London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project

Between July and early September this year, participants were invited to share their feedback by completing a survey. This survey is now closed and responses are being reviewed by the City.

Your feedback about your experiences with the Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project will be part of City’s final report on the pilot project.

If you have questions, please contact the project team at jcorby@london.ca

The London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project is entering its wrap-up phase (i.e., winding down activities with participating households) this summer. Preliminary results suggest the pilot project has proven reasonably successful, and all project partners are grateful for the work undertaken by London participants.

On behalf of the Project Team, thank you again for participating in this pilot project. It could not have been done without your assistance.

The Pilot Project started in October 2019. Since then participants have collected over 90,000 bags of difficult-to- recycle plastics weighing over 65,000 kilograms. The plastic materials have been turned into three types of products. A Toronto company has recycled the materials into plastic composite lumber (e.g., to create plastic lawn chairs, pallets, etc.). A second company near Halifax has turned the materials into two grades of liquid fuel (e.g., #1 fuel, also known as kerosene or jet fuel, and #2 diesel). The third market in Pennsylvania recycles the orange bag materials into drainage pipe. The project has been successful in keeping these materials out of London's landfill, by finding valuable end-uses for them.

Last August we reached out to existing and new participants with notices announcing changes with phase three of the Pilot Project. To those households and neighbourhoods that have wrapped up the Pilot Project, thank you for participating. We are now in the final phase of the project and in the coming weeks will provide more details on the conclusion of the project. At this time we are not accepting new participants into the project. If you have any questions please reach out to jcorby@london.ca

Hefty® orange bags can be dropped off at three participating EnviroDepots:

• Oxford Street EnviroDepot - 1450 Oxford Street West
• Clarke Road South EnviroDepot - 28 Clarke Road
• Clarke Road North EnviroDepot - 21462 Clarke Road (use the entrance on the east side of Clarke Road)

Effective Sunday, March 13, 2022 the Clarke South Depot (28 Clarke Rd) and Oxford Depot (1450 Oxford St W) will be open on summer hours.

Summer Hours

Effective Sunday, March 13, 2022

Monday to Friday 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Saturday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Sunday 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Hours - Clarke North Location

Monday to Friday 7a.m. to 5p.m.

Saturday 8a.m. to 12p.m.

Closed Sundays, Civic Holiday and all statutory holidays.

EnviroDepot locations and hours can also be viewed on our website at London.ca/envirodepots

It is important that your Hefty® orange bags are used only for those plastic items on the attached accepted items list. If you are unsure if an item belongs in the Hefty® orange bag, contact our team for directions, or leave it out of the bag until you know for sure.

We have had great participation so congratulations on your plastic recycling efforts. Our team’s initial monitoring shows there are some non-plastic items not on the accepted items list making their way into the Hefty® orange bag that will impact our end market opportunities. As a reminder, items that DO NOT belong in the Hefty® orange bag are as follows:

• food waste like sandwiches, meats, produce, crackers, cereal;
• original food still inside the plastic bag or pouch;
• soiled meat pads;
• paper towels and other cleaning items;
• glass and metal containers; and
• other recyclable materials.

Blue Box Materials Stay in the Box

Please remember that the Blue Box recycling program has not changed. Any item that you normally recycle in the Blue Box program, remains in the Blue Box (yogurt cups, plastic clamshells from fruit, beverage bottles, etc.). They do not belong in the Hefty® orange bag as the Blue Box end-markets for these materials depend on these plastics.

For more information, please take a look at the 'Are you putting the wrong stuff in the bag?" document.

An end-market is a company that receives Hefty® orange bag materials to be converted into new products and resources. For this Pilot Project, we are working with a variety of different end-markets businesses who are also testing new ideas and applications for these materials like plastic wood and building materials.

If contaminants are mixed in with the correct materials, it creates technical difficulties and increases cost as these items need to be removed. If there are too many contaminants it could make the material unusable and it must be landfilled defeating our plans to divert more plastic resources from landfill. This is why it is important to ensure only plastic items on the accepted list are placed in the Hefty® orange bags.

Just a reminder of acceptable items for the London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project.

The London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project initial phase will encompass approximately 13,000 households across nine communities in the City of London.

Below are the neighbourhoods included in the first phase of this pilot project, along with a link to the neighbourhood community page through London's Neighbourgood website.

Curbside Neighbourhoods

1. Cleardale
2. Kensington Village
3. Kilally Valley
4. Lambeth
5. Old East Village

EnviroDepot Neighbourhoods

1. Byron (portion north of Byron Baseline Rd and east of Warbler Woods ESA.)
2. Fairmont
3. Hunt Club (portion south of Fitzwilliam Blvd.)
4. Summerside

The City of London is excited to have your household participate in the Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project.

