27 Businesses Received Infrastructure Grants from BCUOMA in 2021
• RCF ProgramInfrastructure grants go toward building new, and expanding existing, used oil recycling facilities across B.C. to ensure the responsible handling, collecting, and storing of used oil and antifreeze materials.
We are pleased to share that throughout 2021, BCUOMA created strategic alliances and awarded infrastructure grants to 27 B.C. businesses. Our grant program provides businesses with the infrastructure required to responsibly handle, collect, and store used oil and antifreeze materials using economic, efficient, and environmentally acceptable options.
“We are excited to see such a positive response from independent B.C. recycling depot owners and municipalities interested in utilizing BCUOMA’s infrastructure grants, and opening new used oil recycling depots, as well as upgrading existing facilities to ensure that British Columbians have access to environmentally safe, free and convenient locations to return their used oil and antifreeze materials,” said David Lawes, CEO, BC Used Oil Management Association. “BCUOMA’s priority is to make used oil recycling easy for everyone, and we will continue to look for opportunities to upgrade and improve recycling facility locations across the province throughout 2022.”
These new and upgraded recycling depots are part of a vast network of publicly accessible eco-friendly facilities where B.C. residents can return used oil and antifreeze materials for free. Each year approximately 50 million litres of oil, and three million litres of antifreeze are collected and responsibly managed through BCUOMA’s network of public recycling centres and generators across the province. A comprehensive listing of all the public recycling centres across B.C. can be found at https://interchangerecycling.com/find-a-recycling-centre.
Below are the names of the organizations that received infrastructure grants from BCUOMA over the past 12 months.
| Bridgeview Marine (Delta) | Fort St. John Co-op – 91 Ave (Fort St. John) | Mr. Lube (Coquitlam) |
| Town of Osoyoos Sanitary Landfill (Osoyoos) | Fort St. John Co-op – 100 Ave (Fort St. John) | United Boulevard Recycling and Waste Centre (Metro Vancouver) (Coquitlam) |
| Island Solid Waste (NCRD) (Port Clements) | MTB Auto Service (Nanaimo) | Lasqueti Island Recycling Depot (Area E) |
| Island Solid Waste (NCRD) (Skidegate) | Four Rivers Coop (Prince George) | Great Canadian Oil Change (Cranbrook) |
| Bowen Island Municipality (Bowen Island) | Triton Automotive & Industrial (NAPA) (Squamish) | Great Canadian Oil Change (Surrey) |
| Great Canadian Oil Change (Kelowna) | Gold Trail Recycling (100 Mile House) | North Island Lube (Campbell River) |
| Great Canadian Oil Change Bernhardt Auto (Penticton) | Greenwood Saw to Truck Repairs (Greenwood) | GFL (formerly Alpine Group) (Nanaimo) |
| Dalex Auto (Fort Nelson) | North Shore Recycling & Waste Centre (Metro Vancouver) (North Vancouver) | Great Canadian Oil Change (Dawson Creek) |
| Wide Sky Disposal (Fort Nelson) |
For additional information about BCUOMA’s infrastructure grant program visit https://interchangerecycling.com/infrastructure-grants/.
In addition to opening new and upgrading recycling depots across the province, BCUOMA presented their second annual Top Collector Awards in March of this year. 30 public used oil recycling facilities received Top Collector Award plaques and were honoured for their exemplary performance and commitment to the collection of used oil and antifreeze materials across British Columbia throughout 2020. BCUOMA added two new award categories this year – Most Improved Award for the facility that increased its collection rates by the largest percentage, and Long Time Service Award that recognizes six businesses that have been dedicated program members since BCUOMA’s inception in 2003. Learn more about the Top Collector Awards here.
Additionally, in June, BCUOMA partnered with ARTist Response Team (ART), for the sixth year in a row, for their Sing Out for The Earth virtual concerts. Holly Arntzen and Kevin Wright of ART worked remotely with two B.C. schools to produce 20-minute virtual concerts featuring K-7 students singing out for oceans, watersheds, and nature. The schools that participated in the concerts were A.J. Elliott Elementary located in the fishing village of Sointula on Malcolm Island, off the northeast coast of Vancouver Island, and Haisla Community School, which is in the First Nations village of Kitimat. Click here to watch the videos.
BCUOMA would like to acknowledge that the used oil recycling depots that they partner with are located on First Nations traditional territories throughout British Columbia.
