During her five years of working at the SARCAN recycling depot in Estevan, Connie Hagel has always wanted to see a month in which at least one million containers were recycled.
She has her wish. And then some.
The local depot recycled 1,314,488 empty cans, bottles and milk jugs last month. Not only is it easily the highest total since Hagel has been there, but it might be the busiest month SARCAN has ever had in Estevan.
The amount of activity isn’t a surprise for Hagel, who is the depot’s manager.
“We knew that there was going to be a tidal wave of people coming in since we reopened, and this was expected and we were prepared,” Hagel told the Mercury.
More than 2,000 people passed through their doors last month month, and they recycled 50,000-70,000 containers a day.
SARCAN’s recycling depot reopened to the public on June 15, after being closed since late March due to restrictions for the COVID-19 pandemic. When it first reopened, there was a rush of people looking to bring in their stockpiled empties. The rush of customers hasn’t dissipated since that time.
“It takes us quite a while to catch up, with being closed for so long,” said Hagel. “So I don’t expect it to quiet down over the summer at all, because summer is usually our busy time anyways. Probably once the cold weather hits, I think we’ll start to slow down. But other than that, it won’t slow down for quite a while.”
But she was surprised and excited when she saw the numbers. Last year they wanted to clear one million containers in July or August, and they came up just short. But last month, they cleared the one million threshold with about a week remaining in July.
“I was a little bit shocked, but not really, because we’ve been so busy and you work and you don’t realize how much it is until you actually look at the numbers, and then you say ‘Holy cow, that’s a lot of containers that we’ve counted.’”
Every day has a busy day, with people lining up outside the door to bring in their empties.
“It’s a lineup from when we open and a lineup until we close,” said Hagel. “There’s really no time that it’s busier or slower. Not here, anyways.”
The customers have done a good job of coping with the lineups. They move fairly quickly, and customers have been patient with the protocols.
The drop and go system, in which people can drop off their materials and be paid later, has proven to be popular.
“People like the idea of not standing in line and just going into drop and go, dropping their containers and putting tags on their bags and going. Then we issue a cheque through PayPal later. That’s been very, very popular, so much so that’s what’s keeping us the busiest so far,” said Hagel.
It’s particularly popular if there’s a long lineup, or if people don’t want to wait in the heat on a hot summer day.
Staff members have done a great job of handling the rush.
“Yes they go home a little tired, but my staff is great with handling the extra protocols, the sanitation and just the … different things that we have to do to keep them safe and customers safe as well,” said Hagel.
They have adapted to the changes that have occurred.
When people come to the depot, they are limited to what they can carry. There is also a $75 limit per week on the amount of materials they can bring in. And they still limit the number of customers inside the building to those who are at the counters, dropping off the containers, or those who are at the till receiving their money.
Estevan isn’t alone with the activity levels. Hagel noted that SARCAN depots across the province are quite busy, and they are setting records daily, weekly and monthly with the containers they have had coming through the door.
Therefore, she wouldn’t be surprised if the depot sets another record next month.
“People are really stepping up and bringing their containers in. Which is good for us. It keeps us working and it’s good for the environment, getting all of those recyclables out of our ditches and out of our landfills.”
