Best Practices Guide for Depot Collection of Polystyrene Cushion Packaging

Transcription

1 Best Practices Guide for Depot Collection of Polystyrene Cushion Packaging July 2008

2 Acknowledgements This Best Practices Guide has been prepared by the Environment Plastics Industry Council of the Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA) and Grace Canada Inc. in co-operation with Sault Ste. Marie, Markham, and Brockton-Hanover. The information provided reflects the input and experience of all parties involved in the depot collection of post-consumer municipal Polystyrene Cushion Packaging. Although every effort has been made to provide accurate and reliable information to the best of our abilities, none of the parties involved can be held liable for any loss or damage resulting from the interpretation or application of this information. This information is intended as a guide for use at your discretion and risk. There is no guarantee of favourable results and no assumption of liability in connection with its use. The contents of this publication, in whole or in part, may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of the publisher. For further information please contact: The Environment and Plastics Industry Council 5925 Airport Road, Suite 712 Mississauga, ON, L4V 1W1 Tel: x 231 Fax: rgauvin@cpia.ca Grace Canada Inc. 294 Clements Road, West Ajax, Ontario L1S 3C6 Tel: x 349 Tel: (Direct) Fax: debra.a.fearn-wright@grace.com The Corporation of the City of Sault Ste Marie 99 Foster Drive, P.O. Box 580 Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5N1 Tel: ext 275 Contact: Randal Roy The Town of Brockton and Municipality of Hanover th Street Hanover, ON N4N 1P5 Tel: Contact: Bruce Davidson Town of Markham 101 Town Centre Boulevard Markham, ON L3R 9W3 Tel: ext 3700 Contact: Peter Veiga 2

3 Content 1.0 Introduction page Grace Canada, Market Capacity & Specifications page Quality Specifications page Focus on Quality page Depot Transportation Programs page Notice of Product Non-conformance page Municipal Pilot Program Experience page Status of Municipal Pilot Programs page Grace Canada Municipal EPS Purchase Commitments page Best Practices for PS Cushion Packaging Depot Collection page Communications and Public Education page 12 Appendices page 15 A) Markham page 15 B) Sault Ste Marie page 17 C) Brockton-Hanover page 19 D) Northumberland County page 21 E) City of Toronto page 24 3

4 1.0 Introduction This Guide will provide useful information to municipalities wishing to divert and recycle post-consumer municipally generated Polystyrene (PS) cushion packaging from their landfills through municipal depot systems. Polystyrene Cushion Packaging is also known as Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) in the industry. Its most common use is to protect fragile products (such as electronic goods, appliances, fragile durable goods and others) during delivery and transportation. To date, Grace Canada has sourced cushion PS packaging primarily from the Industrial/Commercial Sector (automotive, moulders, building renovations and retail). Grace Canada has embarked on increasing its sources of supply to include municipal-generated cushion packaging primarily through depots. It has accomplished this by developing pilot depot programs with Sault Ste. Marie, Town of Markham and Brockton-Hanover to establish best practices and to gain more experience with the municipal supply opportunity. 4

