Hot News

Change Is Coming…But Your Recycling Will Look the Same! RMRS March, 2024 Newsletter Now Online

Click to view an online copy of the RMRS March, 2024 Newsletter. This and past newsletters are archived on our website.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletters & get all our recycling updates, news, and tips emailed straight to your inbox! You can unsubscribe at any time.

In this newsletter…

  • Change is Coming! If you haven’t heard, starting in 2025 Curbside and               Apartment recycling collection in Maple Ridge will transition to direct services by Recycle BC, the organization responsible for paper & packaging recycling in British Columbia. Don’t worry! Ridge Meadows Recycling will still operate the Maple Ridge Recycling Depot and our Supported Work program is not going anywhere! While the changes to recycling collection won’t happen for a while, here’s a head start to learn more about the transition and Recycle BC!
  • Calling all Climate Champions… The award-winning Maple Ridge Climate Hub is now accepting nominations for their 3rd annual Climate Champion Awards, to be presented at the Earth Day festival on April 20
  • Feeling Creative? The Earth Day “Poetry & More” and Photo Contests are now accepting submissions!
  • Spring Cleaning Time!! Gather your gently used books, toys, clothing, & sports equipment to donate to the Earth Day Family Freecycle!! Learn more about the awesome volunteers that make it happen and bring your items to the drop-off event in front of the Leisure Centre on Friday, April 19 from 5-7pm. At the Earth Day event on April 20, come find something NEW to YOU – for free!!
  • Bring us Your Broken Stuff! The next Maple Ridge Repair Cafe is on Saturday, March 16 at the Maple Ridge Seniors Activity Centre
  • Ready to Switch Off? Earth Hour is on Saturday, March 23 from 8:30-9:30pm
  • Easter Schedule Reminder – NO curbside pickup on Friday, March 29 or Monday, April 1
  • Summer Hours at the Maple Ridge Recycling Depot start on Monday, April 1, 2024.

In case you missed it…

  • Save the Date! Maple Ridge’s annual Celebrate Earth Day festival will be on Saturday, April 20, 2024. Register to have a booth or activity, perform, or volunteer!
  • Looking for Volunteer Opportunities? We need you at the Earth Day festival! Learn more & register online!
  • Spring Chipping Program set-out deadlines – don’t burn that brush!
  • Have you checked out our Celebrate Earth Day EMERGE map yet? It’s great for exploring your community and has been viewed over 342,000 times! Let us know if we missed anything that should be on the map…

Easter Holiday Recycling Pickup Schedule – No Recycling Pickup Friday, March 29 or Monday, April 1

Reminder there will be NO BLUE BOX CURBSIDE RECYCLING PICKUP on GOOD FRIDAY, MARCH 29 OR EASTER MONDAY, APRIL 1 due to the Easter Holiday weekend.

The Maple Ridge Recycling Depot will be OPEN EVERY DAY on Easter Weekend, but note that Good Friday, March 29 and Easter Sunday, March 31 will be open HOLIDAY hours (9:00am – 5:00pm) and Saturday, March 30 and Monday, April 1 will be open REGULAR hours (8:00am – 6:00pm).

Happy Easter from Ridge Meadows Recycling!

 

Looking for work? We are hiring!!

1. Full-Time Swamper Position Available

Ridge Meadows Recycling Society has a Swamper position available immediately.

The position is full time (40 hours/week) and pays $21.39/hour. Hours are Monday to Friday, 6:30am – 3pm with possible overtime. Union job with benefits starting after probation period, including extended health, paid days off, and self-directed RRSP. Overtime opportunities. Please send in your application ASAP.

Tasks & Responsibilities:
-Ensure efficient pickup of commodities placed curbside
-Lift & empty all recycling bags & boxes into truck bins
-Sort all recyclable commodities into appropriate bins
-Return boxes to appropriate location
-Processing materials at the Recycling Depot (as required)
-Clean-up & maintenance as directed.
-Able to perform physical labour such as lifting, bending & running
-Able to work in all weather conditions
-Understand and adhere to safety requirements

*Note: Individuals will be required to do repetitive lifting and work outdoors in all weather conditions. The successful applicant will be required to undergo a criminal records check.

Send resume & cover letter to Kim Day, Executive Director, at kim@rmrecycling.org

Online application form below. Applications & resumes can be also submitted in person at the Ridge Meadows Recycling Society office, 10092 – 236th Street (at the Maple Ridge Recycling Depot office).

 

If you are a truck driver and have your air brake endorsement, you can send your resume to gary@rmrecycling.org and we will keep it on file.

Thank you for your interest in working for Ridge Meadows Recycling Society!

