OLG casino holds second e-waste drop off

Landfills weren’t meant to be the final destination for TVs, computers and other electronics, says the president of Pack Pros Plus Ltd.

Residents dropped off their unwanted electronics at the second annual OLG Casino Thunder Bay e-waste drop off on Saturday. Vehicles pulled into the casino parking lot and unloaded various electronics from old television sets to computers and turntables. The volunteers packaged the unwanted tech and loaded them into large transport trucks.

Patrick Fenlon, president of Pack Pros Plus Ltd., said the Ontario Electronic Stewardship pays them by weight with all proceeds going towards EcoSuperior.

"Our dumps were never meant to take this kind of material," Fenlon said. "When it gets put in a landfill it is going to be crushed and then you’re going to have water percolating through and taking a lot of the items and heavy metals into the water tables. So, this material shouldn’t be going into landfills and there’s a way to deal with material in Ontario to ensure that it is environmentally safe."

Alan Forbes, OLG Bet On Green team lead, said last year they filled three transport trucks with waste and hoped to a similar success this year. He said he was surprised by the amount of unwanted electronics and felt glad that they weren’t going to a landfill.

"We had no idea what to expect last year," Forbes said. "We were really happy to see such a successful event."

Mark Gallagher agreed when he dropped off a carload of unwanted electronics from a VCR, a cellphone, CD player and an old turntable. He said the junk had laid around in his for more than a year and it was about time to get rid of it.

"It’s the responsible thing to do," Gallagher said.

Derek Allan, 23, an intern with EcoSuperior, said the funds raised will go towards a sustainable house project that will act as a demonstration on how to live more environmentally friendly. The house will be beside EcoSuperior’s main office on Red River Road.