MaRS, Maquarie Private Wealth, National Angel Capital Organization, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, and the Royal Bank of Canada.

For more information, visit www.cleantechnorth.com June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 23

CleanTech Canada

GENOMICS TREATMENT OPTION FOR MINING WASTEWATER

WASTEWATER DETOX

C

ompanies that face the challenge of cleaning up toxic wastewater from mining operations will soon have more reliable bioremediation options.

New research from Genome BC will harness the potential of microbes naturally present in mine bioremediation to help improve strategies for cleaning up contaminated mine sites.

This method of bioremediation will provide a valuable alternative to some current mine effluent treatment methods that require large-scale employment of chemicals to treat water contaminated by metal leaching and acid rock drainage.

Dr. Sue Baldwin at The University of British Columbia is leading the $1.5 million project entitled, The Development of Genomic Tools for Monitoring and Improving Passive Mitigation of Mine Drainage.

“There are micro-organisms out there that can do all sorts of things, including the detoxification of water,” says Baldwin. “We’re relying on the microbes that are already present in the environment to do this, and using genomics to determine how to create the conditions in which they will thrive.”

Essentially, the micro-organisms digest the metal toxins in wastewater, sequestering them or reducing them to less toxic forms. One class of microbes in particular, termed Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria (SRB), are known to be powerhouses in the clean up of mine drainage.

But SRB do not work in isolation; they rely on members of a diverse microbial community to provide them with essential nutrients so they can thrive and carry out the detoxification.

This is where genomics come in.

The researchers will study the microbial community as a whole, sequence the DNA to see how the organisms interact, and determine what sort of nutrients and conditions are necessary to ensure that they continue to do their jobs over time.

The researchers are gathering information from two test sites where they’re setting up pilot treatment facilities. The sites are located at the Mt. Polley Mine (a copper and gold mine near

24 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

Williams Lake) and at the Teck smelter near Castlegar, BC. So what exactly would one of these natural treatment “facilities” look like?

“No different than the surrounding environment,” says Baldwin. “The water would flow through a natural compost area which would serve to nourish the microbes, and this would be capped with grasses. It essentially looks like a series of grasses and water ponds.”

These treatment facilities are universally applicable and can be set up in virtually any environment where there’s sufficient space, and customized to include the natural microbial communities found there. “We have keen interest and active participation from the international mining community,” says Baldwin.

Dr. Alan Winter is Genome BC’s President and CEO. “We’re very pleased to support this innovative research, which is helping to solve a major challenge in the mining industry here in British Columbia and around the world, and doing it in such a way as to not disturb the environment any further,” Winter says.

About Genome BC Founded in 2000, Genome BC works collaboratively with government, universities and industry as the catalyst for a genomics-driven life sciences cluster with significant social and economic benefits for the Province and Canada. The organization’s research portfolio, over $410 million since inception, includes 74 projects and technology platforms focused on areas of strategic importance to British Columbia such as human health, forestry, fisheries, bioenergy, mining, agriculture, and the environment.

Genome BC programs are funded by Genome Canada, the BC government, Western Economic Diversification Canada and other public and private partners.

For more information, contact Rachael Froese Zamperini, Genome BC’s Communications Consultant, at rzamperini@genomebc.ca

CleanTech Canada

BIOTEQ USES SULPHIDE PRECIPITATION ON ACID MINE DRAINAGE

WELLINGTON ORO MINE

The Wellington Oro plant uses a unique sulphide precipitation process to recover dissolved metals from wastewater

The plant produces clean water and a saleable zinc-cadmium concentrate that can be sent to a refinery and recycled into useful products

lthough many mine facilities have implemented environmentally sustainable practices, communities across North America still face the burden of dealing with impacts from their industrialized past. New wastewater treatment technology being used in Breckenridge, Colorado is allowing this forward-thinking community to counter the debilitating effects of acid mine drainage to reclaim parkland for use in recreation, and discharge clean water that supports local fish populations.

move the dissolved metals emanating from the abandoned mine site into the Blue River downstream of French Creek. The water would need to meet Colorado Water Quality Standards, as well as protect the nearby brown trout fishery.

A

Wellington Oro Mine From the late 1880s to the early 1970s the Wellington Oro Mine site, located three miles from the Town of Breckenridge, produced silver, gold, lead and zinc from an extensive network of underground tunnels. The largest mine in Summit County, Colorado, it was closed down in 1972, but left in its wake a legacy of zinc and cadmium-laden contaminated water. High levels of this contaminated “acid mine drainage” drained from the miles of abandoned tunnels into a local river system impacting local fish populations.

Breckenridge has become a popular ski resort and recreational playground, where an appreciation of the environment runs deeply among the community’s population. The water from the closed mine site was a source of concern, and prompted a cooperative effort involving three levels of government.

In 2005, the town and Summit County purchased the 1,800 acre site as part of a plan to create an open space to enhance the region’s public amenities. At the same time, they worked with the US EPA and the Colorado Department of Health and Environment to find a system for suitable water treatment to re-

Challenge and solution Although no longer in operation, toxic runoff from the mine is created when rainfall or snow melt enters the mine’s 12 miles of tunnels and crosscuts. As the water moves through the Wellington Oro Mine site it becomes acidic and dissolves zinc and cadmium found in the mine.

Acid mine drainage is a naturally occurring process that happens at an estimated 70 per cent of the world’s mines. Mining activity can expose rock containing sulphide-based minerals in open pits or underground that, when exposed to water, oxygen and common bacteria, creates acidic water that dissolves residual metals in the mine’s rock.

After an international call to action, the community commissioned a 3,200 sq. ft. water treatment plant with the capacity to process over 150 gallons per minute, or up to 80 million gallons of water a year (equivalent to 120 Olympic-sized swimming pools). The treatment facility uses a process called “sulphide precipitation” in order to return to the French Gulch basin clean water with less than 225 parts per billion (ppb) of zinc and 4 ppb of cadmium, meeting the strict criteria set down by Colorado Water Quality Standards. Prior to treatment the average zinc and cadmium concentrations in the untreated water was 270,000 ppb and 112 parts per billion, respectively, concentrations too high to be tolerable to the local brown trout.

In the sulphide precipitation process, the contaminated water June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 25

The Town of Breckenridge is applying innovative sulphide precipitation technologies to treat metal-contaminated water emanating from a closed mine site.

is collected in an underground tank and pumped into the plant, where the water chemistry is adjusted using sulphide. The changes in water chemistry cause the dissolved metals to precipitate and form solid metal particles that are recovered using a clarifier and filter. The remaining clean water is then safely released into the French Creek tributary of the Blue River.

