Solutions nee

a
Trenel Whittaker

ECO INFO

IF’ EVER there was’ a
yoracious paper consumer, I

am it.

Books. follow me ‘home from
the. Store. News releases fill up my,
mailbox in the newsroom. I.scrib-
ble notes ON paper, print out my
articles. on a computer, ‘then fax

my" articles to. a newspaper. .that
arrives on every doorstep ‘on’ the
North-Shore, three times a? week,
and fills up the blue. bags placed
~ out at the curb for recycling. - ;

Newspaper makes ‘up 9%,” and

“other types of paper 25%, of an
average household’s waste, stream.
So'it’s not surprising that many
“people. call the North : Store
Recycling: Program office wonder-

‘ing why mixed paper is not: being ©
recycled in North, and West" Van- L

cou Ver,

Simply put, ‘the. market’. for.

» gixed’ ‘waste paper . (MWP)_

is
“lousy. ‘Crummy. The pits. :

Some: industries * will accept’ it.
aid tige it for: toilet? paper: ‘Cores,’
“goofing : paper, and: other :applica- ”

tions, but even they, aren *t beating :

down doors ‘for-it.’
While ~ mofe. and more

: " saunicipalities, are collecting MWP. '
from. ‘residents inan. effort to (a)
en-~

appease ® ‘environmentally.
-uthusiastic citizens and (6) meet the
50%-solid waste reduction . goal,

‘ding upswing in available markets.
Paperboard : Industries ‘in .Van-

—cePting MWP.. from: . people

- 10-year supply of it stockpiled. .

2, Other” “open-loop” solutions
(that. don’t result in the MWP be-

ing. recycled. back. into paper).. are

" being studied. °
Washington

ts “exploring - the

“Sand. there-are | ‘farmers. in‘ Ontario

there. has:yet to be a‘ correspon-".

‘couver, " ‘for example, stopped ac-.’f

“because their mill. already had: a~

-"possibility:.of ‘using MWP. ‘asa’
“source. of ‘cellulose-derived” fuel,

“who, use the Province’ s unsold lot-:,

tery tickets as bedding in their
stables, after which it is com-
posted. .
' There is a viable ‘‘closed-loop”’
market for one portion of the
MWP stream, however, and one
that is growing dramatically.
Largely due to a recent law in
California that legislates the use
of recycled’ stock by newsprint
users, there has been a great jump
in the number of Canadian
newsprint mills producing recycled
Content paper — from one mill
three years ago to 20 mills today.
That creates a great demand for
not only old newspaper (ONP),
-but also old magazines (OMG), as
recycled newsprint is made from
80% ONP and 20% OMG. :
The high clay content of the
glossy magazine paper makes
magazines difficult to recycle on
their own, but when added to
newspapers in a “‘flotation’’ plant,
the clay in the wash water is used
to ‘float’? the ink off the pages
of the newspaper.- .
_As detailed in the . Recycling
Council of B.C.’s current newslet-
‘ter, -‘fReiterate,” -the fact that
there is a growing need for maga-
zines is a welcome one indeed.

In British Columbia, approxi- °

mately 280 million. magazines are
‘distributed each, year, translating
to.a weight of about 126, 000 ton-
nes.
About 60% of the friagazines
distributed in Canada originate in
“the United States, but Canadian
taxpayers are,the ones to pay for
incineration, or landfill of -the

_. Saturda'

PER EN

“NOTICE TO. MOTORISTS.
ME ‘LIONS. GATE BRIDGE ne
FULL CLOSURE. = SUNDAY JANUARY 31 cs

“1:00 AM- 7:00. AM

~The Ministry of Tanspertation and Highways advises that the Lions Gate Bridge and...
‘ ‘the Stanley Park Catiseway will be closed on Sunday, January 31,between the hours.
of 1: Of AM, and 7:00° AM. . The closure | is heeded to facilitate survey work on the bridge.

-Provinée-of”
British Columbia

and Highways :

_ option for wholesalers, it

An. overview of thiernational Alzheimer Research

“Te sa Matter of Time”’.

ee - KNOWLEDGE NETWORK CABLE 5
y, January 30, at 3:30-4pm

Monthly education sessions by Dr. Jo Ann Miller
. Provincial Education Coordinator, #20 - 601 West Cordova St., Vancouver
(Waterfront SeaBus & SkyTrain station}

; “Memory for Daily Living” — February 24, 2 p.m_3:15 pm.
“Grieving in Alzhelmer’s disease” — March 31,-2pm3:15pm__

‘ Annual conference entitled ‘“Choices in Care”. _

* Keynote speaker: Mary Lucero —- Geriatric. Resources Inc.

