A Peek Inside the 2013 MCR Summer Social

We spent Sunday with the sun,
the showers,
and fellow
Master Composter Recyclers.

Rodney took time to thank everyone that attended. He stressed that every conversation started around waste is a valuable way to contribute. It is a way to reach people who may not think about collectors when they set our their garbage, or understand how important it is to leave grass clippings on the lawn. Rodney also discussed feedback we've received about changing the name of the Master Composter Recycler program.

Some civilized folks chatting until the end of the day...


and then we let loose.

We had some young visitors.

Thanks to Heather S and Yoshie N for their hard work on the grill. The Bring-Your-Own-Salad bar was a colourful mix of beans, greens, reds, and yellows. Thanks to everyone who contributed from their garden and fridge. We would have gone home hungry without you.

We took a few photos for our website and brochures. Thanks to the photographer (Marlee U), artistic director (Mark SA), and subjects (Colleen, Chris, Kaitlyn, Kristin, Robyn, and more).

Future composters explore an Earth Machine compost bin. 

Colleen and Chris can teach you how to turn garbage into compost! 

Showing us how to use compost in planters. 

Thinking about our waste...

Heather and Ella sitting with the garbage from the Summer Social (both from planning the event and at the event itself). We always make an effort to reduce our waste but let's do even better next time! 

All in all it was a beautiful day. 

Thank you to everyone who join us (and all those who were with us in spirit).

Watch for the Volunteer Recognition Event on October 2!

Stop to Chat with Ella

Ella is doing a fabulous job as our Summer Compost Educator. Folks can learn to compost by visiting the Compost Education Centre (JJNC) on Saturdays and Sundays. She will also be there on Fridays and Mondays. We asked her some questions to see what makes her tick:

What are you the most proud of from your work this summer?

Before I talk about what I’m proud of in this job, I would just like to say that I’m incredibly honoured to be working for the City of Edmonton. My colleagues in Waste Management Services are very dynamic and forward-thinking, and have not ceased to stretch and challenge me in new ways.
In terms of visible accomplishments, I am most proud of maintaining the garden and floral displays at the John Janzen Nature Centre - I can watch how plants grow with the help of compost, daily!

What kind of questions do you get from people who visit the site?

I get a lot of crazy questions at the Compost Education Centre, but some of the most common ones are:

• How long does it take to compost something? This one is a bit tricky because people want a simple answer. However, as any experienced composter knows, it’s never the same! I usually tell people that it can take anywhere between three months and five years; it’s up to them how long it takes.
• What is the best kind of compost bin to get? When I get this question, I begin my answer by asking some questions of my own about the amount of waste the visitor wants to compost, how much time they have to turn the compost, and whether they want it done quickly. All of these factors allow me to make a recommendation.
• How do I get started? That one’s easy, because the answer is always the same: greens, browns, water, air!

When you visit the site, let us know if you do any maintenance work
in this log book. That way we can properly thank you for your time!

Check out this map to learn what Ella has planted around the site.

What’s your favourite story from your work with Mark?

It’s hard to settle for one specific Mark story (there are just so many), but there is one ongoing saga that comes up the most often: Mark’s love affair with lattes. Of course I enjoy lattes as well, so Mark and I will often get one while out running errands. Recently, things have progressed so far that Mark and I will try to interpret the colour patterns in the milk foam. Although it’s not quite like reading tea leaves, it comes close to it in artfulness and imagination.

Ella has lots of examples of worm composting to show visitors.
She also encourages picnickers to compost their food scraps. 

How many people have you spoken to at the Compost Education Centre?

According to our stats, I've spoken to over 450 people, so far, this summer.

Ella is very comfortable helping residents find
a way to compost that fits their lifestyle. 

Do you have any tricks to engage people walking by the site?

The key to engaging any guest is offering them something, be it an activity, a demonstration, or just some attention. The most effective way of bringing families in is to play a game with the kids or to offer an encounter with our Red Wigglers. Adults without children can be more difficult to engage, but if they have any interest in composting, it usually works to be friendly and approach them. I offer to answer questions and encourage them to interact with the compost bins we have on site.

