Encorp Atlantic showcases new, improved Beverage Containers Program at N.B. school
Earth Day highlights the things one person can do to help the globe, including things as simple as picking up a piece of litter while out for a walk or opting for shorter showers to help reduce water waste.
Another thing people can do is recycle.
To celebrate the important day, Encorp Atlantic visited students at Rothesay High School in New Brunswick to showcase its new and improved Beverage Containers Program.
On April 1, the province began giving full refunds on deposits through its revamped Beverage Containers Program. For more than 30 years of the program’s existence, New Brunswickers only received half back when recycling.
“Now when consumers go to their local redemption, they get either their full 10 cents or full 20 cents, which is double what they got before,” says Encorp Atlantic president Pierre Landry. “It’s great news in the sense we need to modernize the program.”
Landry says the move was not only made to help encourage residents to recycle more, but has also helped streamline administration and logistics. On top of that, the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) has also reduced sorting requirement for redemption centre operators.
The added funds will benefit those who collect empty beverage containers, like the students at Rothesay High who benefit already from the Recycling Heroes in School Program.
Student Reese Anderson helps oversee the school program through her leadership class. So far this school year through the Beverage Container Program, students have collected more than 120,000 bottles totaling more than $13,000, which is put towards school events and sports teams.
“We know that we’ve worked hard and are able to feel like our hard work has helped out with things that we want to do within the school,” Anderson admits.
Part of Encorp’s plans when first implementing programs like this into schools was to help the next generation adopt good lifelong recycling habits.
The early indications show its’ working.
“It’s especially important for us as high school students,” Anderson says. “But it’s very important we relay this message onto younger students so the next generation of people just know, like, it’s second nature, and do all of these things to help out Earth.”
“The earth is what we live on, right, and we have to maintain the waste that goes out into the world and, like, we have to understand that this world is only as a strong as its weakest links,” says Grade 11 student Katarina Cameron, who added she has seen people recycling more now than when the program first started when she was in Grade 9.
Seeing the next generation taking these issues seriously gives officials hope they can improve the climate situation.
“It’s our planet, we only have one,” says Recycle NB CEO Frank LeBlanc. “There is no plan B, so take care of the planet now and it will be there for generations to come.”
Encorp is a not-for-profit producer responsibility organization managing the New Beverage Containers Program, with Landry saying the company’s primary focus to improve its environment performance.
For more New Brunswick news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police arrest 3 Indian nationals in killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Quebec man who threatened Trudeau, Legault online sentenced to 20 months in jail
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Human remains found in rural Sask. possibly a decade old, RCMP say
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
2 charged after police find 'concerning and diverse' explosives at Manitoba home
Winnipeg police say they have arrested two people in their 20s after a large amount of explosives were found in a home outside of Winnipeg, Man.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Spain abolishes national bullfighting award in cultural shift
Spain scrapped an annual bullfighting award on Friday, prompting a rebuke from conservatives over a backlash against a centuries-old tradition they see as an art form but which has run into growing concern for animal welfare.
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.