5 2.0 Grace Canada, Market Capacity & Specifications Grace Canada Inc. was incorporated in Canada in 1967 and is located in Ajax, Ontario, Canada. Its major product lines supply the construction industry in the areas of fire protection, cement and concrete, and specialty vermiculite products, including gypsum-based fireproofing materials. These markets, especially the fire protection ones, have a huge capacity for polystyrene cushion packaging materials, especially with building code changes that require structural beams to be insulated and thermally protected in the event of fire. Grace s products and proprietary process requires white foam polystyrene cushion packaging, also known as EPS packaging. Grace Canada blends the recycled EPS with virgin white EPS of the type typically used in insulation. The recycling program for cushion packaging started in 1997 for North American plants in Ajax, Ontario, Irondale, Alabama, and Santa Ana, California. To date, over 34.9 million kilograms (77 million lbs) of cushion packaging has been recycled at these three North American facilities. The Ajax plant in Ontario has a projected capacity of 1.8 million kgs (four million lbs), with the current recycling capacity being almost one million kgs (two million lbs). Over half of Grace s recycled material supply is Post Industrial Packaging (PIP) recovery (scrap that is recycled but never served its intended purpose), while the balance can be post-consumer packaging. Over half of Grace s recycled material supply is Post Industrial Packaging (PIP) recovery (scrap that is recycled but never served its intended purpose), while the balance can be post-consumer packaging. 2.1 Quality Specifications Key Municipal Quality Considerations Summarized Material shipped must be white foam polystyrene cushion packaging, also known as expanded polystyrene (EPS). Materials must be packed in large, clear plastic bags or Grace Canada-supplied bulk bags (preferred), loosely loaded in van trailers unless other options are approved. Materials must be clean, dry, and with limited amounts of tape, paper and no hard/rigid plastics. Most post-consumer white foam polystyrene cushion packaging does not have labels or other attachments, but the program should encourage citizens to remove these materials (and other attachments) before recycling at the depot to minimize the occurrence of these contaminants. 5

6 Table #1 Specification for Municipal White Foam Polystyrene Cushion Packaging from Municipal Depot Collection Properties Specification Test Method Chemical Composition Bulk Density Appearance Other Properties Packaging & Loading a) Post consumer - white foam polystyrene cushion packaging - expanded polystyrene packaging (EPS) a) Minimum 0.5 pcf b) Target 1.5 pcf c) Maximum 2.0 pcf a) White moulded pieces only b) With approval, may be able to process light blue, green or yellow pieces a) Must be clean and dry b) Free of metal objects, minimal tape & paper labels, strapping and wood c) Free of plastic coatings and hard rigid plastics d) Free from oil contamination e) No food service or extruded rigid PS packaging/products f) No PVC, polyethylene/copolymer or Arcel g) No packaging peanuts h) No packaging used in Bio-Hazards applications a) PS pieces loosely packed in Grace supplied bulk bags is preferred b) PS pieces loosely packed in large, clear plastic bags (e.g. mattress bags or large plastic bags purchased by depot) Visual Inspection Vendors Test Method of Grace Test Method Polystyrene Bulk Density Water Displacement Test Procedure Visual inspection or for coloured material, may require test batch for approval Visual Inspection Visual Inspection 2.2 Focus on Quality The focus on quality starts with communication to citizens and businesses that target only white foam polystyrene cushion packaging, otherwise known as EPS. An example of the key communication messages can be seen in the Appendix D Northumberland pilot where EPIC, Northumberland and Grace Canada developed a brochure to advertise the program to citizens. The key messages to citizens and businesses using the depot are: Acceptable: All white foam packaging only (expanded polystyrene) o Cushion packaging used in packing computers, stereos and other electronics. 6

