At the recent Lehigh open house in Sechelt on Saturday, Sept. 10, it was demonstrated that zero waste is achievable with a bit of education and coaching. Working with the EcoSafe Zero Waste team, Lehigh Materials set up a "Striving for Zero Waste" area to service their zero waste lunch.
After serving a menu that included beverages, burgers, hot dogs, salads and desserts for close to 1,000 visitors, a diversion rate of 95 per cent was achieved. Around 250 gallons (1,100 litres) divided into six bins of food scraps and compostable plates and cutlery were collected along with three and a half bins of recycling. The actual garbage collected was less than five gallons (22 litres).
In organizing the event, EcoSafe worked with Lehigh management to arrange for the purchase of certified Cedar Grove compostable products to be used for the lunch and to plan the setup of a Striving for Zero Waste station. The collected food scraps and compostable tableware were then delivered to the Salish Soils Inc. composting site nearby.
Salish Soils is a new company on the Coast that produces premium composts made primarily with commercial fish and forest waste with some green waste from local landscapers and residents.
"Our vision is to use the compostable waste generated in our communities to produce premium organic soils that can then be used to build a sustainable food supply for the region," said company president Aaron Joe.
This year, in collaboration with Salish Soils, the Sechelt First Nation and the First National Educational Society, Lehigh provided access to a research and education demonstration garden project that is located on the mine site. The vision for this project is to support local food production and provide opportunities for new sustainable agriculture businesses on the reclaimed lands.
EcoSafe Zero Waste is a privately-owned international marketing company headquartered in Surrey. Company director of marketing Phil Ragan is a resident of the Sunshine Coast.
"The Lehigh open house is a good example of how events can be effectively managed to eliminate waste," Ragan said.
"By controlling what we use and allow to enter the waste stream, we eliminate the necessity of dealing with all the contaminants that inhibit recycling and composting."
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