Ocean Plastic Depot opens in Sunshine Coast Regional District in partnership with Ocean Legacy Foundation

RICHMOND, BC (April 25, 2023) – Ocean Legacy Foundation (“Ocean Legacy”), a Canadian non-profit organization that develops and implements worldwide plastic pollution response programs with the goal to end ocean plastic pollution, today announced that in partnership with the Sunshine Coast Regional District (“SCRD”), they will be opening a new Ocean Plastic Depot on April 28, 2023, at the Sechelt Landfill, located at 4901 Dusty Rd., Sechelt. This ocean plastic diversion program is made possible through funding from the Ghost Gear Fund and Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The Sechelt Ocean Plastic Depot will accept materials from shoreline cleanup efforts by the local community, providing essential infrastructure to divert these plastic resources from landfills and reduce ocean pollution.!

“Ocean Legacy is excited to launch another ocean plastic collection depot in British Columbia. This new depot provides an easy and free location for community members to drop off marine plastic debris, and help reduce the pollution in our coastal communities,” said Chloé Dubois, Executive Director, Ocean Legacy Foundation. “Ocean Legacy Foundation continues to look for opportunities to move towards circularity in the waste sector and divert wasted plastics from landfills. This new depot directly addresses this issue.”

“We welcome the opportunity to partner with Ocean Legacy to ensure that materials destined for our landfill can instead be utilized as a resource elsewhere,” said Corrina Suveges, Superintendent of Solid Waste Operations, Sunshine Coast Regional District. “Any opportunity to reorganize waste materials into a circular economy needs to be harnessed to bring us closer to a more sustainable way of living.”

“It is estimated that the Sechelt Ocean Plastic Depot will be at full capacity by 2025; however, there is hope that this new ocean plastic depot can assist in prolonging the landfill’s intake capabilities,” said Dubois.

The new depot is able to accept materials such as abandoned, lost, discarded fishing gear (“ALDFG”), marine debris, and equipment including netting and rope, polystyrene foam (styrofoam), hard plastic and select buoys. Material collected at the depot is consolidated and then sent to the Ocean Legacy processing centre at Steveston Harbour, BC, where it is further sorted, cleaned, and recycled. 

“Currently on the Sunshine Coast, there are no options for recycling ocean plastics and dock foam,” says Marc Sole, Manager of Solid Waste Services, Sunshine Coast Regional District. “SCRD staff have been pursuing options to recycle ocean plastics and marine debris materials in order to help decrease the amount of plastic washing up on beaches, reduce our carbon footprint, and, importantly, maximize our remaining air space at the landfill”.

The Sechelt Ocean Plastic Depot will be the fifth depot of its kind in British Columbia, with others located in Powell River, Ucluelet, Cumberland, 7 Mile, and developments underway in Port Edward. The program forms part of Ocean Legacy Foundation’s national strategy in addressing plastic pollution by creating end of life solutions for ALDGF and marine plastics while developing the plastic circular economy.

To register to use the Sechelt Ocean Plastic Depot, email infrastructure@scrd.ca and for more program information visit www.scrd.ca/ocean-depot.  For more about Ocean Legacy’s satellite depot program and the various products being made from recovered ocean plastic, visit oceanlegacy.ca

About Ocean Legacy Foundation

Initiated in 2013, Ocean Legacy Foundation is a Canadian, internationally recognized, non-profit organization that develops and implements worldwide plastic pollution emergency response programs, with the goal to end plastic pollution. Ocean Legacy Foundation combines sustainable technologies, education, and skills training to convert plastic pollution into economic value while providing local communities with the tools they need to prevent plastic pollution and protect their local environment. 

Ocean Legacy Foundation’s EPIC Plastic Pollution Emergency Response™ program is a four-pillar approach to identify, cleanup, and prevent plastic waste from entering tributary and marine ecosystems. The four pillars are Education & Research, Policy & Advocacy, Infrastructure Development, and Cleanup & Restoration (“EPIC”). The purpose of EPIC is to create an accessible platform to assist with the restoration of critical natural ecosystems for improved human and wildlife health, as well as assess and develop long-term plastic collection, processing infrastructure and policy to mitigate oceanic plastic pollution sources. Ocean Legacy Foundation has collected over two million pounds of plastic waste from over 1000 kilometers of shoreline around the world and have engaged hundreds of thousands of individuals in plastic pollution cleanup, education, and recycling activities. For more information visit www.oceanlegacy.ca.