7 Not Acceptable: food storage, food packaging and white foam food-contact containers used in meat trays, coffee cups or clamshells, and including packaging peanuts. Simple Rules to Follow: 1. Remove all tape, plastic, labels, hard rigid plastics and other contamination. 2. Place packing material in a large, clear plastic bag. 3. Tie the bag securely to keep moisture out. 4. Bring tied bags to the depot. Manned Depot Operations Monitoring incoming materials will further enhance communication and education efforts with citizens by providing direct feedback through depot staff to citizens during normal depot operating hours. This, coupled with effective communication to residents, will help ensure that the quality of materials received from the public meets end-market specifications. Unmanned Depot Operations If depots are not manned during operating hours, depot staff needs to ensure quality standards by sorting received materials into large plastic bags (e.g. mattress bags) or Grace Canada bulk bags to prepare these materials for shipment. Use of Large, Clear Plastic Bags or Bulk Bags Grace Canada requires that all depot-collected white foam polystyrene cushion packaging is bagged either in large, clear plastic bags purchased by the municipality (or mattress bags procured from local furniture retailers) or use Grace Canadasupplied bulk bags for shipment. This allows for efficient feeding of the manufacturing operations with the large volume of materials required. 1. Large clear plastic bags (e.g. mattress bags or large, clear plastic bags of a similar size purchased by the municipality) or; 2. Bulk bags provided by Grace Canada. The bulk bag system is the preferred handling system. All municipal depots are encouraged to adopt this system if possible. This system promotes the reuse of bulk bags which can be cycled in the municipal depot system. Municipal depots loosely pack the depotcollected PS cushion packaging from citizens in the bulk bags without the use of large plastic bags. The benefits of this system are: a. Reduces waste disposal costs for large plastic bags at Grace Canada; b. Reduces municipal depot costs as large plastic bags do not have to be purchased or procured from local sources; c. Improves handling and transportation of PS cushion packaging materials at the depot and Grace Canada. The bulk bags are light enough to be moved manually by depot and Grace Canada staff. The bags can be emptied easily on the Grace Canada line by opening the bulk bag bottom flap. d. Bulk bags pack more efficiently into the van trailers, increasing load weights. 7

8 The use of bags will maintain material cleanliness, keep materials moisture free, and facilitate storage and handling at the depot. The bagged materials should be loosely loaded in covered shipping trailers and/or covered roll-offs that can be unloaded by Grace Canada s staff at their receiving docks. The use of large, clear plastic bags or substitutes (e.g. clear plastic mattress bags from retailers) facilitates the handling, unloading and quality inspection of EPS received at Grace Canada. Grace Canada is investigating the option of providing bulk bags to municipalities for their EPS depot collection programs. These bulk sacs would be cycled through the depot collection system. 2.3 Depot Transportation Programs Grace Canada pays for all shipping costs from municipal depots. There are two distinct transportation systems available to municipalities, which are based on the volume of materials collected for shipment. Both systems utilize completely enclosed, road-worthy, 48-foot van trailers to ensure all municipal depot-collected materials are kept clean and dry from the elements during transportation and unloading. If bulk bags are used by the depot to collect and store materials, both transportation systems can exchange Grace Canada-supplied bulk bags with the municipal depot. A typical load will weigh between 544 to 680 kgs (1,200 to 1,500 lbs), depending on how well the loose plastic bags or bulk sacs are packed in the van trailer. The two transportation systems address low- and highvolume depots and are designated as: 1. Live load (i.e. lower-volume suppliers); and 2. Drop & swap (high-volume suppliers with at least several loads per week). 1. Live-Load System Low-Volume Depots Most municipal depot collection systems will qualify for this category of transportation. In this system, the depot collects and inspects delivered materials before storing PS cushion packaging in large, clear plastic bags (e.g. mattress bags or municipal/citizen-purchased bags) or bulk sacs provided by Grace Canada, until truckload quantities are attained. The municipal depot calls Grace Canada s designated transportation provider to arrange for pick up of the stored material. A truck will be dispatched to the municipal depot with one empty 48-foot van trailer (with empty bulk sacs if used by the municipal depot) to be loaded by the municipal staff, who will pack the loose plastic bags or bulk sacs of depot-collected materials to fully utilize all available space on the van trailer. 8