Results Managed by the Town of Breckenridge Water Division, the treatment plant removes about 4,000 pounds of metal a month and meets strict international ISO 14001 standards environmental HMMsept08gm1307 Kilmer.qxd 9/12/08 for4:27 PM Page 1 compliance. The alternative process considered was “lime

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treatment”, which would have created a metal sludge requiring specialized disposal and storage. The sulphide precipitation process used by Breckenridge and Summit County instead produces clean, treated water and separated, saleable zinc-cadmium sulphide that can be recycled into useful products.

This unique project, undertaken by three levels of governments, is not only meeting the concerns for addressing water quality, but is allowing this community to reclaim, in perpetuity, a large portion of land that can be protected for public recreation, natural resource protection and as a scenic backdrop. By recovering salable, recyclable metal that can help offset the cost of treatment this innovative plant has been able to leverage advanced technology in order to achieve the community’s goals for sustainability.

Written by Brad Marchant, CEO of BioteQ Environmental Technologies in Vancouver, BC. Contact Brad at bioteq@bioteq.ca

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5/12/09 4:06:48 PM

by Anne Wordsworth

RECYCLING

“About 300 million pounds (or 150,000 tonnes) of auto shredder residue go into Ontario landfills each year.”

The Fate of End of Life Vehicles

W

hen cars reach the end of the road either through natural old age or untimely accident, their owners send them off with little thought about their eventual fate. Likewise, most jurisdictions in Canada have given little thought to the tons of waste generated by discarded cars.

That may be about to change. With new interest in extended producer responsibility (EPR), the spotlight is starting to shine on vehicles and their parts and materials.

The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) has approved a Canadawide EPR action plan that commits to framework legislation for managing a number of automotive waste products, including used oil, filters, batteries, refrigerants, brakes and trans-

mission fluids. BC already has the jump with its recent regulation requiring environmental management plans from facilities handling end-of-life vehicles (ELVs). In its review of the Waste Diversion Act, Ontario has also proposed to make ELVs a designated diversion material within five years.

The waste from discarded vehicles is no small problem — not only because of the volume, but because of the toxins that may contaminate the residue.

In Canada, approximately 1.2 million vehicles are taken off the road every year.

Yet there’s currently no national framework for managing them; no agency tracks their numbers and fate. Consequently, it’s difficult to gauge the exact extent of the waste prob-

lem. As Susan Sawyer-Beaulieu, Ph.D., from the University of Windsor concludes from her detailed research, ELVs are the least studied phase of the car lifecycle.

So, what does happen to your retired vehicle? When sent to a reputable auto recycler, chances are that it will be managed responsibly. Reusable or recyclable parts will be removed before shredding. Typical parts that can be recovered are AC compressors, water pumps, carburetors, alternators, starters, transmissions, axle assemblies, engines, and transfer cases. Batteries, catalytic converters, radiators and tires are also removed for recycling.

Auto recyclers also play an important role in removing liquids that would otherwise pose a pollution problem. When vehicles go for

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RECYCLING

dismantling, an average of 19 litres of operatshredders for metal recovery. ing fluids — including hazardous ones — is When the cars go to salvage yards or scrap recovered in a proper non-polluting process: metal dealers, it’s much harder to know how engine oil, transmission oil, drive oil, steering the vehicle is managed. This is a serious part fluid, coolant and fuel. Mercury light switches of the waste problem. Here, the vehicle is not and mercury-containing anti-lock brake sysgoing to be dismantled for parts, and it’s not tems will also be recovered and properly disgenerally physically or economically feasible posed. for these facilities to remove oils, refrigerants The best guess about the number of and other polluting substances before a vehicle vehicles being appropriately managed comes is shredded. from the Automotive Recyclers of Canada When the vehicle finally arrives at the (ARC) that represents hundreds of auto disshredder, either mined for parts and de-polmantling and recycling facilities across the luted (or not), it’s broken down into much country. ARC estimates that 600,000 cars and smaller pieces, and the metals are extracted. other vehicles come off the roads every year Ferrous and non-ferrous metals are recovered. in Ontario — just under half the vehicles in (Ferrous metals make up about 70 per cent of Canada. a vehicle, while non-ferrous metals are about According to ARC, of those 600,000 6 per cent.)

ELVs, approximately 200,000 are handled by Happily, because of the value of the metal their members, who are required to “de-polin a car, 75 per cent of each vehicle by weight lute” the vehicles before shredding. The other is recycled. However, the 25 per cent left over 400,000 (or roughly 65 per cent) are processed — a commingled mess of rubber, plastics, either by other auto wreckers, some of whom glass, dirt, carpet fibres, and seat foam — is sell used parts, or they go directly to salvage waste destined for the landfill. yards or scrap metal dealers who send them to of the sheer volume of vehicles Walinga VC2336 6/11/07 2:36 PM PageBecause 1

N O W

that go off the road every year, this adds up to tons and tons of waste. The 600,000 vehicles in Ontario retired annually generate at least 500 pounds of auto shredder residue per vehicle.

This means 300 million pounds (or 150,000 tonnes) of shredder residue go into Ontario landfills each year.

A significant proportion of this waste is shredded parts and materials that could be recovered and reused if a proper recycling framework were in place. Moreover, if the vehicle is not depolluted prior to being shredded, the residue sent to landfill is contaminated.

A legal framework in Canada and in all the provinces to strengthen the management of end-of-life vehicles is long overdue. Such a framework would provide the basis for building a sustainable vehicle recycling industry.

Anne Wordsworth is Research Associate with the Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) in Toronto, Ontario. Contact Anne at anne@cela.ca

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Recycle Your Ride Ford’s new automobile stewardship program

O

EMF a

n April 30, 2010, Ford announced it’s new Recycle Your Ride vehicle retirement program that provides consumers an incentive to switch to new Ford vehicles but also ensures that the used vehicles they return through the rebate program are recycled to the highest environmental standards.

Each vehicle will be processed in accordance with the National Code of Practice for Automotive Recyclers developed by the Automotive Recyclers of Canada (ARC) Association and Environment Canada.

Ford, in partnership with Summerhill Impact, announced new incentives available to Canadians. Ford will provide between $1,000 and $3,000 in incentives for customers that return vehicles, 2003 models or older, when they purchase or lease a new Ford or Lincoln vehicle.

