Here’s a recent CTV Article from June 11th: “Recyclers Taking a Hit in Hard Economy“. It’s an interesting look at the industry.
I don’t feel so bad when people call us up to come and pick up items at their house or on their renovation site and they’re not only surprised at the cost, but more importantly, that there’s ANY cost. “But it’s RECYCLING” is often given as a retort.
It costs money to put smart, educated people in vehicles, and send them out in the world, and educate them about smart recycling, donation and disposal. This is really how our company generates revenue. From customers paying for service. The items we pick up, while recyclable rarely generate a sizable amount of revenue. Sure, we pick up some copper pipe from plumbing jobs from time to time, but usually we might get $20 for it or something like that. It’s never enough to come even close to covering the cost of fuel for the day, let alone labour, maintenance etc.
One of the stats in the article is that cardboard used to be $200 per tonne, and now it’s worth $20 per tonne. Well, believe you me, it takes a lot longer than an hour for 2 people to arrive at a site, load 1 tonne of cardboard (which incidently is a HECK OF A LOT volume wise), and haul it to the facility for recycling. Actually, I personally don’t know of any facilities in Vancouver that will pay you for any cardboard less than 1000kg in a load. I wouldn’t expect anyone to know this outside of the industry, so I thought it was worth mentioning.
So, take a look. It’s good to learn more about an industry you’re passionate about.
Fresh Start Recycling Blog 