9 2. Drop & Swap System (High-Volume Depots) This transportation system requires that the municipal depot collect several loads per week. Grace Canada s designated transportation provider will drop one empty 48-foot van trailer at the municipal depot site where the depot-collected materials will be inspected and placed in large plastic bags or bulk bags by municipal staff, loaded and then stored in the van trailer until the load is full and ready for shipment. Once the trailer is full, the municipal depot will call Grace Canada s designated transportation provider to pick up the trailer. The transportation company will swap one empty 48-foot van trailer for the full trailer at the depot (including bulk bags if required). 3. Storage of Polystyrene Cushion Packaging The National Fire Code of Canada sets limits for the quantity of polystyrene that may be stored at a facility. For indoor storage in a non-sprinklered building, the maximum storage area is 250m 2 to a height of 1.5m. If the building is sprinklered, the allowance increases to 500m 2 and to a height of 500m 2. For outdoor storage, the permissible storage area is 1,000m 2 and a height no greater than 3m. Individual storage areas must have a minimum clear space around each of 6m. Grace Recycling Facility and Manufacturing Process All PS cushion packaging is delivered to Grace Canada s Ajax facility, where it is unloaded by Grace Canada staff and then inspected for contamination and quality specifications (Table #1). Materials are loaded on a processing line where the large cushion packaging is fed into hot wire cutters that slice the EPS pieces into more manageable sizes that can undergo further processing in Grace s proprietary manufacturing process. Since the process utilizes hot wires to slice the cushion packaging into smaller pieces, it is important that the cushion packaging collected at municipal depots be clean, dry and free of objects such as metal, strapping, paper & labels that might ignite, wood, plastic coatings, rigid plastics and biohazards. Grace Canada has found that most post-consumer cushion packaging from households is usually free of labels and tape. Asking citizens to remove these items, however, will minimize any potential ignition sources. 9

10 2.4 Notice of Product Non-Conformance All loads from municipal and industrial sources are inspected to ensure they meet quality specifications. Feedback to suppliers is a critical part of the supplier-customer relationship and in maintaining final end-product quality. Grace Canada is committed to work with its municipal suppliers and partners to resolve quality issues, to avoid rejected loads and, if need be, to send these loads back to the municipal suppliers. Part of this process will be timely feedback on any quality issues that may develop and joint resolution of the problem to solve the contamination problem. In the event of quality problems of received loads, a Notice of Product Non- Conformance report is issued to the EPS supplier by Grace Canada s Quality Department to detail the problem, disposition and corrective action response expected from the supplier. In the case of small levels of contamination, Grace Canada will sort through the nonconforming material and dispose of the unacceptable product. In the case of large levels of contamination, the full truck load is returned to the supplier. First offense, Grace will pay the return freight. Second offense, product is returned collect. Third offense, product is returned collect and the supplier program is reviewed for continuation and its ability to meet quality specifications. 3.0 Municipal Pilot Program Experience To date, there have been five municipal depot pilot programs conducted in Ontario, with more detailed findings found in the appendices: Town of Markham (Appendix A) Sault Ste. Marie (Appendix B) Brockton-Hanover (Appendix C) Northumberland County (Appendix D) City of Toronto (Appendix E) 3.1 Status of Municipal Pilot Programs The Town of Markham s four depot sites have all been successfully qualified as regular suppliers of polystyrene cushion packaging. The Town of Markham and Grace Canada have set up a seamless system of collection and shipping, with Markham arranging all loads with Grace Canada s shipping company when the depot trailers are fully loaded. Sault Ste. Marie and Brockton-Hanover have successfully shipped loads from their depots, with this material passing Grace Canada s Quality Specification program. The Sault Ste. Marie program was temporally suspended for the winter months, as the Sault had located their EPS collection at a seasonal depot. Sault staff is currently 10