Adopting, the National Code of Practice means returned vehicles will be dismantled and “de-polluted” — a process involving the removal and proper recycling or management of ozone depleting air conditioning refrigerants, hazardous fluids such as anti-freeze and engine and transmission oils, lead, nickel and lithium batteries, lead wheel weights, tires, mercury-containing switches as well as recovery, refurbishment and reuse of various components. Once de-polluted and after the reusable components have been harvested, the remaining metal will be recycled.

“Unfortunately, most Canadian vehicles currently reaching their end-of-life are not recycled in accordance with the ARC National Code,” observes ARC Managing Director Steve Fletcher, adding, “Many are shredded or crushed whole allowing toxic substances such as lead, mercury and used engine oils to escape into the environment. Improper end-oflife vehicle management can also contribute to incidents like the recent fire in Ottawa’s east end that engulfed a 10-metre-high pile of scrap vehicles.”

Fletcher concludes, “Our participation in Ford’s program ensures that collected vehicles will be recycled and properly dismantled and de-polluted. This means a front-end environmental benefit when the consumer buys a new Ford vehicle and a back-end environmental

12/12/08

10:48 AM

Page 1

benefit as the car they return is recycled thus reducing discharges of pollutants to the environment and recovering resources for remanufacturing.

Contact Steve Fletcher, Managing Director, BSc, MBA, Automotive Recyclers of Canada (ARC) at 519-858-8761.

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12/09 SWR

by Carl Friesen

WA S T E I N D U S T R Y

“The current industry could benefit from development of documented National Occupational Standards (NOS) for waste occupations and functions.”

The ECO Canada Study Anticipating human resource and skills training needs for the solid waste sector of the future

P

icture a possible future for the solid waste management sector.

Automated curbside collection and transfer allow the workforce to focus on back-end processes. At the processing facility, advanced technology whisks recyclable and re-useable materials out of the waste stream for high-tech sortation and processing; the high quality means they find a ready market. Organics are turned into compost, and niche bioenergy systems feed power into the electrical grid, offsetting costs. The amount of waste going to landfill is but a trickle.

At the front end, entrepreneurs communicate with residents and businesses, guiding them on choices that will reduce the amount of waste they generate. Other professionals work with manufacturers and importers to make products and packaging more easily disassembled and re-used or recycled, since extended producer responsibility (EPR) rules require companies, not taxpayers, to pay for end-of-life management of these materials.

Thus describes the global trend toward replacing traditional solid waste management practices with sustainable practices that divert waste

from disposal and instead use it as a resource. What is today considered “waste” is increasingly seen as a resource for making new products or for generating energy.

In getting to this bright new future (that’s already underway in most of Canada), one question intrudes: Will there be the right people, with the right skills, to make it happen?

This is the question that ECO Canada, the national sector council for environmental professionals, seeks to answer in its new study, “Solid Waste Management Labour Market Study 2010.” This study examines the human resources issues related to the environmental occupations within the sector in Canada.

High level findings

While the industry awaits the full report to be released this summer, ECO Canada has released these early findings, with more to follow in our September cover article.

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WA S T E I N D U S T R Y

ECO labour market information research team (left to right): Shauna Moscovich, Jhumur Choudhury, Justin Smale and Jonathan Yuill.

The future evolution of the solid waste management industry can be greatly impacted by government policy and regulation.

Employers stated that regulations are the most important challenge that can affect the growth of their organizations.

High level findings of the research also indicate a need for better succession planning and knowledge transfer to ensure skill retention for the future. Employers cited the

32 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

highest level of turnover among laborers and equipment operators, who currently make up the vast majority of total employees. As well, a large number of higher management were older (over 50) and had more than ten years seniority, getting close to retirement.

NOTE: The August/September edition of this magazine will feature an in-depth article about the report’s findings.

Pub−2009−E.jpg

ECO Canada is the national sector council for environmental human resources, based in Calgary, Alberta. Carl Friesen, MBA, CMC, is Principal of Global Reach Communications, which helps business professionals demonstrate their expertise through published articles. Contact Carl at 289-232-4057 or cfriesen@rogers.com

C O M P O S T I N G M AT T E R S

by Paul van der Werf “The really good ones share a common attribute and that is a passion for what they’re doing.”

COMPOSTING PIONEERS

The Operators

I

n the ongoing series called Compost Pioneers I’ve profiled organizations whose contributions have helped develop our industry.

I’d now like to mention the operators: these men and women who operate composting facilities are also “compost pioneers.” Their dayto-day world is not a sexy one. They get dirty. Imagine, if you will, a Turkish bath adjoined to a Sauerkraut factory. Their clothes smell when they go home. They may not be scientific experts but they understand the job at hand and are the backbone of the industry, Harry Potters bending the microbial waste to their will.

Compost operators have evolved with the industry, especially since 1990. Since that time, most facilities have been open windrow and have generally composted simple wastes such as leaf-and-yard waste. In 2010 the scale and complexity of composting facilities has increased considerably. Close to three million households in Canada have access groundworks/MC7564/SWR 12/5/08 10:23 AM Page 1 to some kind of green bin or source-separated organics program. This

explosion of green bin composting caught many off-guard and has required facility operators to become more sophisticated.

It’s been a while since I operated a composting facility on a dayto-day basis, but I remember it clearly. The first site that I ever worked at was in Mississauga, back in 1994, while working for Elora-based Compost Management. The site was basically a field with some windrows, and featured mostly leaf-and-yard waste and some food waste. I was clearly no operator then. I was fresh out of school and had a “superior” knowledge of the science, but I had no clue how to operate the equipment or the facility.

The operators of this plant were older than me — equipment guys with some minimal knowledge of the science behind composting. They viewed me with suspicion. Too much book learning; not enough common sense.

I remember soft-pedalling my knowledge of the science. For me,

June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 33

C O M P O S T I N G M AT T E R S

helping operate a composting facility was part of a childhood ambition: to use my training and education but not be confined to a desk.

I was acutely aware of their opinions and felt the need to earn the respect of these rough-around-the-edges equipment operators. I knew much of what needed doing, and had to prove it to them by getting my hands dirty (and showing it didn’t bother me). I leapt in feet first, using my agricultural background to learn how to operate the equipment, help with the “heavy lifting” of compost facility operation, while at the same time I ran around taking temperatures in the time that was left. Slowly I learned how to mix common sense and science.