Thank you to Ella for sharing your experience with us. Remember to stop by, and say hello to her this summer! As you can see, Ella is happy to answer questions.

Edmonton "Leaves It On The Lawn"

Myles shared his passion with a presentation at Pecha Kucha Night 16.
(He starts 12 minutes into the video)

 


Notice the crowd cheer as Myles points out that bagging grass is an outdated behaviour, originating when the first lawn mower was designed with a bag to catch clippings. Times have changed and now people understand that grassclippings are great for lawn health. Over half of Edmonton leaves our clippings on the lawn!


Start a conversation about grasscycling with your friends, they can enter a draw to win a mulching mower at LeaveItOnYourLawn.com

You may notice our summer street crew in
your neighbourhood, we'll tell you
about their role sometime soon.

You can ask for a lawn sign at LeaveItOnYourLawn.com

Edmonton Composts: Celebrating Compost Awareness Week May 5-12, 2013

Celebrate by telling someone how much you love composting or by helping them start composting! Composting is simple and has many benefits to you, your city, and your yard. 

Visit the Compost Demonstration Site at John Janzen Nature Centre to check out your options. There are many approaches to composting so find one that works with your lifestyle.  

You can compost indoors with Red Wriggler Worms like MCR Duncan K.

Once you have a compost, find a container for your kitchen scraps.

Keep a balance of green, browns, water, and air in your compost bin.

Compost bins like this one being harvested by MCRs Sarah F and Genia R can be purchased for $35 after taking a workshop.

Use compost to add nutrients to your lawn.

Which lawn do you think was treated with compost?

Add compost to your potted plants as fertilizer. 

Use compost in your garden, it will help the soil hold moisture and reduce compaction. Composting can be a fun and active activity to do with the family. 

Get creative with your compost! 

For Compost Awareness Week, The City of Edmonton is hosting 4 workshops at the John Janzen Nature Centre:

• Tuesday, May 7 from 7-9pm
• Wednesday, May 8 from 7-9pm
• Thursday, May 9 from 7-9pm
• Saturday, May 11 from 2-4pm

Classes are only $10 and you can purchase a composter for $35 after taking the workshop. Take a workshop to get started: register for a workshop

Other resources:

edmonton.ca/compost
Backyard Composting Booklet 
Work Composting Booklet
Compost Bins You Can Build Booklet

6 Pack Holders: Recyclable or Not?

Let's use the 4Rs to talk about 6 Pack Holders. 

6 pack holder: recyclable or not?

 Reduce
Avoid 6 pack holders entirely by buying in bulk!

Reuse
Donate them to The Reuse Centre or make a craft yourself. Check out the full list of items accepted at the Reuse Centre.

Sarah, a staff member at the Reuse Centre shows off  a recent donation. 

Recycle? 
No, they do not belong in your Blue Bag or Blue Bin in Edmonton. Put them in the garbage, they will travel to the Edmonton Waste Management Centre and then to the landfill in Ryley, AB.

Recover
Starting in 2015 - when you put them in your garbage they will be turned into Biofuels along with other carbon based waste.

Useful Links: 
Living Green in a Colourful World Blog: snowfake craft instructions
edmonton.ca/reusecentre
edmontonbiofuels.ca

Coffee Pods: Are They Recyclable?

Don't feel like reading? Watch this special edition of CBC Marketplace. The segment starts at 3:57.

The short answer: Coffee pods are not recyclable in Edmonton. They are too small to sort in the Materials Recovery Facility and also contain many different materials all stuck together. So they belong in the garbage.

The long answer: Some people really want them to be recyclable so they take them all apart at home so let's break it down piece by piece.

Coffee grounds - compostable!

• Compost at home, or if you put in your household garbage - in Edmonton - it will be sorted out and composted.

Composting Facility at the Edmonton Waste Management Centre (EWMC)

Paper filter - compostable

• Compost at home, or put it in your household garbage and - in Edmonton - it will be sorted out and composted.

• If you put it in your Blue Bag then it will go to the Materials Recovery Facility for sorting: Paper needs to be bigger than your palm to be sorted at the recycling sorting facility. If it's smaller than your palm, it will likely reach the end of the sorting line as "residuals" or "leftovers" which are landfilled. It may also cause some problems at the plant because small pieces of paper can jam up the machines.