Job Application

Interested applicants can apply for RMRS jobs through this form.

Job Interested in:(Required)

Spring, 2024 Brush Chipping Program Set-Out Deadlines

In partnership with the City of Maple Ridge, Ridge Meadows Recycling Society administers the Spring & Fall Brush Chipping Program for Maple Ridge residents.

The deadline for setting out branches for pickup for Maple Ridge residents WEST of 224th Street is Monday, March 25.

The set-out deadline for residents EAST of 224th Street is Tuesday, April 15.

All brush MUST be set out by the deadlines to be picked up.

Please do not set your branches out for the brush chipping program more than 3 weeks before the set-out deadline for your area.

 

Chipping in each area will take up to two weeks to complete. The number of days spent on each area depends on the amount of brush set out and the number of residents using the program.

The program includes pick up and disposal of tree & shrub branches up to a total volume of 3 cubic meters (1 meter x 1 meter x 3 meters, roughly 3 feet x 3 feet x 9 feet – chippers are instructed to spend no more than 20 minutes at each household).

Learn more about the Spring & Fall Brush Chipping Program, (including what is NOT accepted in the program!).

Save the Earth (Day Event Date)!! Plus, last call for RMRS Membership…RMRS February, 2024 Newsletter Now Online

Click to view an online copy of the RMRS January, 2024 Newsletter. This and past newsletters are archived on our website.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletters & get all our recycling updates, news, and tips emailed straight to your inbox! You can unsubscribe at any time.

In this newsletter…

In case you missed it…

  • Last chance before the AGM! Want to stay or become a member of Ridge Meadows Recycling Society? We’d love to have you 🙂  Renew or sign up for membership before Thursday, March 7 to vote at the April 4 Annual General Meeting.
  • Have you checked out our Celebrate Earth Day EMERGE map yet? It’s great for exploring your community and has been viewed over 334,000 times! Let us know if we missed anything that should be on the map…

 

Next Repair Cafe Saturday, April 20 at the Bandstand in Memorial Peace Park – Part of Earth Day!

On Saturday, April 20, Maple Ridge Repair Cafés will be at the Bandstand in Memorial Peace Park from 10am – 2pm. Bring us your broken stuff & say “Hi!” to Special Guests from the Ridge Meadows Quilters Guild and TINKERBELL!!

Repair Cafés are pop-up events where residents can bring their broken items (jewelry, clothing, bikes, small toys or furniture, small appliances, lamps, electronics, etc.) and volunteer expert “fixers” are available to help residents learn to repair their stuff – for free!

We will be joined by special guests from the Ridge Meadows Quilter’s Guild!

Don’t forget to bring your kids to Tinkerbell Station where they can get hands on with tools and tinker & create to their hearts’ content!! TINKERBELL herself will even be there to lend a hand and hand out “TinkerBUCKS” for a treat at the Freecycle!

Learn more about the Maple Ridge Repair Cafes & bring us your broken stuff!!

 

Celebrate Earth Day is on April 20, 2024!!

Save the Date!! Maple Ridge’s Celebrate Earth Day festival is scheduled for Saturday, April 20, 2024 from 10am to 2pm at Memorial Peace Park in the heart of Maple Ridge.

The Maple Ridge Earth Day 2024 theme, ROOTS, highlights the past and underlying supports in our community and our lives that are not always visible. Who we are today and what we see around us are the branches and “leaves” from seeds previously planted and nurtured. Our community has grown from many different people and ideas and initiatives and actions we may never be fully aware of. What seeds will YOU plant today that will become the Roots of the future?

The Earth Day Poetry & Photo Contests are open NOW! Submit your poem, flash fiction, short video, or photos on this year’s ROOTS theme for your chance to win great prizes and be featured in the Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows NEWS. Deadline for entries is midnight on March 31, 2024. Select winners may be invited to share their work at Earth Day on April 20.

Celebrate Earth Day 2024 welcomes all community groups, environmental groups, green businesses, and residents to be part of our event! Sign up to have an interactive booth or activity, volunteer and meet other awesome people, or audition to be one of our performers.
Participant, Performer, & Volunteer registration forms available online at www.mrearthday.ca

 

If this will be your first Earth Day, don’t miss these always-popular activities:

FAMILY FREECYCLE:
In preparation for the Family Freecycle, donations of gently used books, toys, and clothing are collected for two weeks ahead of the event, including at a drop-off event from 5-7pm on Friday, April 19, the night before Earth Day, in front of the ACT Arts Centre. All items collected are sorted into sizes and categories, set out on tables in the Leisure Centre, and given away at the Earth Day event. We live in an abundant society – most people have too much “stuff” and are more than happy to give it away. Declutter your home then come to find something NEW to YOU!

