2015 September Pender Post

We would like to thank everyone who took part in the Fall Fair, especially those who created unique items made from reused materials and entered them in our Fall Fair Recycling section “R”. It is very inspiring to see the results of such creative thoughts, energies and talents that go into making new and interesting items out of something old. By next month’s Pender Post we will share the names of the creators of the winning entries. We hope that the work of these innovative thinkers will inspire all of us Penderites to be more creative in our lifestyle choices and help us do more re-using and re-purposing, thereby producing less waste.

Thank you to all who used the recycling and composting stations at the Fall Fair, it helped reduce the garbage tremendously. We also greatly appreciate the work of the volunteers who ran the Imagination Station at the Fall Fair and all the young creators who spent time building and tinkering there.

One intriguing example of re-use we have seen is that of building a real boat out of plastic pop bottles, accomplished by the Grade 3-4 class at our Pender School this spring under the guidance of their teacher Mr. Claude Kennedy. Much research and use of science by the students and their teacher went into this project which was inspired by the Plastiki, a 60ft plastic bottle boat that sailed from San Francisco to Australia in 2010. The Gr. 3-4 class named their boat the Pendertiki, and enjoyed a successful maiden voyage at Mortimer Spit in June.

September is the last month this year that the recycling depot is open on Fridays; as of October 1 we will be operating on winter hours. Some may not know that the depot opens at 8am on Tuesdays all year long and that this is the quietest time at the depot. The last half hour before closing is often the busiest, so we would like to encourage everyone to come early. It is still wasp season and we appreciate everyone rinsing their recyclables, especially pop, juice and beer containers. Pre-sorting recyclables at home also helps to reduce time spent near the sorting bins (and wasps) at the depot.

It has been brought to our attention by the folks at MainRoads who care for our Pender roads that there is often litter and debris along the roadside by the entry and exit to the recycling depot. We would like to ask everyone to please be mindful of any loose litter, paper or recyclables that might fly off pickup trucks or other vehicles when entering and leaving the depot; please try to contain the items and help us keep our roadsides clean.

Lastly, PIRS is looking for volunteers to serve on our Board of Directors. Please contact the depot at 629-6962 or Board President Davy Rippner at 629-6636 if you are interested or would like to know more. The Penders seem to be powered by the energy of volunteers; yet another great reason they’re all good days on Pender.

Anna Herlitz