, “. < DELTA RIVER INN, Richmond ,
April 16:18, 1993

For registration forms or infermation contact Provincial office. Registration
‘deadline March 15th — space limited.

Ministry of Transportation

resulting waste.

And whether the magazines are
CLS. ce Canadian in origin, waste
there is apleuty. Canadian maga-
zine publishers rely heavily ‘on
direct distribution: 44% of their
magazines are delivered free and
unsolicited,

Of the magazines sold in news-
Stands, approximately half are
returned unsold to the wholesaler ,
who must dispose of them.

While recycling is sometimes an
isn’t
always cost-effective.

And even when magazines are
bought, cither by subscription or
at the newsstand, we all know
where they end up — piled up in
boxes in the garage, while their
owners agonize over whether they

should throw them out or wait for .

a magazine recycling program to
magically appear in their neigh-
borhood.

Unfortunately, harvesting mag-
azines for use by the newsprint
de-inking “mills such as Newstech
in Coquitlam isn’t problem-free.

““Contaminants”’ in the maga-
zines, such as the gummed address
labels, plastic or craft-paper
wrappers, and non-paper_inserts,:
render the magazines useless to a
plant tike Newstech. .

The’ gummed labels form a glue
as the magazines’ are input into
the flotation process, and‘the glue
sticks to the machinery and causes
light spots and holes i in the Paper
being produced.

The price paid for magazines is

_currently too low for ‘magazine.

-taminant-free,

ded for recyclers’ paper chase

wholesalers to spend the time
‘*de-contaminating’’ their maga-
zines for use by newspaper de-
inkers, so if they are recycled it is
usually only as low-grade waste
paper, .along with paperback
books and tabloid newspapers. -

It is a similar story for
municipal recycling programs: it
costs too much to sort the maga-
zines from the other waste paper.

While drop-off depots such as
Burnaby’s Still Creek. depot ask
residents to sort out their own
magazines, a recent peek into the
magazine bin revealed 4 great deal
of contamination that might make
it unacceptable to a de-inking
plant.

Even if Canada’s newspaper
and magazine collection programs
were fully functional and con-
Canadian
newsprint plants “would. stili not
have all the waste. paper required
to meet the new recycled content
demands for its . major North
American newsprint customers. -

Currently, Canada produces
one-third of the. world’s,
newsprint, about 10 million ‘tonnes.

OTHE PEOPLE

Dear Aiex,
‘“The enclosed photograph was ‘taken on.
the ‘ny Greek Island_of Kastellorizo «.:
Caroline and t had a particularly gruelling -

Tilley hats and Mephisto’ shoes” ‘and: I,
Tilley shorts.”

hats.”

contribution to our vacation. We're glad we
didn't | leave home without them."

Toronto °

= |

North Vancouver

| 1194 Marine near Pemberton °

987- 6424 .

X ternational
Bn tadio &t.

_ Newspaper |

“put.” .

aN THE,
HATS ”

hike into the interior, wearing his and hers”.

. “Towards the end: ‘of ‘our ten- day stay, a
we were amused to discover that the local ©
people referred tous as’ "the people inthe’
_ Thanks: for making the pants, shorts, - .
skirt and hats that made such a valuable *

Paul Hardy.

Titey Endurables ny Inc, meu and John Tilley;

ALAN Ys
oe "263-6524.

annually.

If we are to start producing ‘that
amount, but with 30% recycled
content, we will need about 3.5
million tonnes of waste newspaper
each year.

However, we only consume J.1-
million tonnes annually.

The shortfall is made up by im-
porting wastepaper from other
countries, which brings up another
issue: the disposal of the ‘“‘sludge’’.
that is the result of the de-inking
process.

For... every tonne ‘of papér
recycled, as much as -half a tonne
of sludge is created,’ which. is
usually disposed of in ‘landfills or
incinerators, - Os

If industry projections come’
true, and plants are,recycling 2.3
million’ tonnes of old newspapers”
by 1995, the sludge’ created ‘as ‘a.
result will outweigh Canada’s total
waste newspapers.

Dealing with the “output” of

recycling | operations
will be as challenging ‘as finding
sources, for. contaminant-free ‘Sn-

: @ 9 above 2 :
turquoise bay. “She's "wearing her 72, Hat:
. which | provides her with the sun pl ection

: she needs.” :

. Tha 12 is $55: It floats, tles on, repels rain,

.. won't Shrink, and, like all our Tilley Hats, wilf
be, Feplaced : free if it ever, wears. "Ou

: 2) Alex Tilley "0

Ws have ft mado in Canacs

independent

Vancouver.
1537 Broadway: fear Granvill
Raratis -4287