Small (no number) plastic containers - garbage

• If you put them in your Blue Bag, then it will go to the Materials Recovery Facility for sorting. The machines there aren't capable of sorting items that are this small, and the workers on the line are focusing on other items (e.g. pulling plastic bags off the line for recycling).

Materials Recovery Facility at the EWMC

Better ways to deal with them

Unless you find a creative way to reuse these coffee pods, they will end up in the landfill... right now. Edmonton has decided to deal with plastic like this with the Waste-to-Biofuels Project. When the Waste-to-Biofuels Facility is up and running in 2015, the chemicals in these plastics will be recovered into methanol and ethanol. edmontonbiofuels.ca

Our office also has a coffee machine that has small disposable items with each cup. In order to reduce waste, a few of us around the office just bought a coffee press instead. We still get to enjoy a delicious brew without the waste!

Learn more
Find information on composting at home, the EWMC, recycling, Waste-to-Biofules and much more at edmonton.ca/waste.
If you have a suggestion for a questionable item please let us know at mcrp@edmonton.ca!

Eco Stations - keeping hazardous waste and electronics out of landfills

On Friday, March 15, Edmonton's Eco Stations celebrated our 2 millionth customer.
Thank you for keeping 16,093,483 litres of household hazardous waste out of the landfill!

How did we celebrate? 

Watch: Councillor Don Iveson congratulates the 2 millionth customer

Councillor Don Iverson  presents Gilda Valli with her gift

The festivities haven't stopped.
Eco Stations will give away 2 million carrot seeds this year!

Garry, Gilda, and Don show off their carrot seeds

Garry showing 2 million carrot seeds, representing
the 2 millionth customer to Eco Stations

What happens to things you bring to the Eco Station?

Reused 

usable paint à segregated, stored for Paint Exchange

items in good condition à Reuse Area at Ambleside Eco Station

Recycled 

glycol (antifreeze) à reconditioned into new antifreeze

fluorescent tubes à crushed using a bulb crusher and processed at Custom Environmental facilities

PCB lamp ballasts à reclaimable components are recycled, the rest sent for incineration

dry-cell batteries à sent to Toxco and recycled
wet-cell batteries (e.g. car & truck batteries)

plastic casing à recycled into new battery casings

lead cores à recycled into new lead cores

battery acid à used to produce expanded polystyrene

rechargeable batteries à recycled

motor oil/oil filters à recycled by oil recycler

scrap metal (includes empty paint cans) à recycled by local scrap metal dealer

white goods (e.g. freezers, fridges, coolers) à hazardous components removed; remainder recycled

aerosol cans (partially full) à contents evacuated & recycled/disposed, canisters are recycled

propane/butane cylinders à contents evacuated & recycled/disposed, canisters are recycled

Composted

yard waste à sent to IPTF and composted. 

Safely Disposed 

unusable paint à sent to Alberta Special Waste Management Treatment Centre (Swan Hills)

large/bulky items in poor condition àsent to IPTF and landfilled

non-recyclable HHW & prescription medication à sent to Alberta Special Waste Management Treatment Centre (Swan Hills)

Eco Station attendant holds a phone which will
be sent to GEEP for electronic recycling

My Favourite Things About Eco Stations

• They keep household hazardous waste out of our garbage. That's especially important since organic waste is separated from garbage and composted.
• They make it possible to recycle electronics, batteries, motor oil, unusable paint, scrap metal, freezers, fridges, propane and butane cylinders, fluorescent tubes, and more! 
• Free stuff! You can find free paint at all Eco Stations. It's salvaged from usable paint dropped off by residents. The Reuse Area at Ambleside Eco Station saves household items in good condition from landfill. 

