Recycling Alternative
449 Industrial Avenue, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

It’s hard to remember a time before Blue Boxes and municipal recycling, but for Robert and Louise, that feels like yesterday and is indelibly inked as the seed of RA.In 1989, galvanized by garbage, Louise and Robert started Recycling Alternative with a hatchback and a trash-busting bug to help offices recycle their office paper.They quickly outgrew the hatchback, graduated to a van, then trucks, and began to broaden their service to include bottles and cans, shredding services, electronic waste and most recently organics and zero waste programs.Fortunately, by the early 1990’s, adding to their voices in the wilderness of waste, public awareness and government policy began to focus on recycling and waste reduction efforts, and the stage was set to ramp up operations and dive head first into some serious trash-busting.Born and raised in Vancouver until he was 10, Robert grew up in London and attended school in the UK. Thankfully, Robert’s background in mechanical engineering has been a saving grace at RA, and has been the driving force behind our operations as we have grown from strength to strength over the last 20 years under his guidance and mechanical aptitude! When not recycling the world or inventing new trash-busting trucks, Robert can be found hitting the slopes and walking his very large dog in the forests of North Vancouver.

Louise grew up in Vancouver and studied Political Science, Spanish Literature, and Education. Before her trash-busting days, Louise attended school in Mexico, lived in Italy for 3 yrs and spent 5 years teaching middle school in Edinburgh. Off the trash-busting tracks, Louise hits a mean backhand, sings soul gospel, paints ceramics, and possesses an exaggerated predilection for trash-talking.Louise sits on the boards of the Cultch, Our Social Fabric, BC Biodiesel Association, and the Advisory Councils of Street Youth Job Action and Downtown Community Court. In May 2012 she received the ‘Woman of Distinction Award’ for her work in environment and sustainability. Recognized nationally as one of Canada’s most prestigious awards for women, the Women of Distinction Awards honours women whose outstanding achievements contribute to the well-being and future of our community.

PAPER & CARDBOARD

Since 1989 Recycling Alternative has worked with a company now known as Cascades Recovery Inc. Once your paper or cardboard is collected from your business, it is brought back to RA to be sorted and baled in our warehouse to be shipped to processors.Cardboard, mostly goes to a local plant, Norampac to be recycled. The zone boxes and desksides provide for our customers come from this plant, closing yet another local loop.

TRASHBUSTING FACTOID!

In the early days of recycling, the recycling plant where we delivered all our paper product occupied the big red farmhouse in the middle of False Creek, known as the Salt Building. That building is now the centre of the Olympic Village and was renovated to serve as the Athlete’s gathering place during the games. The SALT Building had been a recycling plant from 1980s to 1998 – a sign of the some of the changes in the ‘hood!

PLASTICS

The truth about plastics is that there are few local plastics recycling plants in BC. Most of the markets for plastics #1-7 are overseas.From our warehouse the plastics we collect are either baled up and shipped directly to markets overseas, or shipped loose to a secondary processor in the Lower Mainland for eventual shipping to similar markets.

TRASHBUSTING FACTOID

Plastics that are recycled are never to be used for consumer food or health products due to Health and Safety standards. Once a shampoo or beverage bottle, never again. All of these products must be made from virgin petroleum products – yet another incentive to kick (or at least cut down on) the plastics habit!

E-WASTE

Like you, Recycling Alternative wants to ensure the materials we collect are being recycled responsibly and in compliance with industry regulation. As a fully recognized and designated commercial collector for the provincial stewardship program (Encorp Pacific – Return-It Electronics), all e-waste collected by RA is certified by this program.

TRASHBUSTING FACTOID

Through BC’s electronics stewardship program, an average of over 1800 metric tonnes of electronics are diverted from landfills every month!
(EPRA)

BATTERIES & LIGHTS

Ensuring we are always directing our materials through a recognized and responsible chain of custody for recycling, all batteries we collect are brought back to our warehouse and prepared for shipment to the national Call 2 Recycle program. Similar to the e-waste program, Call 2 Recycle is the designated to carry out the battery stewardship program.

OFFICES & RETAILERS

Recycling Alternative offers a variety of recycling programs for offices and retail stores that can be adapted and customized for your specific needs. We are committed to providing convenient, secure and economical recycling options to businesses and organizations regardless of their size or volume. If you are a non-profit or NGO, ask us about our community discount rates.

ORGANICS

Compostables are the new target for waste reduction efforts, and by 2015 municipalities plan to implement landfill bans* on organic materials.With food waste and compostables making up almost 40% of our waste stream, your business can be ahead of the curve by introducing a comprehensive recycling program that includes your food waste.Our organics collection covers the ‘smorgasbord’ – from straight food waste (cooked and raw) from restaurants and offices to yard trimmings and the more commercial, compostable products such as take out containers and cutlery.We also supply and service Green Good Composters, large-scale composting units that can be kept on-site to provide safe, immediate and effective composting solutions!