11 examining other options and partnerships with local community groups (Community Living Algoma non-profit group for challenged youth) to offer citizens and businesses year-round depot access to recycle polystyrene cushion packaging. The Brockton-Hanover program has been successfully collecting Polystyrene Cushion Packaging since December The program s first shipment met specifications and all subsequent shipments have met quality specifications, as Brockton-Hanover is a qualified supplier to Grace Canada. Brockton-Hanover and Grace Canada have agreed to jointly test a bulk bag collection and shipment pilot to reduce collection and shipment costs. This test is expected to begin late June 2008 and should result in reduced depot staff time and costs, as well as a reduction in unloading time at Grace Canada. Northumberland County conducted a time-limited pilot depot program. One load was shipped and did not meet the Grace Canada specifications. This was due mainly to the use of a 40-yard open roll-off container, which allowed materials to get wet (i.e. snow). It contained un-bagged EPS materials, EPS peanuts and paper contamination, which is not accepted in Grace Canada s operations. The City of Toronto has completed one test load. The City was offered the use of Grace-supplied bulk bags, but declined in favour of using small clear plastic bags. The quality of the PS cushion packaging received did meet quality specifications. However, City depot staff used small clear plastic bags which are labour intensive for the depot and could not be efficiently handled at Grace Canada. 3.2 Grace Municipal EPS Purchase Commitments Grace Canada is actively seeking additional municipal supplies of polystyrene cushion packaging from Ontario municipalities. Grace Canada will issue a No Charge Purchase Commitment for a specified volume to municipalities for their depot-collected PS Cushion Foam Packaging. 4.0 Best Practices for Municipal Depot Collection of Polystyrene Cushion Packaging Based on the experience of the pilot programs to date, the following success factors have been found to affect the quality of the polystyrene cushion packaging. One area under further study is the collection, storage and shipping procedures relating to the use of large plastic bags. Grace is examining and promoting the use of reusable bulk bags for depots to collect, store and ship PS cushion packaging. The objective is to reduce the costs of plastic bags purchased by municipal depots, maintain quality, improve shipping weights, and improve the handling of EPS. Successful Best Practices: 1. Manned depots are the best way to monitor the public and businesses participating in the program because direct feedback can be provided. 11

12 a. If the depot cannot be staffed, a quality check of the dropped-off materials is required to ensure quality specifications have been met before the materials are bagged, loaded and shipped. 2. Clean, dry material is essential for the safety of workers and machinery (i.e hot wire cutters) at Grace Canada. a. It is important that covered storage of all depot-collected materials is maintained either through the use of covered trailers or depots with indoor storage areas. b. Materials must also be kept free of contamination and paper that might be ignited by the hot wire cutters. 3. Public response can be promoted through effective communications to ensure a sustainable quality volume of the polystyrene cushion packaging. 4. Communications for public and business education should be focused on promoting white foam polystyrene cushion packaging, with a few simple rules (e.g. the use of large, clear bags tied off to keep materials clean and dry; the removal of all contaminants; and dates, times and locations of when and where the material may be dropped off). 5. The use of bulk bags is preferred and promotes reuse. This system will improve the handling of PS cushion packaging, its storage, shipping, and the loading and un-loading at the depot and receiving facilities. These reusable bags can be cycled in the depot system and will reduce depots costs of purchasing large plastic bags, handling at the depot and receiving facility, and will also reduce waste costs at Grace Canada s facilities. As part of Grace Canada s commitment to continuous improvement, these best practices will be modified as more experience is gained through the Municipal Depot Polystyrene Cushion Packaging collection program. Grace Canada is committed to working with willing municipal partners to develop more effective communication and education, as well as collection and shipping systems for polystyrene cushion packaging collected at depots. 5.0 Communications and Public Education All of the municipalities that participated in the Grace Canada pilot programs for municipal depot collection of PS cushion packaging realized the importance of communication to residents. Wherever possible, the programs were advertised on the municipalities web sites, community newspapers and flyers. One municipality (Sault Ste. Marie) also broadcasted its diversion programs on a local television station. Any advertisement or flyer should include: a list and photos of materials included in the program, as well as those materials that aren t (if there are any exclusions); depot locations and operating hours; the logo of the municipality; a telephone number for inquiries; collection instructions; and if possible, a list of what the PS 12

13 material is recycled into. Residents are usually interested in finding out about the different products that are made from the recycled material. A sample ad is available on the following page. Please note that the ad s list of included and excluded materials reflects the Grace Canada s pilot programs, which are restricted to EPS cushion packaging only. 13

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15 Appendices A. Town of Markham page 16 B. Sault Ste. Marie page 18 C. Brockton Hanover page 20 D. Northumberland County page 22 E City of Toronto page 25 15

