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KUTE expands service to accept paper products

Prior to May 23 the facility had only been accepting cardboard since it reopened on April 22
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It was a half hour to an hour wait to drop off cardboard at Kitimat Understanding the Environment (KUTE) when the facility opened on April 22. KUTE is now open to the public for cardboard recycling every Tuesday and Wednesday from 12:30-4:30 p.m. (Louisa Genzale photo)

It’ll be welcome news for any locals who have amassed their own private stashes of mail flyers.

After reopening under temporary cardboard-only restrictions in late April, Kitimat Understanding the Environment (KUTE) will now be offering residents a place to drop off paper products.

Items must be separated into office paper, newspapers and/or flyers and glossy/magazine paper.

READ MORE: ‘Bear with us’: KUTE working hard to get back to resumption of normal services

The organization previously told the Kitimat Northern Sentinel it initially had its employers only accepting cardboard due to the uncertainty surrounding how long COVID-19 could survive on a wide variety of materials. To address this, KUTE has been having residents unload their cardboard themselves and are storing it in shipping containers for upwards of a week before workers unload the items.

The same method will be used for the additional paper products.

“We apologize for any inconvenience and we appreciate everyone’s efforts to recycle,” KUTE said in a May 23 update detailing the changes in service.

But while they’ve started to get back into the old groove of things, new protocols have led to unique challenges for the organization and KUTE says it’s extended storage period has made it harder to ship material out of the depot to make room for new product.

The organization has had to shut its doors early multiple times since it reopened due to receiving such a high volume of recyclables. In this case, KUTE is asking residents not to leave recyclables outside, as any material which gets rained on will not longer be recyclable.

Currently the facility is open to the public Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 12:30 - 4:30 p.m. Commercial users can access the site Monday from 12:30-4:30 p.m., and Tuesday and Wednesday mornings from 9 to noon.



trevor.hewitt@interior-news.com
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