Raven Recentre will Receive Glass Starting September 16
Partnership with Lumel Studios will mean Yukoners no longer have to throw their bottles and jars in the trash
On Monday September 16, Raven ReCentre will accept clean glass bottles and jars at its 24-hour public drop-off facility at 100 Galena Road in Whitehorse.
“Yukoners have been asking for this for a very long time,” says Shannon Powell, executive director of Raven ReCentre. “As the City of Whitehorse takes responsibility for the recycling of paper and packaging, we can dream big again. This glass project means we can get ahead of EPR, which will include glass when it comes into effect at the end of next year.” EPR is the Yukon Government’s upcoming Extended Producer Responsibility regulation, which will make the producers of recyclable products responsible for their entire life cycle.
“We want to set the standard,” Powell continues, “and we have found partners, like Lumel Studios, who can use the glass after we process it. This is exactly the kind of innovative community endeavour that Raven was set up to lead.”
Powell says that Raven will begin processing the glass immediately, and is still looking for new partners and options for the end-product. “One of the most interesting things we can do with glass, beyond using it for creating art, is as an inexpensive yet effective and beautiful building material,” she says. “Architects and developers should contact us. But there are other things we haven’t thought of. This is a participatory project.
We encourage the public to get in touch with their ideas!”
Luann Baker-Johnson, founder of Whitehorse’s Lumel Studios, says that reusing glass and other materials is at the core of her art and work. “We’re really keen on this partnership because of what it represents for us and our customers,” Baker-Johnson says. “It’s important for the environment, of course. We’re taking bottles and jars out of the landfill and reducing emissions. But reused glass has a special beauty of its own. So it’s a win-win, really: good for making art, good for the environment. Good for the Yukon. I’m so glad to start looking at all the creative ways we can reuse glass!”
Raven ReCentre’s public drop-off for glass will open at 9 a.m. on September 16, the day after it stops receiving paper and packaging at the same facility. Yukoners are asked to clean their bottles and jars, and to remove the lids prior to dropping them off.
About Raven ReCentre
Created in 1989 by a group of volunteers who wanted to see recycling happen in the Yukon, Raven now acts as a recycling and reuse hub for the entire Territory. Raven’s vision is prosperous sustainable communities within the regional and global ecosystems. Raven’s goal is to achieve Zero Waste in the Yukon. Raven is separate from all levels of government and does not receive core government funding.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Ben Charland
Communications and Media Relations
Raven ReCentre
403-462-0034 | communications@ravenrecentre.org
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