History in a Nutshell

• Eco Stations have been accepting Edmonton's computers, batteries, paint cans, couches, and much more from residents since 1995. 
• Strathcona and Coronation Eco Stations are converted spaces. They were originally used as transfer stations (where waste was taken, sorted, and moved again). 
• Ambleside was the first purpose-built Eco Station. Lessons learned from the existing facilities helped in the design of a super Eco Station. It boasts a Reuse Area, lots of room to drop-off, natural light, and beautiful art. 
• Planning is under way for a fourth Eco Station, to serve communities in Northeast Edmonton. 

For More Info

edmonton.ca/ecostations
Edmonton This Week (radio interview)

Valentine's Day Contest: Share to Win

 

Valentine's Day, like many holidays, can be an event surrounded with over-consumption. As waste-aware Edmontonians, Master Composter Recyclers have great ideas to keep waste at a minimum while still making the holiday a special time.

Looking for inspiration? Check out Kristin's interview with the Weather Network. 

What are you doing to reduce your waste around this holiday? Submit your ideas to win a romantic dinner for two!

One MCR helped their Office Ecology Team organize a freecycle table to re-gift items for Valentine's Day. 

How do you reduce waste when you romance your Valentine?

To enter the contest:

• post a comment on this blog (below)
• post your suggestion on the MCR facebook group
• email mcrp@edmonton.ca
• call Rodney (780-496-5991) or Laura (780-496-5051)

What's the prize?
Win a $100 gift certificate for Live Local. You can this as a romantic dinner for two at:
          Accent Restaurant & Lounge
          Blue Plate Diner
          The Dish Bistro
          Sabor Divino Restaurant
          Upper Crust Cafe
          Wild Tangerine
Note:
This contest is only open to volunteers who are graduates of the Master Composter Recycler Program. Thank you for showing Edmontonians creative ways to reduce waste.

MCRs Being Social in the Winter

MCRs braved the cold to attend the 2013 MCR Winter Social with their friends and family. Thank you for the good company and the inspiration to make a difference in our communities.

Alyson, Rodney, and Kathy Cottee think about recycling

As an added treat we invited Kathy Cottee, manager of Quality One Training & Support Inc. Quality One manages staff who sort waste in the Integrated Processing & Transfer Facility (IPTF) and the Construction & Demolition Recycling Facility. Kathy aims to provide meaningful work for people who are hard to employ and help them develop work skills. She helped us understand that this has not been an easy task for her and her team. Quality One and the City of Edmonton try to give the sorters what they need to get the job done. By striving to find common ground, many Quality One employees achieve a higher level of accomplishment than they've ever felt.

Kathy captured the attention of us all

Kathy mentioned the 3 biggest problems for her staff. Here's how to help them out:

1. Medical Waste - Can be safely disposed of at any local pharmacy.
2. Pantyhose - Gets stretched and jams the machinery. Cut them up. 
3. VHS Tape - Gets caught up in conveyor belts and jams up machinery. Movies can be donated to many charities (see edmonton.ca/reusedirectory). Throw VHS tapes that can't be reused in the garbage, but you can tape them up. This helps make sure that they don't unroll. 

Evening at a Glance

As always, we can count on a delicious spread . Luckily, many MCRs also happen to be skilled in the kitchen 

Some dishes are extra creative, Laurie Taylor put peas in her muffins. Surprisingly scrumptious

Kathy accepts a few Fruits of Sherbrook jams as a thank you 

Two Karen's in the audience; Karen Kennedy on the left with her daughter, and Karen Lewis-Caron on the right 

Rodney leads us through a few activities 

Trudy, Mary-Jo, Alessandra, Elsie, and Will rack their brains as part of the challenge 

Garry checking out MCR highlights of 2012

A BIG thank you to

• Alyson, Herb, Christine, Cathie, Andrew, and Su for helping with set-up and clean-up. 
• Kathy Cottee for telling her story with Quality One and the people who sort our waste. 
• Cloverdale Community League for a great space to have our potluck.
• Monique for suggesting Cloverdale Community Hall on the MCR facebook group. 
• (Brenda, Jayne, Megan, Laurie, Karen, Hannah, and Pamela for suggesting other great venues.)
• Edmonton Valley Zoo, John Janzen Nature Centre, Community Services, The Reuse Centre, and Waste Management Services, and Mark (our favourite Compost Education Coordinator) for donating door prizes.