I had to somewhat repeat the process when I went to work for Green Lane Environmental in London, operating their (then) state-of-the-art composting facility to process St Thomas’ SSO. I was left to manage a facility and operate a composting turner — the second one off what was a short-lived assembly line (and clearly not entirely through its required R&D). The first day I didn’t know how to start it! Slowly our team made it all work.

While I may have managed this facility, it was my operators that ran the place. As remains the case today, the technology was evolving and it was far from perfect. The compost turner was in constant need of repair.

The air handling system in the building and biofilters were (it turned out) inadequate. The operators kept everything operational and in good repair, and helped me make the facility work.

The grizzled operator, and I say that affectionately, is handier and better versed in the equipment operation than I will ever be. The real-

34 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

ly good ones share a common attribute and that is a passion for what they’re doing. In our evolving and technologically imperfect industry, they’re the archetype of what has made composting work.

As the developer of the Composting Council of Canada’s Compost Facility Operator Training course and its teacher for ten years, I’ve seen the evolution in compost facility operators up close. In that capacity I’ve had the privilege of meeting and interacting with well over 500 operators. In my mind, teaching this course in its various incarnations was key to opening doors for operators. Understanding and connecting with the science helps them make better compost and better identify and solve facility problems.

In the next 20 years, composting will continue to make strides and most certainly be joined by other organic waste processing technologies. For composting to succeed it will need to overcome its current technological hurdle of effectively and consistently dealing with the odour generated as part of the process. Many have figured this out but there’s still a long way to go.

I’m sure that the compost facility operators will be there continuing to make the older technology work, but striving to make refined technologies work better. They’ll continue to employ their common sense, coupled with some science and passion, to make the process work.

Paul van der Werf is president of 2cg Inc. in London, Ontario. Contact Paul at www.2cg.ca

WA S T E B U S I N E S S

by John Nicholson, M.Sc.,P.Eng. “The biggest advantage that a BioDryer has over a conventional thermal dryer is that no fossil fuels are needed.

“Wright” from Wrong Can good technology overcome bad press?

I

magine that you’ve poured your heart, soul, and entire life savings into your new startup environmental technology company.

Imagine that that you are approached by a seemingly credible individual that offers to assist your company in accessing government programs and services. Imagine that you wake up one day to the news reports that associate your company with a political scandal.

This is the scenario lived by Jim Wright of Wright Tech Systems Inc. (Wright Tech).

this past spring. Helena Guergis was forced to resign her federal cabinet position and was then kicked out of the Conservative caucus after a series of negative media reports about her were compounded with private allegations hinting at criminal transgressions. Guergis’ husband, Rahim Jaffer — himself a former Member of Parliament (MP) — was reported to have lobbied the government on behalf of private companies although he was not a registered lobbyist, and of using his wife’s parliamentary office to conduct private business.

The facts Shortly after being losing his seat in the The mainstream Canadian media has had a October 2008 federal election, Jaffer and field day reporting on the Guergis/Jaffer affair Patrick Glémaud co-founded Green Power Generation Corp. (GPG), a company specializing in bringing to market innovative technology solutions in renewable energy generation and greenhouse gas mitigation.

Jim Wright, the founder and owner of Wright Tech and partner in Green Rite Solutions, found his company linked in the media to the Guergis/Jaffer affair. The linkage was due to the fact that he had preliminary meetings with GPG in the course of promoting his technology.

Representatives from Wright Tech Inc. and its marketing division, Green Rite Solutions Inc., met Jaffer and his business partner in the course of promoting their advanced waste conversion technology in Canada and abroad. The meetings were preliminary and fact-finding initiatives only. At no time did GPG or its partImagine going weeks ners have any finical interest in Wright Tech or Green Rite, and at no time did any payments between collections of any kind move between any of the parties.

Furthermore, lobbying for funding was not of waste, recyclables, discussed. and even organics.

Similarly, the interaction between Wright and MP Guergis (who represented the riding in which he lived) consisted of a brief telephone conversation about the merits of his technology for use in Simcoe County. He had a similar disWith Molok®, you can. cussion with his local MPP. Neither discussion, to his knowledge, had any result.

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self in, Wright Tech does have promising technology.

The technology

Wright Tech markets itself as a company that can provides complete turnkey solutions for organic waste-to-energy (WTE) projects, with a processing capacity ranging from 50 to 1,000 tonnes per day.

The core of the company’s organic WTE projects is its patented Biodryer® technology.

The dryer can transform organic waste into biomass fuel in 14 days or less.

The Biodryer works be first heating the organic matter for seven days, then mechanically aerating it, followed by seven days of drying in a fully enclosed flow-through tunnel.

A mechanical aeration system separates the heating and drying zones and is designed to break up clumps of material while increasing their surface area for optimal drying.

Rahim Jaffer

In the first section of the dryer (referred to as the Heating Zone), incoming organic material is allowed to degrade. The heat generated during degradation destroys any pathogens within the material.

In the Drying Zone, hot air generated through biological oxidation of the waste in the first zone is utilized (via heat exchanger) to dry the material over a seven-day period.

Optimal performance of the system is achieved if the operator ensures the carbonnitrogen ratio, porosity, and pH of the waste is such that high-efficiency biological oxidation by microorganisms can occur.

The biggest advantage that a BioDryer

has over a conventional thermal dryer is that no fossil fuels are needed. The technology is low energy and is capable of producing a high quality biomass fuel (up to 20,000 kJ/ kg depending on feedstock) for a multitude of uses including cement kilns, greenhouses, and power plants.

Lessons learned

Wright may disagree with the old saying that there is no such thing as bad press. Yet the brief and innocent association with Jaffer is likely to have already faded from the minds of many Canadians. Future success of the company will hinge on it convincing potential clients of the technical and economic merits of its waste management solution.

John Nicholson, M.Sc., P.Eng., is a consultant based in Toronto, Ontario. Contact John at john.nicholson@ebccanada.com

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R E G U L AT I O N R O U N D U P

Waste Initiatives Across Canada Ontario revises approvals process

On May 17, 2009, the Ontario government introduced the Open For Business Act, which is intended to create a more competitive business environment in Ontario, while protecting the environment and public interest. There are over one hundred proposed amendments, including a proposal to streamline environmental approvals by using a risk-based approach.

To that end, the Ministry of the Environment has released a discussion paper entitled “Modernization of Approvals — Proposed Legislative Framework for Modernizing Environmental Approvals.” The goal of the modernization process is to introduce a new simplified process for activities that are classified as low-risk, are less complex or have standard requirements. This will allow the government to focus its resources on facilities and activities that are unique, complex or pose a potential risk to the environment and human health. It is predicted that this initiative will save businesses up to 25 per cent of their project application costs.

