2014 Rs of Excellence Award Winners

Green Event Services works to provide solutions for waste reduction at events and festivals, including resources and training for event planners, collection equipment rentals, and on-site waste management solutions.

Started in 2013, Green Event Services has experienced rapid growth over the last 2 years, working with over 40 events in 2014, including some of Calgary’s largest street and music festivals, and diverting over 6 tons of material from landfill.
They are working to ban polystyrene foodware at festivals next year, and mandate compostable foodware usage in following years, as part of the green event revolution in Alberta.

CleanFARMS Inc. is a national, industry-led stewardship organization best known for its empty pesticide and fertilizer container recycling program and obsolete pesticide collection program.

Since 2010, over 2 million kilograms of plastic containers have been diverted from Alberta landfills through the CleanFARMS empty pesticide container program. Collected material is reused in high quality products like farm drainage tile.

CleanFARMS is exploring broader agricultural plastics recycling initiatives, including agricultural film and twine.

Wildwood Elementary offers programs for Kindergarten to Grade 6 students, with an enrolment of 550 students and 48 staff members.

Not only does the school recycle paper / cardboard, beverage containers and mixed containers (metals and plastics), student members of “The Compost Crew” collect food scraps and paper towel for composting.

Wildwood has a current waste diversion rate of 84%, demonstrating exceptional environmental leadership, and are a model for other schools within the Calgary Board of Education.

After enjoying a long, successful career in the private sector, John became landfill manager for Foothills Regional Services Commission, where he managed the landfill through a major development phase that has seen both landfill capacity and volumes grow significantly, while evolving into one of Alberta’s premier waste management facilities that includes recycling and composting, and even a garden.

John’s contribution to the Foothills facility, the Calgary and Region Waste Reduction Partnership, and Waste, Compost, and Recycling Regulation at the Provincial level has been outstanding.

The 2013 flood saw John really rise to the occasion, opening the landfill 24/7 and sourcing retired staff and volunteers to handle the increase in materials, while introducing efficiencies and safety measures for both public and staff. This allowed John and his staff to effectively handle one year’s waste in one month.

Although we will miss John’s sage advice and sense of humour, we wish him a great retirement, and more time to pursue his passions for golf, cooking, woodworking and wine.