Where sport meets sustainability, one Calgary event coached the next generation on the importance of recycling batteries — a game-changing plan for bettering the environment off the pitch.
Hosted by not-for-profit organization, Call2Recycle, the event featured spokeswoman and Canadian professional soccer player, Christine Sinclair, who brought the awareness campaign to life through interactive activities outside the Westside Recreation Centre on Jun. 6.
Starting at 2 p.m., representatives of the city and West Hills United Soccer Club greeted attendees. Ward 3 Coun. Jasmine Mian expressed the city’s excitement in partnering with the initiative and praised Sinclair’s dedication to the program.
“You have inspired the nation with your leadership in sports, and now you’re bringing that same energy to environmental action,” she said.
During the afternoon, Sinclair and president of Call2Recycle’s Toronto office, Joe Zenobio, energized local children and their families to pay attention to how they dispose of batteries in the future.
Since the age of four, Sinclair said that playing an outdoor sport brought her to develop an automatic appreciation for the environment. She said that being a high-profile athlete puts her in a unique position where what she says can influence the actions of others.
“As an athlete, it’s important to lend your voice to causes that are important to you,” said Sinclair.
Public speaking and autograph signing aside, Sinclair prioritized connecting with the young athletes because she said the future generation will be more productive at taking the advice and using it to affect change.
“The parents are a lost cause because they’ve already created their habits and what they do in life,” she said.
Having begun on Jun. 5, the event concluded her and Zenobio’s two-day tour, making appearances at select locations in Edmonton and Calgary. Earlier in the week, it was announced that Sinclair will be inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in the fall.
“A little shocked,” she said.
“Most times, athletes have to wait for, like, five years after they’re done playing…it’s a huge honour.”
Until then, the four-time Olympian and former player on the women’s national team is redirecting her spotlight toward Call2Recycle’s campaign, titled Recycle Your Batteries, Canada!
Watts the deal?: Importance of battery recycling
The campaign was officially launched in Alberta on Apr. 1, but for more than 20 years, Call2Recycle has been working with various provinces and municipalities across the country.
In Alberta and Ontario, the organization is registered as the official Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO), meaning that it assists in developing waste collection, management, and education initiatives.
Their programs include the collection of household batteries — up to 5 kilograms in weight — as well as larger ones powering e-transport devices and electric vehicles.
Vice president of communications at Call2Recycle, Jon McQuaid, said that their goal is to encourage the responsible disposal of batteries to ensure they do not pose a dangerous threat.
“It’s important to have lifelong habits early around recycling batteries,” he said.
McQuaid said that the correct way to recycle is to apply an electrical tap to each charged end of the battery and dispose of them at one of Call2Recycle’s 15,000 collection sites available nationwide.
In Alberta, there are over 1,100 battery collection locations. Additionally, in partnership with Calgary Co-op, Call2Recycle has made it easier for people to throw away their batteries by installing smart battery collection containers in a number of grocery stores.
Coun. Mian said that around 50 landfill fires have happened in Calgary this year. According to the Government of Canada, landfill fires often happen when batteries come into contact with metal at both ends.
McQuaid said that their programs have an average risk diversion rate of 50 per cent. With more initiatives, he hopes that the percentage grows with time.
“The program is launching more collection sites, education awareness, to really raise that number even higher,” he said.
Coming to elementary schools in Alberta this fall, Call2Recycle announced the Battery Blitz contest will ask school-aged children to compete toward who can safely collect and recycle the most household batteries.
To learn more about battery safety practices, visit Call2Recycle and the Government of Canada online.
