CJSMA seeking someone to process its recyclables

“It has been a very interesting two weeks, that’s for sure,” solid waste manager Stephen Rayworth said. “Everyone has been going above and beyond to continue doing what we’re doing and while it has been difficult we are managing.”
The fire started early in the morning of Sept. 12 and was discovered by employees coming into work. Rayworth said the cause of the fire is still being investigated and he praised Cumberland County fire departments for responding the way they did the day of the fire.
Operations have been impacted in that the facility’s five seasonal employees were laid off. Full-time staff are still on the job, although two have been seconded to Dexter Construction as it builds the landfill’s new waste cell.
The authority, which manages the central landfill at Little Forks, is continuing to collect recyclables, which are now being collected in piles that are exposed to the environment, including the wind and the rain.
“We’re still receiving recyclables and required by the Nova Scotia Department of the Environment regulations. Right now we’re just looking for a place to process them,” Rayworth said. “We’re sending a load to Scotia Recycling in Kentville on Saturday to process and evaluate.”
One of the issues the CJSMA is facing is that it’s the lone single-stream recycling facility in Nova Scotia. Other centres require the recyclables to be sorted into two streams, one each for paper/fibre and other recyclable containers.
Rayworth is hoping the evaluation goes well so the county’s recyclables can be processed there until a new recycling facility is built at Little Forks. It’s not something that will happen overnight, however. He expects it could take up to 18 months for a new recycling facility to be built.
The CJSMA brings in on average 14 tonnes of recyclables each day.
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