16 Appendix A Grace Canada Expanded Polystyrene Depot Collection Pilot with Town of Markham Background: In October 2007, EPIC, and the Town of Markham discussed the Grace Canada depot program as an option for the collection of Polystyrene Cushion Packaging (also known as EPS) at Markham s four community depots. Markham is in York Region where the Regional MRF does not allow foam Polystyrene Cushion Packaging to be processed in the facility. In addition to the depot collection of Blue Box materials, Markham provides citizens with recycling opportunities for materials not accepted in the Markham Blue Box. Markham staff contacted Grace Canada, who provided covered road trailers for the Markham depots. The Markham depots are manned, and have regular hours of operation with proper signage and communications on Polystyrene Cushion Packaging. To date, Markham has shipped an estimated 4,354 kgs (9,600 lbs) of depot-collected material, all of which has met quality specifications and shipping requirements. Communications: The Markham depots are all fully manned to ensure all materials accepted meet Grace Canada s quality specifications. The program is advertised on Markham s website, community newspapers and flyers. Materials are only accepted from citizens wishing to recycle their foam Polystyrene Cushion Packaging. Public Instructions: The information flyer offered residents the opportunity to place clean, white foam packing material in large, clear bags of the type already being utilized in the Recycle Clean program. The public was instructed to follow a few simple steps, including removal of all contaminants, and to deliver the EPS packaging to one of four Markham depots. Depot operators monitor what citizens deliver and place the material in large, clear plastic bags. The depot operator stores the full plastic bags indoors for pick up by Markham s waste management service provider. Collection Containers and Material Transport: The Town of Markham is on the Grace Canada live-load system. The Town of Markham consolidates the EPS packaging from its four depots at one site for pick up by Grace Canada. Markham staff calls Grace Canada s transportation company to arrange pick up. One 48-foot van trailer is sent to the location where all the collected depot material has been consolidated. It is then loaded loosely in the large, plastic bags on the trailer. 16

17 Lessons Learned: The public response to the pilot was considered successful due to the accessibility of Markham s four depots and to effective communications. Manned depots monitoring the public during depot operating hours ensure quality materials are collected and received. The depot staff assists the public and enhances education and promotion of the program. Materials collected are stored in large plastic bags and tied off. Markham depots store the materials indoors or in covered roll-offs at outdoor facilities, ensuring materials are kept clean and dry. The use of covered road trailers provide by Grace Canada ensures materials shipped are kept clean and dry. The ability to inspect the incoming material is important for quality control. Exhibit A-1 Town of Markham Manned Depot Indoor Storage Depot Hours Indoor Manned Depot Collection Bags Indoor Storage & Consolidation 17

18 Appendix B Grace Canada Expanded Polystyrene Depot Collection Pilot with Sault Ste. Marie Background: In the summer of 2007, Sault Ste. Marie, Grace Canada and EPIC discussed a partnership to collect and keep polystyrene cushion packaging (also known as EPS) out of the Sault s landfill. The Sault s focus on diversion is linked to the life of the landfill which is estimated to have about 11 years of remaining volume. The Sault is actively promoting the diversion of EPS packaging from its landfill to its citizens and businesses. The polystyrene cushion packaging depot was originally established at one of the City s seasonal depots (operational April to October). Grace Canada provided a covered road trailer for storage and shipping. Due to the seasonal operation of the community depot, City staff is investigating other options to provide year-round service. To date, the Sault has successfully shipped three EPS loads, all of which has met quality specifications. Communications: The Sault depot (Exhibit B-1) is manned to ensure all materials meet Grace Canada s quality specifications. The program is advertised on the City s website, community newspapers and flyers. The Sault also has a unique partnership with local a television station to broadcast its diversion programs, including the depots and the collection of EPS. EPS material is accepted for free from citizens, with businesses having to pay a small fee. Staff at the depot use mattress bags from local mattress retail outlets to bag the polystyrene cushion packaging and load the Grace Canada road trailers. A second depot with a non-profit organization, Community Living Algoma, was just opened mid This depot has a cover charge of $2 per visit, with proceeds going to support challenged youth who are employed by this program. Public Instructions: The information flyer offered residents the opportunity to place clean, white foam packing material in large, clear bags of the kind already being utilized in the Recycle Clean program. The public was instructed to follow a few simple steps (e.g. removals of all contaminants, use of clear bags only, need to tie the bags to keep moisture out and to drop off the materials by a fixed date). Collection Containers and Material Transport: The City of Sault Ste. Marie is on the Grace Canada live-load system. The City operates a seasonal depot where materials are stored indoors. Sault depot staff call Grace Canada s transportation company to arrange for the load. One 48-foot van trailer is sent to the depot where the large plastic bags (i.e. mattress bags) containing EPS packaging is loaded loosely in the trailer. 18

