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Benefits of the Milk Container Recycling Program

Leading the Way

The Alberta Dairy Council Milk Container Program is recognized as the leading program of its kind in North America.

The benefits of this program are numerous.

• Recycling milk containers helps extend the life of Alberta's landfill, and reduces the costs of solid waste collection, transportation and landfill operation, thereby saving municipal tax dollars.
  • Each year tonnes of garbage are hauled to municipal landfills. There are approximately 16,000 four litre milk jugs in one tonne. It takes 2,640 full four litre milk jugs to fill one 40 foot semi-trailer. In their original state, one tonne of milk jugs would fill just over six 40 foot semi trailers. It is worthwhile to divert such bulky materials from the landfill.
• Recycling also reduces the consumption of hydrocarbon and fibre resources as well as the energy that would otherwise be required to produce new plastic and paperboard.
  • Plastic from recycled milk jugs is used in the manufacture such items as: plastic pipe; drainage tile, flower pots, plastic dimensional lumber used to build picnic tables, patio furniture or decks; and in non-food packaging, such as plastic detergent bottles and lubricating oil pails.
  • Paper fiber from recycled milk cartons can be used to make a variety of new paper products from cardboard boxes to fine tissue paper.
• The Milk Container Recycling Program supports municipal plastic recycling by addressing the chronic problems of high collection costs and fluctuating market price. Plastic milk jugs are the largest volume and the most valuable plastic that municipalities recycle. The program stabilizes the plastic recycling market which supports the expansion of municipal plastic recycling.
• The Milk Container Recycling Program allows you to recycle empty milk containers conveniently, along with other recyclables such as newspapers, cardboard, soup cans, etc., within your community programs.

Presentation to STANDING COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES & ENVIRONMENT

September 18, 2007

"The Alberta Dairy Council Milk Container Recycling Program is widely hailed as the most advanced, most progressive program of its kind in North America. No jurisdiction anywhere in the world has subjected used milk containers to a mandatory deposit-based recycling regulation. We can debate the reasons why, but the reality has created an impetus for the dairy industry to find ways to meet its environmental responsibilities through industry initiated, industry funded and industry managed programs. No one has done it better than Alberta."

Click here to review this Presentation.