The changes are intended to begin taking effect in September, 2012.

“Certificates of Approval,” the current permitting instrument, will be replaced by “Environmental Compliance Approvals.”

by Rosalind Cooper, LL.B “The toxic mercury component was safely captured and the remaining components of the thermometer were recycled.”

Quebec residuals regs

The Quebec Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks (MDDEP) has published three proposed regulations to support implementation of its new Residual Materials Management Policy based on its five-year action plan. The objective is to reduce the quantity of disposed residual materials to 700 kilograms per person by 2015, and the Policy includes plans to increase recycling and ban the burial of organic matter. Quebec has set specific targets which include recycling 70 per cent of paper, cardboard, plastic, glass and metal waste, and processing 60 per cent of organic putrescible residual material using biological processes (including composting and “biomethanation”), all by 2015.

The MDDEP intends to ban the burial of paper and cardboard by 2013 and develop a strategy for banning the burial of putrescible organic materials (including leaves and grass cuttings, tables scraps and sludge from septic tanks and from purification of wastewater) by 2020.

An infrastructure program will be implemented for municipalities and private-sector promoters to develop biological treatment facilities for organic matter using biomethanation and composting. The program will provide for financial assistance for up to 25 per cent of the eligible costs of a biomethanation project, and 20 per cent for a composting project.

The total budget for the program is $650 million.

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R E G U L AT I O N R O U N D U P The Draft Regulation respecting the recovery and reclamation of products by enterprises is intended to reduce the quantity of residual materials sent for disposal. It requires that companies that market a new product implement programs within prescribed periods that meet certain requirements, and that collection points are established for recovery of products. Companies can be exempted provided they join an organization that implements a program for recovery and reclamation that has been approved under the Environment Quality Act. The Draft Regulation to amend the Regulation respecting the charges payable for the disposal of residual materials provides that, for each tonne of residual materials received for disposal in an authorized landfill between April 1, 2010 and March 31, 2015, the operator of a landfill site will be required to pay an additional charge of $9.50. This additional measure is aimed at reducing the amount of residual materials sent to a landfill.

The Draft respecting financial guarantees payable for the operation of an organic matter reclamation facility provides that the operation of an organic matter reclamation facility is conditional on establishing a financial guarantee intended to ensure the obligations of the operator under the Environment Quality Act.

Ontario approves first industry stewardship plan

Waste Diversion Ontario has approved an industry stewardship plan developed by the Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Institute of Canada (HRAI) for mercury-containing thermostats, making this the first time that an industry stewardship program has received approval from Waste Diversion Ontario.

HRAI had been operating a program since 2006 entitled “Switch the ‘Stat”. The program was operated in partnership with Summerhill Impact, which was formerly the Clean Air Foundation, and was an effective industry-operated program that recovered older, mercury-containing

home thermostats. The toxic mercury component was safely captured and the remaining components of the thermometer were recycled. Contractors, utilities and manufacturers supported the program, thereby ensuring availability of information and access to a safe and free method of recycling older thermostats.

HRAI wanted Waste Diversion Ontario to accept and approve its existing program as an industry stewardship plan under the Waste Diversion Act, 2002. While Waste Diversion Ontario was willing to consider this proposal, it wanted to ensure that the existing program met all the regulatory requirements of start-up programs. Typically, new stewardship programs are developed and created by steward organizations through extensive research and planning.

Waste Diversion Ontario, after approximately five months of review, approved the program, which was the same program that has operated since 2006. HRAI recently obtained approval for its program in British Columbia under a much more streamlined process and is looking to expand its program nationally.

The Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation’s program entitled “Charge up to Recycle!” is also seeking approval from Waste Diversion Ontario to replace the rechargeable battery component of the MHSW program. This program has been operating nationally for several years. In addition, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association has a cell phone program that that was started in 2009 in Western and Atlantic Canada, and that it is proposing as an alternative to the cell phone component of the waste electrical and electronic equipment program.

Rosalind Cooper, LL.B., is a partner with Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, with offices across Canada. Ms. Cooper is based in Toronto, Ontario. Contact Rosalind at rcooper@tor.fasken.com

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Tight Turning Radius The Li’l FELLA has handling that might remind you more of a sports car than a heavy truck.

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COLLECTION

by Rod Muir “Most interesting was the interest generated by the 70 Toastmasters groups in Ottawa.”

Bin Talk

Social marketing tools enable community members to promote organics diversion

I

n Ottawa, citizens volunteers are utilized to provide promotion and education and assist their fellow residents in the city in taking the next step in waste diversion: foodscrap separation and collection.

One of the cornerstones of Community Based Social Marketing (CBSM) is the use of community members in the promotion and education of programs to their brethren. The growing availability and use of social media, in this particular example YouTube, offers an excellent opportunity to execute this component of CBSM. Potentially harnessing free labor is a compelling opportunity for a municipality. To simplify a bit, imagine one per every hundred residents participating in just the two hours or so to learn to give a presentation.

Then, each of these same one in a hundred give presentations to just 33 people; the whole community would be covered, for little or no cost.

Better still, as this information comes directly from a fellow citizen, the information will be more believed and trusted.

The challenge in automating such “viral” information sharing is creating the information in a format that allows ordinary people to access it (i.e., download) and present it effectively.

Sierra Club Canada (SCC) developed such a program in order to assist the City of Ottawa in the introduction of it’s Green Bin program.

What’s neat is that the materials can be adapted by other communities to promote their diversion programs with CBSM.

Background

Like most other cities, an audit of Ottawa’s waste stream revealed that 45 per cent of what remained after curbside recycling was organic material. Therefore, in order to increase its diversion rate above 30 per cent, Ottawa (Canada’s fifth largest city) introduced foodscrap collection to 235,000 single family homes in January 2010.

Getting residents to participate fully was the challenge, and this is where Sierra Club Canada (SCC) stepped in.

SCC is part of the larger Sierra Club organization based in the United States that was founded in 1892 and is possibly the oldest and largest ENGO in the world. SCC has had an extremely active waste diversion campaign led by myself. The SCC submitted a funding proposal to the Trillium Foundation. Trillium uses the proceeds from the Province of Ontario’s lottery and gaming activities to foster a mission of “Building healthy and vibrant communities by strengthening the capacity of the voluntary sector through investments in community-based initiatives.”

