JUNE 29, 2017
VOL. 130

     
       
 
Editorial

As spring comes to a close, ÉEQ’s most significant activity has certainly been the first inaugurations of the glass sorting and cleaning equipment installed in the centres selected to take part in the experimental pilot projects of the Innovative Glass Works plan. Earlier this month, over 80 people attended the inaugural event at the sorting centre in Quebec City. Last week, Minister of Sustainable Development, the Environment and the Fight Against Climate Change David Heurtel helped unveil the new equipment at EBI Environnement in St-Paul, just outside Joliette. And yesterday, the sorting centre of the Régie intermunicipale de traitement des matières résiduelles de la Gaspésie in Grande-Rivière will launch its installations.

ÉEQ is sending a clear message: Québec is moving toward a solution to integrate glass from curbside recycling into new ecomaterials.

With the involvement of all stakeholders in the curbside recycling value chain, the stage is now set for Québec to become a centre of excellence and showcase for glass recycling in North America.

It will also be a busy summer with the latest Schedule of Contributions, which is expected to be adopted shortly and launch a new reporting period.

Enjoy the summer!

Maryse Vermette, President and CEO

    
2017 Schedule of Contributions: Soon to be released

The 2017 Schedule of Contributions is in the process of being approved by the government of Québec. An official statement will be released when it is published. Please note that the webinar that was initially planned for June 19 was rescheduled for July 5 at 3 p.m. The online seminar will provide information on the news and highlights of the 2017 Schedule of Contributions and the directions set out for future editions. Click here to register.

  
  
September 27: Discussion meeting on broadening the designated materials classes

 
As part of ongoing efforts to stabilize the materials rates, ÉEQ is currently looking into adding containers, packaging and printed matter sold as short-lived products and those produced through B2B trade to the designated materials classes. Including these materials will help redistribute the costs of curbside recycling over a greater number of target materials and businesses.

Do you plan on attending the Conference on Canadian Stewardship in Montréal? We will be hosting a meeting on the broadening of the materials classes from 11:00 a.m. to noon, before the event is officially opened (September 27 at noon), to share our progress, hear your comments and further discuss the issue. The meeting will serve as a preamble to the consultation meetings on the 2018 Schedule of Contributions, which are slated for October 24 and 26, 2017, in Montréal and Toronto, respectively.

Click here to register for the discussion meeting.

   
   

      

     
Minister Heurtel supports the Innovative Glass Works plan

In the past few weeks, following the commissioning of the new glass sorting and cleaning equipment, official inauguration ceremonies were held in three centres. The event on June 1 in Quebec City generated local and national media coverage. Last week, equipment was launched at EBI Environnement in St-Paul, outside Joliette, in the presence of David Heurtel, Minister of Sustainable Development, the Environment and the Fight Against Climate Change, who took the opportunity to support the Innovative Glass Works plan and announce the creation of a follow-up committee for the pilot projects, which will be conducted over a 15-month period. Minister Heurtel also pledged major investments in the Away-from-Home Recovery program, which aims to fund recovery equipment in public spaces managed by municipalities.


Yesterday, the installations in the Grande-Rivière sorting centre in Gaspésie were inaugurated. At the event, local projects that integrate recycled glass were unveiled, including the mesmerizing Nova Lumina night walk in Chandler developed in collaboration with Moment Factory. This inauguration generated a good press coverage, including this excellent report (in French) to TVA.

Click here to read some of the press coverage.

   
    
Conference on Canadian Stewardship in Montréal: Register now!

Have you marked your calendar on September 27, 28 and 29? The 2017 Conference on Canadian Stewardship is among the early fall’s can’t-miss events. Register before July 15 and take advantage of the early registration rate. Click here for more details.


Sugar Sammy,
host of the opening gala evening of the
Conference on Canadian Stewardship
on September 27.

  
  
  
    

Packplay 2: A high-profile jury for the prestigious competition

On June 19, ÉEQ released the names of the members of the jury assembled for the Packplay 2 competition, which aims to promote research and innovation in packaging ecodesign. The submissions will be assessed on August 17 and the winners will be announced on October 17 at the World Design Summit Expo in Montréal. Click here to read the press release.
  
  
ÉEQ and city managers

Municipal director generals are important partners for ÉEQ. A strategic link between municipal waste managers and elected officials, they are key facilitators to help advance and even kick start projects to optimize curbside recycling within municipal administrations. Municipalities are also important stakeholders in the Innovative Glass Works plan since they are on the frontline to integrate recycled glass into their urban infrastructures.

Over the past two weeks, ÉEQ attended the conferences organized by Québec’s two leading city manager associations: the Association des directeurs généraux municipaux du Québec (ADGMQ), which covers the larger municipalities, and the Association des directeurs municipaux du Québec (ADMQ), which represents smaller towns. The objective? Raise awareness of the opportunities that glass-based ecomaterials provide for municipalities.


At the ADGMQ Convention, Mathieu Guillemette and André Fortin hosted a curbside recycling quiz—a fun and effective way to send clear messages on best practices in the sector.
  

 
 
ÉEQ in Îles-de-la-Madeleine

On June 5, Mathieu Guillemette, director of Services to Municipalities, visited our partners in Îles-de-la-Madeleine to identify opportunities to optimize curbside recycling. He met with Mr. Jonathan Lapierre, mayor of the municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine, as well as with Hubert Poirier, general director; Jean Richard, director of environmental health and Thibaud Durbecq, foreman of the region’s waste management centre. The visit to the installations and the discussions that were held helped elucidate the particular challenges faced by the region. We will be pursuing these conversations in the months to come.

The ÉEQ newsletter is signing off for the summer. See you in early September!

  

 

  
Éco Entreprises Québec is on Linkedin and Facebook!

Follow us to learn about the latest packaging optimization ideas, news from our partners and the many initiatives ÉEQ implements to improve curbside recycling.
     
     
 
Éco Entreprises Québec (ÉEQ) is the organization that develops the Schedule of Contributions and collects company contributions, which are then redistributed to finance municipal curbside recycling services in Quebec. ÉEQ also encourages innovation and sharing of best practices in order to optimize the recyclable materials value chain. To do so, ÉEQ cooperates, on the one hand, with companies to reduce quantities of materials at the source and encourage the use of recyclable materials, as well as with municipalities to increase recycling and the economic value of recovered materials.

ÉEQ is a private non-profit organization created by companies that put containers, packaging and printed matter on Quebec’s market to represent them. The organization was accredited by RECYC-QUÉBEC in 2005 in accordance with the Environment Quality Act.

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