11 Mar

A good spring cleaning for most of us means deeply scrubbing out our homes, after spending so much time indoors throughout the winter. As we prepare for spring, it just feels right to scour the house from top to bottom. For many of us though, clutter build up gets in the way of doing a good thorough cleanse, leaving us feeling overwhelmed and defeated before we’ve even started. Often, clutter needs to be addressed before we can clean properly. Luckily, so many unused and outdated items can be donated and recycled nowadays, and at Island Return It, we are here to help. Let’s break it down by room: The Bedroom: Washing the curtains and wiping down all surfaces feels great in a bedroom ready to embrace spring. Sifting through our clothing and putting away papers and random items that have built up, are all good starting steps. While sorting, make sure to...

18:37 / Recycling with the Whole Family
0 Likes
06 Jan

Following the holidays, a lot of us will have new electronics; the latest kitchen appliances, power tools and personal devices to name a few. If you are like me, you’ve got a stash of over the hill and damaged electronics that you’d like to dispose of responsibly. Luckily there is a program in place to help us recycle and reuse components from these broken items, and 2 of our Island Return It Centres in the Cowichan Valley are ready to receive your electronics for drop off. Good news for recycling electronics We take a wide variety of items from TVs, computers, medical devices and phones, etc. These are sorted, palletized and shipped to different specialized EPRA locations (Electronic Producers Recycling Association) throughout Canada. Here reusable components are carefully dismantled by hand, and plastics and metals further machine sorted for recycling, or to be sent back into the manufacturing supply chain. These electronics...

10:31 / Industry News
0 Likes
01 Dec

  Christmas is here, and with it all the extra planning, events and gift exchanges, and that means more clean up. I find it all rather daunting myself, and personally don’t enjoy all the extra garbage generated at this time of year. I plan to up my recycling game this holiday season. Creating an organizational system could be just the ticket to help me manage. Care to join me? Here’s what I’m thinking: Let's start by carving out some space where we can place some sorting bins. Somewhere easy to access.  Next label each box with these categories:  Curbside Recycling - Paper and hard plastics Returnables - Sort cans and glass by type, which will speed things up at the depot Clean Soft Plastics - Soft and crinkle plastic can now be combined together  Miscellaneous: broken electronics, Christmas lights, light bulbs, batteries and ink cartridges (no toners please)  Styrofoam (not peanut chips). Our...

19:07 / Community
0 Likes
19 Mar

As part of our electronic waste recycling program we collect old TVs, along with computers, stereos, video equipment, [caption id="" align="alignright" width="320"] Old broken TV (Photo credit: schmilblick)[/caption] and many other electronics. When TVs arrive at our depots we have a special procedure we take when receiving and preparing them to be sent to processing plants in the B.C. interior because believe it or not, TVs are toxic. Despite international laws designed to prevent this, many developed countries send e-waste overseas to Asia and Africa. Inspections of 18 European seaports in 2005 found as much as 47 % of waste destined for export, including e-waste, was illegal. It is important that you know that when you recycle your electronic waste at Island Return It, we never send product overseas for dismantling. We use only approved facilities in North America. Older TVs Present a Special Challenge In particular, older TVs with CRTs (cathode ray tubes) need to be handled...

06:15 / Community / Recycle Me
0 Likes
06 Dec

A quick internet search will reveal that there are no shortage of “green gift” guides out there. Some of which have some pretty great ideas, and some of which leave a little to be desired. Wading through all of the trendy suggestions can make your head spin. May we suggest keeping it simple this year? And we’re not talking Martha Stewart-esque simple-but-not-actually-simple DIY mega projects either. Just simple, and kind to the planet. Though it sounds cliche these days, time is still one of the most appreciated gifts that you can give someone.  Take a friend out for coffee.  Build an epic blanket fort for your niece or nephew. Invite a bunch of friends over for a holiday movie night. It doesn’t have to be over the top to bring joy to those you love. Similarly, buying an experience for someone instead of an unnecessary gadget, can go a long way towards lessening...

02:25 / blog
2 Likes