BRUNSWICK HOUSE FIRST NATION—Several communities on Manitoulin Island will soon have colourful pink bins delivered to them that will be used to collect used textiles from local residents for resale and recycling.
“We will be delivering the pink boxes by the end of the month on the island and be launching the program in April,” stated Jerret Paquette, who along with his mother Doris Mitchell operate Sic Sox Circular. “We’re hoping to have eight bins located on the Island, in Little Current, Kagawong, Gore Bay, Evansville, Providence Bay, Mindemoya, South Baymouth and Manitowaning. I know Vince (Grogan) is still working on getting permission from the communities to have the bins located across the Island.”
“That’s the idea, to service the whole Island,” said Mr. Paquette.
As was reported previously, Mr. Paquette and his mother Doris Mitchell, launched Sic Sox Circular in the community of Brunswick House First Nation near Chapleau, last fall. They plan to repurpose unwanted textiles
into a new type of home insulation and recycle the rest in a recycling facility at Brunswick House.
Clothing, bedding and pillows, industrial textiles, shoes, handbags, and even stuffed animal toys can be dropped in the bins, which are emptied once a week when donations are transported to the recycling facility at Brunswick House.
Items that have still have lots of life in them will be resold through the Sic Sox Thrift Store in Chapleau and online.
Mr. Paquette noted that one of the bins will be located outside the Park Centre in Kagawong. “We are hoping to get the bins set up in in places where there is public access to use them at any time. Once a week at least we will have a driver clean out all of the bins.”
Vince Grogan, a Billings township councillor who has spearheaded the Island Waste Management Resource Committee said, “in a perfect world all of our used textiles and clothing would be used for something.” He said data shows that on average each person throws out 47 kilograms of clothing and bedding per year. “If Sic Sox can divert 60 percent by recycling 60 percent of what they pick up and 40 percent is used for spray insulation foam, that would definitely have an impact on the amount of items going to landfills on the Island.”
“I am proud of the fact that we are now associated with Jarret and his mom and grateful for what they are doing,” said Mr. Grogan. He added the launch of the bins on the Island will take place April 2.
Currently, Six Sox Circular has boxes set up in 18 communities in Ontario and another 40 are ready to ship out. Conversations are ongoing with additional communities to expand the network.
Mr. Grogan gave a delegation to the Northeast Town council encouraging buy-in from the Island’s largest municipality into the Island-wide Waste Management Committee.
Following a presentation, Mr. Grogan asked council to consider two things: setting up battery recycling kiosk through Call2Recyle and a textile recycling kiosk through Sic Sox Circular at the landfill and a per capita donation toward the committee which would go toward hiring a staff member. In the Northeast Town’s case, this would work out to $13,500.
Mr. Grogan told council that the committee envisioned this being a one-time fee and that once set up, it would run itself.
At its March 5 meeting, council discussed Mr. Grogan’s asks. CAO Dave Williamson began by noting that council had already passed its 2024 budget, of which $13,500 for this committee was not a part.
“But you could pull it out of reserves,” Mr. Williamson added. “My recommendation is that you take it under consideration but work to reduce the carbon footprint and increase recycling in the municipality.”
Mr. Williamson also noted that there could be issues with the Ministry of Environment to having a battery collection depot at the landfill other than the designated hazardous waste day held each summer. Councillor Michael Erskine noted that Breakaway Sports and Cycle collects batteries now in downtown Little Current through Call2Recycle. Mr. Williamson thought that would be more to the point as private industry has more leeway with such things than municipalities would. The CAO went on to note that he would check with the ministry as to whether they could host a textile recycling bin under its operating certificate.
Breakaway Sports and Cycle works with Call2Recycle and acts as a depot for people to bring in their rechargeable and single-use batteries weighing 5 kg or less each. No wet-cell, damaged or defective batteries accepted. The kinds of batteries accepted are alkaline, lithium primary, lithium ion, nickel cadmium, small, sealed lead acid nickel metal hydride and nickel zinc.