 
CYCLE RECYCLE FREE BIKE DRAW:
At the Cycle Recycle, the local HUB Cycling group collects secondhand bikes, fixes them up, and gives them away in a free bike draw at Earth Day at 1:00pm. Many of the bikes were destined for the scrap heap at the Recycling Depot and HUB helps get both the bikes and residents back on the road.
 

ELECTRIC VEHICLE DISPLAY & DEMONSTRATIONS:

Learn more about why the future is electric. Members of the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association are more than happy to tell you about the different kinds of electric vehicles and you may even be able to go for a ride in an electric car!! If you are thinking of buying an electric vehicle, come and ask them all your questions!
 

FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL:
Come hungry! Hunger Management has rounded up food trucks to satisfy your sweet, savoury, and any other hunger needs!

REPAIR CAFE: 
Got broken stuff? Bring it to the Maple Ridge Repair Cafe and learn how to fix it for FREE! Experienced Fixers will be on hand to assist with the repair or offer advice on all your sewing, electrical, carpentry, jewellery, or bike repair needs. Glue, tape, tools, sewing machines and more are available to use and TINKERbell Station will be set up for kids to get hands-on with tools, take stuff apart & learn how it works, build original creations, or just tinker! Want to just come check us out? No problem! Come have a cup of tea or coffee and enjoy the magic of repair.

 
PLUS!! Facepainting, TWO live music stages, roving performers, a Ukelele Flash Mob, a Nature Mandala, Maple Ridge Climate Hub’s Climate Champion Awards, Poetry & Photo Contest winners announced at the Welcoming Ceremonies, and the City of Maple Ridge and the ACT Arts Center celebrating National Volunteer Week!

Visit our Facebook page or www.mrearthday.ca 

Welcome to 2024! RMRS January, 2024 Newsletter Now Online

Click to view an online copy of the RMRS January, 2024 Newsletter. This and past newsletters are archived on our website.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletters & get all our recycling updates, news, and tips emailed straight to your inbox! You can unsubscribe at any time.

In this newsletter…

  • Recycling Basics Review – Curbside & Apartment Recycling Guides, Depot Hours, and “A to Z” of things to bring to the Maple Ridge Recycling Depot
  • Thank you!! RMRS has been nominated for the inaugural “Environmental Leadership Award” at the Chamber of Commerce’s Business Excellence Awards!
  • Year 7 of Maple Ridge Repair Cafes launches on Saturday, February 10 – bring us your broken stuff!
  • It’s Membership Renewal Time! Want to stay or become a member of Ridge Meadows Recycling Society? We’d love to have you 🙂  Renew or sign up for membership before Thursday, March 7 to vote at the April 4 Annual General Meeting.
  • Speaking of awards…Founding Member Candace Gordon recalls travelling to Victoria to accept the BC Minister of Environment award back in 1993

    In case you missed it…

  • Have you checked out our Celebrate Earth Day EMERGE map yet? It’s great for exploring your community and has been viewed over 327,500 times! Let us know if we missed anything that should be on the map…

Happy Green Holidays! PLUS: Looking Back at 2023 – RMRS December, 2023 Newsletter Now Online

Click to view an online copy of the RMRS December, 2023 Newsletter. This and past newsletters are archived on our website.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletters & get all our recycling updates, news, and tips emailed straight to your inbox! You can unsubscribe at any time.

In this newsletter…

  • CHRISTMAS SCHEDULES!! Reminder of the Special Pickup for residents with MONDAY recycling pickup on Saturday, December 30, Depot closing early Christmas Eve & New Year’s Eve…
  • Heads up the Depot will be BUSY from December 27 – January 7 – come early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid lineups!
  • Take a look back with us on the year that was 2023…the FLOW of Earth Day, Summer Depot Tours, and more!
  • Looking for work? We’re looking for a Part-Time Depot Supervisor and Full-Time Truck Drivers!
  • “A Partnership That Works” – RMRS Executive Director Kim Day talks about how the Recycling Depot was built in 1990
  • That’s a wrap on Year 6 of Maple Ridge Repair Cafes! See you in 2024!
  • Photos from our November 18 Maple Ridge Repair Cafe at the Maple Ridge Library with special guests from Museum on the Move!

In case you missed it…

  • Have you checked out “The Map” of cool things to see & do in Maple Ridge yet? It’s great for exploring your community and has been viewed over 310,000 times! We are always adding new points of interest to it – let us know if we missed anything that should be on the map!