Below your London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project team has compiled a list of FAQs to help you navigate your way through participating in this exciting pilot project.

If you still have questions, please reach out to the team by emailing jcorby@london.ca or by calling 519-661-2489 ext. 5419.

Don't forget to submit your email to receive updates on the pilot project by visiting the 'Stay Connected' tab on this website.

How does our household get started participating in the Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project?

Once you receive your 20-bag starter kit, begin collecting acceptable materials. It's that easy!

The starter kit includes a list of what’s acceptable or check the Acceptable Items tab of this website.

Also review the items that are not acceptable in Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project and re-familiarize yourself with the Blue Box program to ensure that you put all recyclable plastics in the Blue Box and not in the Hefty® EnergyBag®.

As an EnviroDepot household, what does our household do once our Hefty® orange bag is full?

When the Hefty® orange bags are full, tie them securely closed and deliver them to your neighbourhood EnviroDepot.

Ask the depot attendant to direct you to the Hefty® EnergyBag® drop off bins.

Store your Hefty® orange bags until you are ready to make a trip with other acceptable items to the EnviroDepot. Don’t make a special trip.

What City of London EnviroDepot locations are participating in the London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project?

Two of the City’s four EnviroDepots will be accepting the Hefty® EnergyBag® from participating households during the pilot project.

• Oxford Street EnviroDepot - 1450 Oxford Street
• Clarke Road South EnviroDepot - 28 Clarke Road

Visit www.london.ca/envirodepot for hours of operation and the list of other items accepted at the depots.

The depots accept a wide range of materials for recycling and reuse, so before you make a trip to drop off your Hefty® orange bags we suggest become familiar with what can be taken as you many have many items around your home.

By using an EnviroDepot you will contribute to London’s waste diversion efforts and ensure that materials are recycled, reused or disposed of safely.

What if our household puts the wrong materials in the Hefty® orange bag?

While a bag containing only a few unacceptable items may not create an issue with end users, when these few items are combined with a few incorrect items from many other homes there is a negative impact of the final use of these materials.

To ensure that the contents of the Hefty® orange bags are diverted from landfill it is important to follow instructions for what can be placed in the bags. Consult the list!

The City of London is excited to have your household participate in the Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project.

Below your London Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project team has compiled a list of FAQs to help you navigate your way through participating in this exciting pilot project.

If you still have questions, please reach out to the team by emailing jcorby@london.ca or by calling 519-661-2489 ext. 5419

Don't forget to submit your email to receive updates on the pilot project by visiting the 'Stay Connected' tab on this website.

How does our household get started?

Once you receive your 20-bag starter kit, begin collecting those hard-to-recycle acceptable materials.

The starter kid includes a list of what's acceptable to put in the Hefty® orange bags. You can also check the Acceptable Items tab of this website.

Also, review the items that are NOT acceptable in Hefty® EnergyBag® Pilot Project and re-familiarize yourself with the Blue Box program to ensure that you put all recyclable plastics in the Blue Box and not in the Hefty® orange bag.

What do we do when the Hefty® orange bag is full?

Once your Hefty® orange bag is full, tie it securely and place at the curbside on your regular recycling collection day. Place the bag in your Paper Blue Box or beside it.

Please remember that these bags will be filled with light-weight materials so placing the Hefty® orange bag inside your Blue Box/Container or wedged between two of them will help avoid them being carried away by the wind.

How will garbage collection know not to throw the Hefty® orange bags into their garbage trucks?

Place the Hefty® orange bags in your Paper Blue Box (or next to it) to indicate that they belong with recycling and not garbage.

Collection staff will know to look out for them and they will be collected by the recycling truck along with your recyclables.

Is my household expected to put out the Hefty® orange bag out on every collection day?

No.

It is best to completely fill the Hefty® orange bag as much as you can, keeping in mind that you don’t want to overstuff and cause bag breakage at the curb.

Maximize the use of the Hefty® orange bag by putting as much of the acceptable items as possible into it and completely fill it before placing out for collection.

Is there a weight limit?

The maximum weight per bag is 20kg (44lbs).

What if our household puts the wrong material in the Hefty® orange bag?

There is a risk that materials may not be collected if the bag is full of unacceptable items.

While a bag containing only a few unacceptable items will not be left behind at the curbside, when these few items are combined with a few incorrect items from many other homes there is a negative impact of the final use of these materials. To ensure that the contents of the Hefty® orange bag are diverted from landfill it is important to follow instructions for what can be placed in the bags.

Consult the list!