CleanFarms, the industry-funded agricultural materials recycling entity, has collected 51,600 tonnes of plastic and other non-organic waste over its 10 years of operation. That’s the weight of about 65,000 cows. Or 7,000 elephants. The group announced its collection total today to mark its 10th anniversary. The materials include plastic jugs and containers, used grain bags, […] Read more
Tag Archives recycling
Putting a wrap on grain bags
A new grain bag recycling program is being rolled out across Saskatchewan this month. The first of its kind in Canada, it will allow producers to bring their used bags to one of 20 recycling depots at municipal locations throughout the province. Cleanfarms is administering the recycling program with funding assistance from Saskatchewan Agriculture. The […] Read more
Recycled greenhouse gas used to make plastics
The new technology could be used to recycle items such as waste grain bags by capturing the carbon dioxide and converting it back to plastic
Researchers have discovered a way to recycle waste greenhouse gases to make plastic. “Our technology takes carbon dioxide and converts it into ethylene, which is the main precursor of plastic,” said Phil De Luna, a PhD student at the University of Toronto. Using the Canadian Light Source at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, De […] Read more
Sask. has plan to carry on with scrap tire collection
Changes to scrap tire collection have left nearly a third of Saskatchewan rural municipalities with piles of discarded tires that councillors and residents want removed. The Saskatchewan Scrap Tire Corp., a non-profit organization that had operated the province’s tire recycling program since 1996, dissolved Aug. 31 after new regulations came into force earlier in the […] Read more
Ohio man farms the wasteland
DELAWARE COUNTY, Ohio — Waste is a dirty word to Ohio farmer Tom Price. Owner of the family-operated Price Farms Organics near Columbus, he has become a receiver of every kind of food byproduct, manure and yard trimming. Those products are turned into compost and sold back to community retailers, wholesalers, gardeners and landscapers. “We […] Read more
Waste not, want not
Thousands of kilograms of food are thrown out the back door of Calgary grocery stores each day, but one entrepreneur has found a way to turn that unwanted material into fertilizer. Bio-Cycle Solutions started about 12 years ago when Alberta legislation on manure management changed. Neil Wiens and a partner started a composting business to […] Read more
Sea containers get new life: thinking outside the box
Cattle feeders or dog kennels, office or storage facility — imagination is the limit
The sky’s the limit when it comes to customizing shipping containers for use on the farm, says Joe Hamilton. The half owner of Bond Industrial Direct Inc. in Saskatoon has been modifying and retrofitting containers for the mining and construction industries since 2009. He said the functional structures that are created from recycled sea containers […] Read more
No more lagoons
Livestock water recycling system breaks down manure and produces water that can be used for on-farm jobs
Imagine pouring thousands of litres of soupy manure through a series of filters and generating clean, clear water. It is the premise of Livestock Water Recycling, a Calgary company that has sold its patented units to dairy and hog farms in Canada and the United States. Milking parlour technology has advanced over the years, but […] Read more
Refurbished Hobies provide family fun
Restoring sailboats an enjoyable sideline
PELICAN LAKE, Man. — A small two hulled catamaran with a tarpaulin stretched between the hulls sits by the side of a Manitoba rural road, with its mast just waiting to be hoisted. The Hobie sailboat is parked outside Darryl Enns’s business, Signature Cover, in Elm Creek, Man. He has been manufacturing hopper covers for […] Read more
