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Taber receives International Communitas Award for environmental practices

May 6, 2018 | 8:24 AM

TABER – The Town of Taber’s Municipal Solid Waste Initiative has been awarded a 2018 Communitas Award in the category of Ethical and Environmental Responsibility – Green Initiatives.

The Communitas Awards is an international effort to recognize exceptional businesses, organizations, and individuals that are changing how they do business to benefit their communities, and the name stems from the Latin word meaning people coming together for the good of a community.

The Green Initiatives Category evaluates a company’s environmental practices and green programs. The Town’s MSWI was introduced in 2016 as a way to move towards more environmentally-minded waste collection initiatives and included three carts for recycling, organics, and residual waste.

Within eight months of the launch in May 2016, the Town of Taber saw a 55 per cent and 17 per cent diversion rate for organics and recycling, respectively. These numbers indicate the percentage of waste diverted from the landfill, and the Town has also seen 34 per cent decreases in both transport costs and truckloads leaving the Transfer Station since the MSWI was implemented.

Director of Engineering and Public Works Gary Scherer says they knew Taber could be a hub for environmental practices in Southern Alberta.

“Winning the Communitas Award shows how dedicated our staff and citizens are to making this idea become a reality,” Scherer added.

Mayor Andrew Prokop says winning an international award is no small feat, especially one that recognizes a group effort benefitting a whole community.

“The cooperation and effort the people of Taber have demonstrated with our new waste system truly embodies that spirit,” Prokop continued. “And I would like to thank them for their continued efforts.”

A release states the award will be presented to the Town at a future meeting of Council.