Area seniors tour Kennedale Eco Station

by Lucie Roy

Seniors boarded the bus for a trip to Northeast Edmonton on Tuesday for a guided tour of the Kennedale Eco Station Recycling and the Reuse Area.

The one-stop drop off is open to those who want to dispose of household waste.

This includes no charge to dispose of clean recyclable items or material, Household Hazardous Waste, Computer Monitors and Televisions, Electrical Appliances and Scrap Metal and tires.

There is a fee for Mattresses or box springs, large bulky items and items such as fridges and freezers as they must remove the Freon (CFC) before recycling.

The group had an opportunity to tour the Reuse Building.

This is where anything residents drop off that is in good condition and is still reusable can be picked up by individuals for reuse.

Of interest was the Bulb Eater. It crushes fluorescent lamps and bulbs into recyclable material and it captures the vapours released.

The system is attached to a 55-gallon drum. The mercury vapour gets drawn out and goes through a filtration system and the only thing left behind in the drum is crushed glass which gets recycled.

Yard waste is free to drop off. Grass is an issue with the Composter as it is wet and delays the drying process and it holds everything back.

This is a new program with the city as they are trying to eliminate certain parts of the yard waste from going to the Composter.

The tour included an explanation of one of the two drive-through lanes that allows one to drop off batteries, oils, paint, chemicals, electronics and how the Eco Station disposes of items.