19 Lessons Learned: The public and business response to the pilot was considered successful, primarily due to effective communications and the local landfill issue, the latter of which has made citizens and businesses more conscious of this and other waste-diversion efforts. Manned depot monitoring the public during depot operating hours ensures quality materials are collected and properly prepared for storage and shipping. Depot staff contributes to the ongoing education and promotion of the program. The use of covered road trailers provided by Grace Canada ensures shipped materials are kept clean and dry. The ability to inspect the incoming material is important for quality control. Exhibit B-1 Sault Ste. Marie Depot Drop Off & Large Mattress Bags 19

20 Appendix C Grace Canada Expanded Polystyrene Depot Collection Pilot with Brockton-Hanover Background: Brockton-Hanover approached Grace Canada in the fall of 2007 in its efforts to divert PS cushion packaging from its landfill. A local volunteer group, with the support of the Municipality of Brockton and Town of Hanover, established the collection of EPS packaging at the two local recycling depots. The program was launched for citizens on December 22 nd, To date, over six loads of material have been shipped, all of which has met quality specifications. The response of the public and area retailers has been extremely positive and has led to requests to expand plastics recycling and other materials to the depot program. Brockton-Hanover has decided that the EPS depot program will become a permanent program. Communications: The following communications were put on the municipal website and distributed through the local community newspaper. 20

21 Public Instructions: The municipality supplies citizens with large plastic bags to deliver their loose EPS to the depot. The bags are available from the municipal office. The municipal expense for these bags averages $50 per month. Collection Containers and Material Transport: The municipality currently rents two trailers at $320/month to store the depot-collected materials. This municipality is on the live-load system. The depots are manned during advertised hours but, when unmanned, materials can be dropped off by citizens. Volunteers check all materials before storing them to ensure they meet quality specifications. The total man hours of labour to inspect, sort and ensure the quality of the EPS packaging received is approximately 10 hours per week. The materials are stored loosely in the depot trailers. Once the depot trailers are full, a call is made to Grace Canada, and an empty trailer is sent and hand loaded by the volunteers. Lessons Learned: The public response to the pilot was considered successful due to the accessibility of the two depots and the use of the community newspapers and municipal website to communicate the program. The municipality purchases and supplies large plastic bags to the public, which has helped generate the excellent response to date. The use of reusable bulk bags is being considered to reduce the cost of bags and to improve handling. Manned depots monitoring the public during depot operating hours ensure quality materials are collected and received. The depot staff assists the public and enhances the education and promotion of the program. Materials collected are stored in large plastic bags and tied off. The depot stores the materials in covered, rented trailers at the depot, ensuring that the materials are kept clean and dry. The use of covered road trailers provided by Grace Canada ensures that the materials are kept clean and dry during transport. The ability to inspect the incoming material is important for quality control. 21