The project aimed to use funds to recruit and train (and in so doing empower) citizens in Ottawa to give five-minute Green Bins talks (Bin-Talks for short) in their places of work or worship, schools, clubs, associations, groups, etc.

The idea was that an interested person simply logs onto the Bin-Talk site and views a five minute video (as often as needed to to feel confident in their ability to present the same material). Also on the site, in downloadable form, is a copy of the Powerpoint presentation and a full written copy of the content of the video, plus as a set of key-point cue

The Sierra Club website provides ready-made social media that can be adapted for promotional campaigns.

cards. With these tools and practice, anyone can give this presentation anywhere in the city. The purpose (obviously) of the material (and in particular the Powerpoint) is to assist presenters in staying on track and June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 39

COLLECTION

Nextstep video.

“Pastoral Day” gathering of over 100 Church officials.

These were then asked to forward information on the Bin-Talk program to their parishioners.

Most interesting was the interest generated by the 70 Toastmasters groups in Ottawa. When you think about it, the program makes perfect sense for Toastmasters, since members are interested in practicing and improving they speaking skills. What better way tha to give a Bin-Talk five to ten times, and in so doing attain skills in pace, cadence and humor.

on message, while providing audiences with both an video and audio means of learning about Ottawa’s Green Bin program.

Content

The five minute video focuses primarily on the ease and benefits of foodscrap diversion. Central to Sierra Club Canada’s position on the ease of diversion is the use of a prop. Constructed of a cell phone, bean can and plastic banana bolted together, the intent of the prop is to remind people that the items they buy aren’t all together but in fact were purchased and consumed separately. The simple act of keeping those same things separate at the time of discard is all that’s required for successful waste diversion.

Residents are further reminded that their kitchens generate only two waste streams: food and the packaging that it came in.

The benefits to the city, of course, include conservation of valuable land landfill space and the production of a soil amendment product. The educational talking point is “feed the land, not the landfill.”

It would have been nice to add a critical message about methane genera generation from foodscraps buried in a landfill, and also about the insanity of burning fooscraps for energy (since organics are 70 to 80 per cent water), but there was some political resistance to this. (Ottawa’s mayor is a supporter of the Plasco plasma arc gasification project currently being piloted in Ottawa.) So this information was removed at the request of the city.

Recruitment

The recruitment efforts were extensive. Project leaders asked every city councilor, MPP and MP to post a link to the Bin-Talk Ottawa site. A similar request was made of the many environmental organizations in the city as well more than 140 community groups.

Another area of effort was churches and various religious organizations. Posters were sent to every Anglican Church and an e-version was sent to United churches (24), Pentecostal (20), Lutheran (11), Baptist (9), Latter Days Saints (5), and Synagogues (9). For the thirty Roman Catholic churches, I was able to make a ten-minute presentation for a 40 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

In Ontario, as in some other provinces, students must perform 40 hours of community service in order to graduate from high school. The Bin-Talk program is thus promoted to Ottawa-area high schools to help students fulfill this requirement.

To view and downlaod the Sierra Club Canada social marketing materials for the City of Ottawa, visit www.sierraclub.ca/en/bin-talk-ottawa SCC wishes to thank The Ontario Trillium Foundation, Bag to Earth and Sure-Close for their generous support of this project.

Rod Muir is the Founder of Waste Diversion Toronto/Canada and is the Waste Diversion Campaigner for Sierra Club Canada . He can be reached at rodmuir@sierraclub.ca

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Lafarge wins environmental award

Lafarge’s Bath Cement Plant in Ontario has won the prestigious Overall Environmental Excellence Award. This is the third time a Canadian cement plant has been recognized in the history of the award. The plant was selected by an independent panel for its commitment to improving the environment and surrounding communities at the 9th Annual Cement Industry Environment and Energy Awards, presented by Portland Cement Association (PCA) and Cement Americas magazine in Chicago on April 27, 2010.

There are over 100 cement plants in North America and this is the fourth time that a Canadian plant (one has won twice) has been awarded the top honor for its overall environmental performance. The award honors individual cement plants that exemplify the spirit of continuous environmental improvement and support this spirit with action. In addition to winning the top environmental award, the plant was also recognized in the Land Stewardship and Innovation categories.

The awards program was created in 2000 by the Portland Cement Association. PCA and Cement Americas magazine presented the first Cement Industry Environmental Awards in 2002; the program is open to cement manufacturing plants in North America. Judges for the 2010 awards represent independent groups such as World Resources Institute, World Wildlife Fund, National Ready Mix Concrete Association, U.S. EPA-ENERGY STAR, U.S. EPA-Office of Policy, Economics and Innovation, Cement Association of Canada, Cement Americas, and the U.S. Geological Survey.

In 2009, the Lafarge Bath plant completed a range of environmental and energy efficiency projects. A number of initiatives identified included: • As part of its climate change programs, university researchers have planted hybridized poplar species at the facility and other crops as possible renewable biomass energy sources. The facility also worked with local farmers to raise crops for a biomass fuel demonstration, and more than 950 bales of fuel crops are now ready for use.

• With kiln operation and quarry changes, the facility has nearly eliminated cement kiln dust (CKD) byproduct production, replacing landfilling with on-site re-use.

42 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

• The ISO 14001 Certified Bath Cement plant has 8.2 per cent recycled content in its cement, has been certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council for efforts to improve local wildlife habitat, and has also been recognized by the Wild Turkey Federation.

• The Bath plant continues to be an active community leader, sponsoring the fireworks for the Bath Canada Day Celebrations for over 25 years straight, among many other community programs, along with a robust community outreach program including a liaison committee, newsletters, University and College tours, and a plant website.

• Lastly with the help of 250 local scouts, leaders, and parents, the facility planted 3,000 trees on the plant property for habitat restoration and climate change education and mitigation.

Edmonton bins singing the blues

Recycling blue bins around Edmonton are feeling a little lonely and misunderstood. They’ve started to sing the blues to remind people to recycle more and to recycle the right stuff.

The City’s Waste Management Branch is giving the blue bin a voice as part of a new recycling campaign targeted at apartment and condominium dwellers. Unacceptable materials in blue bins damage processing equipment and pose a safety hazard to employees at the recycling facility. Some of the common unacceptable materials found in blue bins include food waste, furniture, tires, fabric, bike chains and garden hoses.

