Re: the recent announcement by the CVRD of uncontrolled sites for glass disposal being closed.
This raises concerns about the recycle program as a whole. The current waste management company hired by the city will not accept glass in the blue box. When I enquired as to why, the answer I was given, was that there was no market for it.
I have to admit that I had never considered the profitability of waste glass. I just thought I was doing the right thing for the planet, reducing the amount of garbage in the landfill. Isn’t that the main purpose of recycling? I accepted that explanation, and although it was inconvenient, I took the glass to the nearest recycle center. While there, one cannot help but notice that one could have brought all of my recyclables to that center. This begs the question. Why are taxpayers paying for a program that is both redundant, and not full service? Now that the glass bins are to be closed, my options are to drive to the landfill, not a short distance, or simply put my glass in the regular trash. Obviously, the CVRD has a use for the glass as an aggregate blend for road maintenance, so why is not marketable? At any rate, if I have to do my own recycling, then I should be able to opt out of the city’s incomplete program and save myself that expense on my taxes. In other words, if the city is hiring recycle contractors whose only interest is in the profit of certain items, shouldn’t they be paying us?
Dale Bradley
Campbell River