22 Appendix D Grace Canada Expanded Polystyrene Depot Collection Pilot with Northumberland County Background: In November 2006, EPIC, Grace Canada and Northumberland County worked together to plan and implement a month-long pilot project to collect post-consumer Expanded Polystyrene (EPS). Grace Canada wanted to secure more sources of clean, un-baled EPS and to test pilot the ability of municipalities to collect clean, post-consumer expanded foam packaging. Grace Canada offered to provide empty tractor trailers to Northumberland County and also to pick up and transport the collected material to their Ajax facility at no charge, with no monetary compensation offered for the municipal material. Northumberland County arranged for special EPS recycling depots at four landfill or transfer station locations run by the County for the month of January All drop-off locations were already staffed as part of other solid waste programs. EPIC facilitated planning discussions and prepared the program flyer. Communications: The pilot project was advertised as a special holiday recycling program in the local newspaper space regularly utilized by the County to inform the public of special environmental issues, as well as via a flyer created by EPIC with photos from Grace Canada. Northumberland County printed and distributed the flyers (Exhibit #1). The flyer included a list and photos of acceptable materials, as well as a list of non-acceptable materials (packing peanuts, food storage or contact containers e.g. meat trays, coffee cups, clamshells). The flyer was posted in December at all the drop-off locations, the municipal recycling facility, and the municipal office complex. 22

23 Exhibit #1 Northumberland Flyer Public Instructions: The flyer offered residents the opportunity to place clean, white foam packaging material in large clear bags of the type already being utilized in the Recycle Clean program. The public was instructed to follow a few simple steps (e.g. removal of all contaminants, use of clear bags only, the need to tie the bags to keep moisture out, and to drop off the material by a fixed date). 23

24 Collection Containers and Material Transport: Grace Canada offered use of their large 40-foot covered road trailers for collection and pick up. However, due to footprint constraints at the drop-off locations and cost considerations, Northumberland County chose to make use of open (40-yard) containers they already had in service. Northumberland County staff transported the load to Grace Canada in Ajax, rather than have it picked up, given the volume was conducive to the use of their own fleet vehicle. Lessons Learned: The public response to the pilot was considered generally successful. Although a significant quantity of clean material was brought in during the month the program was offered (40-yard container), some of it did arrive unbagged, and some of it was contaminated with paper and the wrong type of material (e.g. peanuts ) in spite of staff inspection efforts. Due to the use of open-collection bins in January, snow ended up in the material. In spite of staff efforts to move the material indoors to the recycling facility floor for drying, the load was wet upon arrival at Grace Canada and was subsequently rejected due to concerns about water in the process. The use of covered containers to ensure dry material is essential. The ability to inspect the incoming material is important for quality control. The Northumberland experience confirms the ability to offer a time-limited pilot with costeffective public notification and no fears of turning off the offer to the public. The use of clear bags for EPS collection would keep the material dry in other types of containers and would be helpful if it could be easily enforced. 24

25 Appendix E Grace Canada Expanded Polystyrene Depot Collection Pilot with City of Toronto Background: In its efforts to divert more materials from landfill, the City of Toronto operates a number of depots for various materials, including the collection of all types of polystyrene, including rigid and foam, both of which are not currently collected in the curbside Blue Box system. Citizens deliver these materials directly to the depots located at City of Toronto waste management facilities. In response to the recent closing of the Canadian Polystyrene Recycling Association, a test load of white foam polystyrene cushion packaging was sorted from the rigid PS packaging and prepared by City of Toronto staff for shipment to Grace Canada. Grace Canada offered bulk bags to the City to prepare the shipment and a 48-foot van trailer. City staff declined using the bulk bags in favour of clear plastic bags. Test Results and Lessons Learned: The material received from the City of Toronto was deemed to be acceptable in quality with minimum contaminants. The main concern for the load was the City of Toronto s use of small plastic bags and loose EPS pieces in the trailer, which made the unloading of this material and feeding of the recycling processing lines difficult and labour intensive. The use of large plastic bags or the bulk bags offered would have made this an ideal load and reduced labour at both the City depot and Grace Canada operations. The City has decided not to proceed with the program at this time. City of Toronto Test Load Small Bags & Loose Materials 25