Originally published in the Bird’s Eye

Quadra Island has a new recycling depot, and if you have not visited yet, it is worth taking a few minutes to get familiar with how it works.

The new Quadra Island Recycling Depot, located at 657 Industrial Way at the corner of West Road, has been years in the making. While the transition away from the recycling bins at Quathiaski Cove left some residents with questions, the new facility offers a much more comprehensive recycling system and a dedicated location where residents can sort a wider range of materials.

The depot operates as a one-way site, with vehicles entering from
Industrial Way and exiting onto West Road. Hours are Friday through
Monday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., including statutory holidays.

Inside photos: The bright, spacious indoor area features clearly marked sorting bins that match the colours of the take-home stickers (bottom of page) making drop-offs easy peasy

Operator Roy Howarth is on site to answer questions and help residents navigate the system.

The facility is currently operating in a soft-launch phase. Full Recycle BC integration is expected in October 2026, following completion of a province-wide transportation contract that will determine how recycling materials are shipped from the island.

For now, paper, cardboard, and boxboard can be placed in the green fibre bins located outside the building. Most other accepted materials are sorted inside the depot, where collection bins are clearly marked.

Glass, flexible plastics, and foam are currently collected through pop-up events held twice per month until full Recycle BC service begins in October. Remaining 2026 pop-up dates are June 26 to 29, July 10 to 13, July 24 to 27, August 7 to 10, August 21 to 24, September 4 to 7, and September 18 to 21.

One of the handiest features of the new depot is a set of free colour coded stickers (above) available for residents to take
home. The stickers match the collection streams used at the depot
and can be used to label bins, totes, boxes, shelves, or storage areas,
making it easy to keep materials organized at home and quick to
gather for drop-off. Kind of like a sorting hat system, for recyclables.
Yellow stickers are for paper products and blue stickers are for containers accepted year-round at the depot.

Grey stickers are for glass, pink stickers are for flexible plastics, and purple stickers are for foam packaging. These three colours correspond to the pop-up collection program only until October. Setting up dedicated bins now can make pop-up collection weekends quicker and easier.

Not sure whether something belongs in recycling, garbage, or another collection stream? Recycle BC’s online “What Can I Recycle?” tool includes a searchable Waste Wizard that allows residents to look up thousands of common household items and find out exactly where they belong.

For more information, visit: recyclebc.ca To search specific items using
the Waste Wizard, visit: recyclebc.ca/what-can-i-recycle

Top image credit: Top: Entrance and signage off Industrial Way. Don’t forget, this is a one-way operation. Enter from Industrial Way and exit onto West Road. – Melissa McKenny