Certain papers and plastics don't find local buyers. This material is therefore exported. One popular destination is China whose buyers will settle for lower quality materials.
To the highest bidder
From the bin to the recycler, the laws of the market prevail
The contents of thousands of recycling bins reach the end of the conveyor belt each day and plunge in a crash of metal and glass, towards their destiny - a second life which is bought and sold to the highest bidder.
Since April 1st the sorting office of the Michaelmas environmental complex has been receiving the bulk of contents from Laval recycling bins. Before this date, only Laval-native paper and cardboard came through here. Glass, plastic and metal were forwarded to the North-South evaluation and sorting office on boulevard St-Elzéar, in Laval. In January 2009, the center montréalais, property of the Tiru Group, will also treat the materials recycled by residents of the metropolis. Its processing capacity will then have doubled, established at more than 200,000 tons per annum.
Zero cost
The center has every interest in profiting from its operations. Under the terms of the ten year old contract signed with the City of Laval, it offers its services to the city... without charging a penny. Montreal, for its part, has committed spending only for the burying of the materials that cannot be recycled,
"The resale of material brings in more than the cost of the equipment and help," said André Giroux, professional adviser in solid waste of the Environmental services of Laval. "If the company finds good markets, it works." Groupe Tiru must now convert to the "mish-mash" method - the mode of collection chosen by Laval and Montreal. Previously, waste arrived already separate; fibre (paper, cardboard) on one side, the remainder on the other. The refitting of the building and the modernization of the equipment began three months ago and is ongoing. All the while, the volume of recyclable material from Laval builds up on the conveyors, a result of the new rolling containers. "It's a challenge", admits Gilbert Durocher, Vice-President of Operations at Tiru.
10% of rejections
Busying about the entry conveyor, an employee throws undesirable objects in the garbage. This is the first stage in the process of selection. "We've already found a moose head and rifle bullets," said Andre-Philippe Hébert, director of the Center of expertise on residual material, who guided the visit.
Soiled layers of food, shoes and clothing regularly make their way to the sorting office, adds Gilbert Durocher. Ten percent of what arrives here must be thrown out, a proportion which is predicted to increase. "With the small bins, the driver did the sorting. If he found a gas propane tank, he left it in the bin," he said. "Now [ with the mechanized collection ] the driver does not get down from his truck anymore." The larger recycling bins also encourage people to be less selective. This negligence results in additional costs at the stage of sorting.
A question of price
In order to reduce rejections to the bare minimum, the City of Laval sticks to a rather conservative list of the accepted material. "Our approach is undoubtedly fastidious, but we want the sorting to be done properly," said André Giroux. The list will be able to improve in the future, if other matters find outlets.
Too light for the price per ton bid, Styrofoam must for the moment be thrown in with the refuse. Same for plastic grocery bags.
Photo Digitales: Ballots plastiques
> What to recycle…
Rinsing (light)
For all containers. It's a question of hygiene for the workers at the recycling centre, and to avoid soiling other material in the bin.
Bottle Caps
The city advises you to throw out plastic bottle caps, because they are not identified as recyclable material. At the sorting office they say they will accept them if they are screwed on the bottle.
Lids
Separate the lids glass and metal containers in order to help sorting.
Un-recyclable waste
A rolling bin is not a garbage! Follow the guide of accepted and refused materials for the city of Laval. Information: 311 of
www.ville.laval.qc.ca under "Environment."
Steven Guilbeault - 
