Every drop makes a difference.
That’s the message two college students were trying to spread last Friday when they pulled in to Campbell River.
The two young women – Carmen Ang and Nadine Hoyt – are summer ambassadors for the British Columbia Used Oil Management Association, which has partnered with Tire Stewardship BC to promote environmental sustainability.
Ang and Hoyt, along with another team of ambassadors, will canvas the province throughout the season, travelling to 130 municipalities in total and visiting 700 return collection facilities to promote the responsible recycling of used oil, antifreeze and old tires.
Ang, a Simon Fraser University (SFU) student from Coquitlam and Hoyt, who is from Campbell River and attends the University of Victoria (UVic), stopped by several local facilities last Friday. The pair is interning for Used Oil through the co-op program at their schools.
Ang said the summer ambassadors have been busy visiting the retailers who are part of the Used Oil Management program, as well as attending events and meeting with local governments across B.C. to get their message out.
“Our main goal is to educate British Columbians that every drop makes a difference,” Ang said during a stop at Canadian Tire Friday morning. “One drop of used oil can contaminate a million drops of water. We’re out to promote the recycling of used oil.”
Ang and Hoyt dropped by Fountain Tire, Jiffy Lube, OK Tire, Great Canadian Oil Change, Associated Tire, Kal Tire, and Ironwood Auto Technicians.
The ambassadors spoke with the employees to get feedback on the program and presented each facility with a questionnaire to fill out.
Ang said that while the program has only been around for a few years, feedback indicates the program is “working well.”
If the ambassadors can get people to think before they throw their recyclable materials into the landfill and out of our drinking water, then the message is getting through, Ang said.
“Every drop. Every tread. Every day, turn your used oil, anti-freeze and scarp tires into something better,” she said.