Thanks to your support in 2020, we were able to donate $125,000 to Canadian registered charities.

TWD Inc. Receives Gold Program Operator Award from the Recycling Council of Ontario

by Textile Waste Diversion Inc.

IMG_1231Textile Waste Diversion is honoured to have received the 2020 GOLD Program Operator Award from the Recycling Council of Ontario.

We have been in this industry for almost a decade, and in the last two years have made a significant shift towards new green economy standards. This year, we really put our goals into action, and what we have had amazing results.

Our drive towards being a green, sustainable and socially responsible company has caused some resistance with industry members that are fighting industry changes and evolution. We have been victims of vandalism, defamation and more. However, we have stayed the course, knowing that by adhering to our principles, we would succeed. Receiving this honour from the Recycling Council of Ontario shows that we made the right decision, and that the things we have been doing in order to help move this industry forward may not be popular with some, but they matter to the people who matter the most, the Ontarians we proudly serve daily.

The Recycling Council of Ontario Annual Gala is the pinnacle of Waste Reduction Week in Canada, where the RCO recognizes organizations achieving results in waste reduction.

Hon. Jim Bradley, Minister of the Environment for Ontario, addressed the current and future state of waste management in Ontario in a very inspiring speech. He was honest about the challenges ahead, open about what could be improved and obviously committed to the cause of supporting diversion efforts for the province. His speech let us know that not only does he celebrate our accomplishments, but he offers continued support through fair legislation, like The Waste Diversion Act.

We will increase Ontario’s waste diversion rate, with the government’s full sup

port. We left very excited for Ontario’s future.

The Gala was held at the stunning Liberty Grand Exhibition Place, and the

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event was brilliantly organized to facilitate proactive discussion among members. There was very little idle chitchat. Over the delectable food, members were heard sharing information, ideas, and making plans, all directed towards increasing Ontario’s waste diversion rate. If the conversations I had were any indication, Ontario will be a lot greener after tonight!

The other RCO members we met were committed, accomplished in their own right, and yet eager to do more. It was so nice to spend an evening with such passionate people!

It was also very uplifting to see representatives from so many municipalit

ies dedicated to waste diversion. We talked to municipal representatives working on all sorts of programs, from technical advancements to worm bins.

Tonight we learned that local governments and large corporations are stepping forward to make meaningful improvements in waste reduction. Toshiba in particular received 100% from every judge that vetted their programs. Outstanding!

In 2020 Ontario, TWD commits to making it even more simple and convenient to recycle your textile waste.

We aim to help rid Ontario landfills of all textile waste, in value added ways that uplift your community and support the charities you love. Together we really are creating a community driven, green future!

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Packaging and trash

Out of every $10 spent buying things, $1 (10%) goes for packaging that is thrown away. Packaging represents about 65% of household trash.

 

Save the trees

If every American recycled just one-tenth of their newspapers, we would save about 25,000,000 trees a year.

 

In the bin!

Used aluminum beverage cans are the most recycled item in the U.S., but other types of aluminum, such as siding, gutters, car components, storm window frames, and lawn furniture can also be recycled.

 

Kiss this!

An estimated 80,000,000 Hershey's Kisses are wrapped each day, using enough aluminum foil to cover over 50 acres of space -- that's almost 40 football fields. All that foil is recyclable, but not many people realize it.

Packaging at the dump

About one-third of an average garbage dump is made up of packaging material!

Glass skyscrapers?

Every month, we throw out enough glass bottles and jars to fill up a giant skyscraper. All of these jars are recyclable!

Plastic bottles by the hour

Americans use 2,500,000 plastic bottles every hour! Most of them are thrown away!

The Sunday paper

To produce each week's Sunday newspapers, 500,000 trees must be cut down.

The aluminum recycling loop

A used aluminum can is recycled and back on the grocery shelf as a new can in as little as 60 days. That's closed loop recycling at its finest!

 

What gets recycled in Canada?

By weight, organics comprise the largest portion, accounting for 22% of recycled materials from all sources, followed by newsprint (17%) and cardboard and boxboard (17%).

Recycling by the Province

While on the rise overall, recycling varies quite widely from province to province. Ontario and Quebec recycle the largest quantities of materials, but the amounts of material recycled per person and the recycling rate are higher in Nova Scotia and British Columbia.

Canadian vs. American residential waste

Canadians produced 366 kg per person of residential waste in 2020; by 2020, this figure had increased to 418 kg per person. By way of comparison, residential waste production by our neighbours in the United States was 440 kg per person in 2020.

   

Canadian waste

In 2020, Canadian households produced 13.4 million tonnes of waste. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of this waste was sent for disposal, according to Statistics Canada’s 2020 Waste Management Survey, while the rest was recycled.

A great reason to recycle!

Landfills produce approximately 25% of Canada’s methane emissions (methane is a powerful greenhouse gas). Recycling, including textile recycling, can help reduce the amount of waste entering landfills and help conserve natural resources.

How much water do ice caps and glaciers hold?

The amount of water locked up in ice and snow is only about 1.7 percent of all water on Earth, but the majority of total freshwater on Earth, about 68.7%, is held in ice caps and glaciers.

How much recyclable material gets thrown away?

Paper is the number one recyclable material that we throw away. For every 100 pounds of trash we throw away, 35 pounds is paper. Americans throw away 25 billion Styrofoam coffee cups every year, 40 billion soft drink cans and bottles every year, and 38 billion plastic bags. Placed end to end, they would reach to the moon and back hundreds of times.

 

How much household waste can be recycled?

Over 80% of typical household waste - including food scraps, yard waste, paper, cardboard, cans, and bottles - can be recycled, reused, or composted.

How much carbon dioxide can a car emit?

On average, a car produces about 170g CO2 per kilometer. If your car travels 2020 kilometers per month, it produces about 340 kilograms CO2 - that's a lot of carbon dioxide!

How much harm can one styrofoam cup do?

A styrofoam cup contains one billion billion CFC molecules - a class of chemical compounds that deplete ozone. Once a CFC molecule reaches the ozone layer, it can take over 100 years before it breaks up and becomes harmless!

How many trees are cut down each year?

In 2020 statistics, primary forest area was reduced globally by 60,000 square km per year (about the size of Ireland). While it's impossible to get an exact count, at a rate of 50K to 100K trees per square km, this equates to 3 to 6 billion trees per year.

Worldwide Metals Production

Between 2020 and 2020, worldwide metals production grew sixfold, oil consumption eightfold, and natural gas consumption 14-fold. In total, 60 billion tons of resources are now extracted annually—about 50% more than just 30 years ago. Today the average European uses 43 kilograms of resources daily, and the average American uses 88 kilograms.