“Edmonton is known as a world leader in recycling,” says Councillor Jane Batty. “Our success is built on Edmontonians’ dedication to the environment, and this education program serves to remind residents of the importance of recycling and how to do it right.”

Blue Bin appreciates the chance to reach out. “I get a little down when I see people visiting my pal garbage bin with stuff meant for me,” said Blue Bin. “It’s the same when people give me just any old trash. I got a case of the blue bin blues.”

The education program includes motionsensor sound devices mounted in 400 blue bins throughout the city. Blue Bins crooned their recycling tunes from late May through June.

“The Bin Blues campaign is a fun way to remind people of the importance of recyc-

ling, and of recycling the right materials,” says Connie Boyce, Director of Community Relations for the Waste Management Branch.

“The objective is to reduce the number of plant shutdowns that are caused by unacceptable material and to prevent injury to workers.”

A list of acceptable material is on the city website at www.edmonton.ca/waste

Vancouver-area towns harvesting waste

Vancouver’s environmental and energy efficiency measures attracted attention during the recent winter Olympic Games, but the city’s efforts did not end with the Closing Ceremonies. Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson has made it his city’s stated goal to be the greenest city by 2020.

In celebration of Earth Day in April, the City of Vancouver and organic waste recycling company Harvest Power launched a food waste diversion program. Additionally, neighboring communities in the Metro Vancouver region — including the City of Port Coquitlam, City of Port Moody, City of Burnaby and City Richmond — are all taking similar steps to reduce the amount of waste they send to landfills. Food waste is collected through curbside pickup, just like other recyclable materials.

It’s then taken to Richmond, where Harvest owns and operates one of North America’s largest permitted food waste and yard waste composting facilities, Fraser Richmond Soil & Fibre (FRSF).

“By partnering with Harvest Power and Fraser Richmond for our new curbside compost program, Vancouver is taking a major step forward to reduce our waste and environmental impact,” says Mayor Gregor Robertson.

“We know it’s working in other cities and can be a big success here. We’re asking Vancouver residents to pitch in, recycle their food scraps, and help us reach our goal of becoming the world’s greenest city by 2020.”_ According to the US EPA, about 55 per cent of all waste is some kind of organic material — meaning it can be turned into both compost and renewable energy. Composting at FRSF is already underway and can produce hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of high-value products annually. Harvest’s Covered Aerated Static Pile technology results in more efficient composting with minimal odour.

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with the responsibility of managing bin-fill, ranging from textiles, paper, glass, plastic or waste, to know the exact fill level (in real time) via the company’s advanced internet portal.

SmartBin technology allows up-to-theminute knowledge of the chain of possession and disposition of materials, which allows

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companies with bin-essential businesses to track and schedule pickups for a more efficient route. Rather than relying on a universal pickup schedule that may result in bins being emptied at less-than-optimal fill levels, SmartBin informs clients when their bins are reaching capacity.

The technology combines innovative wireless telemetry and web access technologies.

Developed by company Founder and Director Mark McCarville, a 20-year veteran of the IT and telecom industries, the solution measures bin fill-level by using infrared or ultrasonic technology sensors to determine the distance from the top of the waste to the top of the bin container. These reliable and rugged sensors also employ intelligent processing to eliminate the errors associated with random blocking events.

Sensors measure a range of parameters, including bin fill level, bin empty events, battery level and other key parameters at set times during 24-hour cycles. That information is then sent via standard cellular networks to SmartBin’s host servers. From there, customers can see all of that information for as many bins as they operate, anywhere in the world, at any time, and view it in any number of collated

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PRODUCTS

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ways from the company’s database. Solutions can be applied across a range of categories, from recycled materials to document destruction to medical waste and electronic waste, with fluid measurement also planned for the future.

There are cost-savings implications; remotely monitored bins will now be emptied only when full, reducing manpower allocation, fuel costs and emissions/ carbon footprint. Information collected from monitored bins offers clients precise traceability of contents and their disposition. Fixed cost infrastructure associated with the collection of waste and the processing of incoming waste can be more efficiently managed, as the volumes are more predictable.

SmartBin also generates alarms and alerts when the bin is critically full, ensuring the problems associated with overflowing bins can be eliminated, reducing the cost of site cleanup and contributing to an enhanced perception of the client to the community. Furthermore, the reporting and auditing capabilities facilitate the generation of management process reports increasingly required for regulatory compliance.

The SmartManager web interface provides a full service view of all monitored assets and a full suite of management reports, including alert SMS messages and e-mail. SmartManager is intuitively configured as BIO REACTOR AD

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the Map View tab provides a Google map with color-coded markers for each bin site, indicating the fill-level relative to user-established thresholds. This birds-eye view of bins under management allows clients to make intelligent fleet deployment decisions for collection.

A report tab allows users to generate bin utilization and bin efficiency reports for downloading if required for further analysis. Under the admin tab, users can assign resources together with specified service actions and working hours. Resources can then be assigned specific service actions or be set up to receive alerts by SMS or email. This information is provided over the internet, so there is no need for SmartBin clients to capitalize IT investments or learn special skills to adopt the service.

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Substrate recycling Running a more sustainable greenhouse operation is an important objective of Albert Mastronardi, General Manager of H&A Mastronardi Farms. With Grodan’s new recycling program, the 100,000 slabs of substrate he goes through each year will now be used to make bricks for more environmentally-friendly homes.

Every year, the North American greenhouse industry uses more than 250,000 cubic metres of growing substrates — enough to fill over 4,500 household swimming pools. Much of that used substrate is disposed of in non-sustainable ways; it ends up in landfills or applications where it ultimately ends up in the ground. Finding a sustainable alternative is a growing concern for the industry.

Grodan has the answer with a true recycling program. In partnership with Brampton Brick, used Grodan substrate will be incorporated as a raw material in the brick manufacturer’s building products. This symbiotic relationship will allow the Brampton, Ontario company to offset other raw materials normally used in its bricks that are extracted from limited quarry resources.

The recycling program works like this: • At the end of the growing cycle, greenhouse operations deposit the material into Grodan-supplied bins and it is removed for processing; • Once collected, the product is processed to separate the rockwool media from the plastic wrapping, which is recycled using traditional methods; • The rockwool component is ground up and transported to Brampton Brick where it’s incorporated into the brick manufacturing process as a raw material to offset a portion of sedimentary shale rock that is typically required for production.

While still in its infancy, sustainability is gaining traction throughout the distribution chain, from consumers, through retailers, to the growers.

