Toronto, Ontario -- August 6, 2012 -- The final counts are in for the latest Tire Take Back Days and Woodbeck Auto Parts has taken the top spot for the second year in a row. All together, Ontario's auto recyclers collected a truly enormous number of tires. Stacked on top of each other, tires collected during this year alone would reach a staggering height of nearly 36 kilometres.
The final tallies were announced at a special event held at Woodbeck's Auto Parts in Stirling, Ont. A number of notables were in attendance, including Rodney Cooney, Mayor of Stirling; Neil Ellis, Mayor of Belleville; Owen Kepcheson, Reeve of Center-Hastings; Cindy Brandt, Chair of the Stirling Hockeyville Committee and Daryl Kramp, MP of Prince Edward Hastings. Steve Fletcher, Managing Director of OARA, delivered opening remarks and provided some background on Tire Take Back Days, OTS and the Sunshine Foundation.
The highlight of the event was the unveiling of the new Tire Take Back Days sign and the presentation of a cheque for $357,960 to the Sunshine Foundation. The cheque was presented by Steve Fletcher, Andrew Horsman and Greg and Bruce Woodbeck, and accepted by Andre Motuzas on behalf of the Sunshine Foundation.
Between May 28th and June 2nd, Ontarians dropped off over 139,000 used tires at 72 locations across the province. These collection events raised $357,960 for the Sunshine Foundation Children’s Charity at the 3rd Annual Tire Take Back Events, organized by Ontario Tire Stewardship (OTS) and the Ontario Automotive Recyclers Association (OARA).
The six-day recycling blitz helped divert tires from landfills, while raising money to assist children with severe physical disabilities and life-threatening illnesses fulfill a personal dream or take part in an adventure they will never forget. The collection allowance that OARA members receive for each tire dropped off is matched by OARA and coupled with donations from registered tire haulers Liberty Tire Recycling and Trillium Tire, to create an overall donation to the Sunshine Foundation of Canada.
Andre Motuzas, National Director of Fund Development for the Sunshine Foundation thanked OTS for supporting the cause and recognized Andrew Horsman, Executive Director of OTS for his organization's work on behalf of Tire Take Back Days.
“Congratulations to Ontarians for their outstanding recycling efforts and creating the most successful tire collection event to date,” said Horsman. “The number of tires collected nearly tripled last year’s amount, and stacked on top of each other, could be the height of more than 65 CN Towers. Each year, in partnership with OARA, we strive to create a stronger green economy, build sustainable markets for products that contribute to a low-impact environmental future, and make unforgettable dreams come true for more children through the Sunshine Foundation.”
The Sunshine Foundation is the only national Canadian charity to provide individual dreams to children with severe physical disabilities as well as life-threatening illnesses. Sunshine was the first organization to bring DreamLifts to Canadian children. Sunshine’s one-day, whirlwind DreamLift adventures transport approximately 80 children by plane to an exciting destination such as a Disney theme park. Recyclers who participate in Tire Take Back Days aren't just keeping tires out of landfills. They're helping to put smiles on the faces of children who often don't have much to smile about.
This year, the OARA member that collected the most tires from residents in their area was recognized with a gift-in-kind of up to $15,000 worth of tire-derived products to be used toward a community facility or project. Woodbeck Auto Parts in Stirling, Ont. collected nearly 25,000 tires during this year's event. Woodbeck Auto Parts will use the prize money to provide recycled rubber flooring to refurbish a local hockey arena, the Stirling District Recreation Centre of Stirling-Rawdon.
“We’re proud to recognize our 72 participating OARA members for their growing efforts to recycle not only tires, but thousands of vehicles and auto parts each year,” said Steve Fletcher, Executive Director of OARA. “For the second year in a row, Woodbeck Auto Parts not only led the province in the collection, but also exceeded last year’s efforts by 21,000 tires. Honourable mentions also go to Hotch’s Auto Parts in Ameliasburgh and Sonshine Auto Parts in Cumberland, who gave Woodbeck some fierce competition. In total this year we had eight members exceed the total collected by Woodbeck's winning number last year."
OTS tracks and manages how the approximately 12 million tires sold in Ontario every year are handled once they reach the end of their service life, diverting them from burning facilities and landfills. Through the Used Tires Program, Ontarians can drop off up to four used tires each for free at hundreds of registered collection locations around the province, and the tires collected will be reused or recycled into new consumer products such as rubber mulch, door and car mats and roof shingles. To date, Ontario Tire Stewardship has helped recycle more than 33 million tires in Ontario. Please visit GreenMyTires.ca for details on registered collectors across the province.
