POWELL RIVER, BC- China is no longer accepting offshore recyclables and now local recyclers could be charged more.
China has implemented the “Chinese National Sword”, a ban on accepting foreign recyclables.
The region is starting to feel the effects of ban, according to Mike Wall, Manager of Asset Management and Strategic Initiatives for the qathet Regional District.
The effects are mainly held with the need to recycle cardboard.
Back in 2014 recycling in BC changed communities, including the qathet Regional District signed the Provincial Extended Producer Responsibility Program for packaging and paper products (PPP).
The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (MOECCS) mandates that Recycle BC only handle residential recycling.
The PPP does not cover the Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (ICI) Sector.
The ICI Sector are then ones who will be affected by the ban.
The Town Centre Recycling depot is the only Powell River that will accept PPP from the ICI Sector but can only accept a certain amount of cardboard material.
The size cannot be more than 3ft x3ft and the volume will also be limited.
The District has not determined the exact limit at this time.
They will no longer be accepting cardboard and paper for free, there will be a tipping fee charged in addition to the bin rentals, according to Tai Uhlmann, part of the qathet Regional District’s Waste Reduction Education Team.
“Commercial businesses will feel an impact because if they continue to recycle cardboard it will be at a cost unless they deliver small amounts to our Recycling depot at a time,” said Uhlmann.
“people that are used to bringing a truckload of cardboard to our local paper recycler can no longer do that.”
The Chinese National Sword is being implemented worldwide, not just to Canada.
“North America does not have the infrastructure to take these materials, we are struggling to keep people recycling but also to let them know that this is the reality and there is a cost to it,” said Uhlmann.
“We hope people do the right thing and continue to recycle but we also anticipate that we are going to be seeing a lot more recyclables in the garbage.”