The collected Grodan substrate is used to manufacture bricks specified for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified building projects according to Brampton Brick representative, Brad Cobbledick.

“What it does for us is displace 20 percent (by volume) of the shale that we have to mine in a nearby quarry and transport,” says Cobbledick.

“So it extends the life of our quarry — a non-renewable resource — and allows us to have a certain amount of recycled product in our brick.”

The inclusion of used Grodan substrate has no effect on the colour, texture or physical properties of the brick; it’s a positive attribute that means the bricks can be specified with no compromise in quality.

Visit www.grodan.com (Written by Cam Buchan, freelance writer.)

Advertisers’ Index Company Page # AECOM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 AMRC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Battery .Broker .Environmental .Services .Inc ., .The . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Baycon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Canadian .Renewable .Fuels .Association . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Canadian .Waste .& .Recycling .Expo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Covanta .Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Curotto-Can, .The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 EMF .Containers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Environmental .Business .Consultants .(J . .Nicholson) . . . . . . . . . .43 ESAA/Remtech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Geoware .Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Groundworx .Co ., .The . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Lafleche . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Laurin .Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Mack .Trucks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Miller .Thomson, .LLP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Molok . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35, .37, .43 Norseman .Environmental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 OHE .Consultants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Paradigm Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

June/July 2010

Company Page # Paul .Van .der .Werf .(2CG) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Pro-Tainer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 RBRC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Rehrig .Pacific .Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Recycle .City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Samuel .Strapping .Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Schuyler .Rubber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Sims .Cab .Depot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Sterling .Management .Services/Mitchell .Gibbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 T . .Harris .Environmental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Trashed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Trux .Route .Management .Systems .Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Van .Dyk .Baler .Corp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Veolia .Environmental .Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Voghel/Sparta .Innovations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Vulcan .On-Board .Scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Walinga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Wastecon 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

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June/July 2010 www.solidwastemag.com 45

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by Bill Sheehan “Maine enacted the first-inthe-nation EPR Framework law.”

EPR Trends in the US

T

he United States has lagged behind Canada in implementing the extended producer responsibility policy approach to product and packaging recycling. Now the EPR “bug” is spreading like wildfire and the issues and landscape have changed radically in just the past year.

“Full” EPR washed down the west coast of North America over the past decade and has spread eastwards, challenging the unfettered autonomy of corporations and “voluntary” programs promoted by US EPA and the Product Stewardship Institute through multi-stakeholder negotiations in which funding is a “shared” responsibility.

Environmental NGOs have played an important role in bringing “full” EPR to the US. The Electronics TakeBack Coalition — formerly the Computer TakeBack Campaign — played a central role in the passage of producer responsibility laws for old electronic products in 20 states and the City of New York.

Product Policy Institute (PPI) started in 2003 when British Columbia was developing its framework producer responsibility regulation. Our central idea was that local governments were enabling the producers of throwaway and toxic products, and that managing product and packaging waste should be a market function. In the face of disposal bans, unfunded mandates and budget crises, our ideas resonated with local governments. It started what one writer recently called a local government “trash revolt” that’s still gaining momentum.

PPI started by organizing local governments in councils to work for statewide EPR legislation and ultimately framework legislation like British Columbia’s.

In 2006, we helped start a Product Stewardship Council in California, based on the model of an existing Council in the Pacific Northwest. The California Council became a model for others in New York, Texas, Minnesota, Vermont and Connecticut. They adopted common Principles for Framework Product Stewardship and have been responsible for the adoption of local EPR resolutions in Minnesota, Texas, New York and Massachusetts. In California, 94 local jurisdictions and local government associations have adopted EPR resolutions.

The National League of Cities, National Association of Counties and several state municipal leagues have also adopted producer responsibility resolutions. Impatient at the slow pace of state legislation, some local governments are now talking about moving to passing local ordinances.

EPR is entering a high legislative phase in the U.S., perhaps like the period between 1988 and 1992 when dozens of state recycling laws were passed (all based on the principle of extended “municipal” responsibility). Currently, more than 50 producer responsibility laws covering seven categories of hazardous products have been passed in 32 states.

The hallmark of all of these laws is that they are product-specific, address hazardous products, and are state-level. New trends show the EPR movement moving into new territory on all of these fronts.

46 www.solidwastemag.com June/July 2010

Framework EPR legislation: In March 2010 the State of Maine became the first state to move beyond product-specific legislation to pass a comprehensive, or “framework,” EPR law. The law does not name any products but rather sets criteria and creates a process for bringing in new products over time. The state environmental agency reports annually to the legislature on product stewardship programs (Maine has five EPR laws, more than any other state) and proposes legislation when new products are deemed appropriate for producer responsibility. Other states have also been active, informed by PPI’s EPR Framework Starter Kit. In 2009, framework bills were introduced in Oregon, Minnesota and California, a discussion bill in Washington and a study bill in Rhode Island. This year bills are in play in California and Minnesota.

EPR for packaging: Most attention so far has been on hazardous products, but attention is starting to turn to packaging.

This is being driven by: public concern about wasteful plastic packaging; alarm about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (the California Ocean Protection Council identified EPR as the top priority policy for addressing the problem at the source); Ontario’s blue box program moving to 100 per cent producer funding; adoption of the Canada-wide EPR Plan with packaging as its first strategy; EPA convening a national stakeholder process on product stewardship for packaging; and the soft drink beverage industry sponsoring a bill (H696) to repeal Vermont’s container deposit-refund system and replace it with a mostly municipal-run, multi-material and possibly singlestream residential recycling system for “packaging and printed paper.”

Federal EPR activity: The EPR movement in the US is a grassroots phenomenon: burdened parties (local government) pressed for state legislation. Increasingly, federal activity is being sought. Federal action is necessary to deal with e-waste export issues and with amending the Controlled Substances Act to allow pharmaceutical take-back to pharmacies. Industry typically pushes for federal “solutions,” either to harmonize diverse regulations or to preempt stronger state legislation, or both. Currently, federal legislation is being proposed for e-waste, carpet recycling and mercury-containing lamps. To date, there seems to be little understanding of EPR in Congress; most proposals have been industry-sponsored and rely on taxpayer funding or consumer fees.

This is an exciting time for EPR in the United States. The question is no longer whether we will have mandatory producer responsibility laws for recycling products and packaging. The question now is how to make it work.

Bill Sheehan is Executive Director of the Product Policy Institute in Athens, Georgia. Contact Bill at bill@productpolicy.org

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