No. 6 Plastics and Styrofoam Finally Recovered Thanks to Pyrowave!

The City of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield and Pyrowave Corporation are joining forces to help Campivallensians recover the No. 6 plastics that would usually end up in a landfill. These include packaging, plates, tumblers and other styrofoam or expanded polystyrene items. The residents will now be able to bring these No. 6 plastic or styrofoam items to the Ecocentre. From there, they will be hauled to Pyrowave, in the Perron industrial and port park, where 99% of this material will be saved through Pyrowave’s innovative microwave depolymerization technology. Plastic wastes can then be reconverted into raw materials to be used in the manufacturing process of other plastics, including No. 6 plastics.

The Salaberry-de-Valleyfield citizens can bring their No. 6 plastics and styrofoam items to the Ecocentre (2575 Mgr-Langlois Boulevard), from Wednesday to Sunday until November 30, and from Thursday to Saturday between December 1 and March 31. A schedule is available for review. Mrs. Maggy Hinse, Environmental Advisor to the City, emphasized: “We call on citizens to get engaged in large numbers. If the City provides the recovery stream to supply Pyrowave so that eventually, these plastic items are accepted in the selective collection, the citizens will have to play the largest role. They will provide the raw material and through their efforts, they will show their commitment to reduce their environmental impact.”

No. 6 plastics are found in plates, glasses, tumblers and other picnic utensils. It is also used for small yogurt jars. Styrofoam is also an expanded No. 6 plastic found in insulating materials and used for meat, delicatessen, vegetable, electrical appliance or television packaging. They can be found everywhere, whereas no technology has ever really helped their recovery. “In addition to allowing the use of this plastic, through the technology developed by Pyrowave, it is possible to remanufacture plastics identical to the virgin material through plastic waste, an unprecedented innovation, since the other plastics (Nos. 1 to 7) are recovered and used for different applications (e.g. textile fibre and upholstery). Therefore, raw materials, including petroleum, also have to be extracted to generate plastics. With Pyrowave’s closed circuit technology, we mitigate the pressure on virgin resources and eliminate greenhouse gases and pollution generated by the extraction process”, said Olivier LeBlanc, Pyrowave Production Manager.

No. 6 plastics have outstanding properties: they are light and strong. They require little raw materials and are also among the cheapest on the market. Therefore there are very promising market opportunities in many areas. For example, plastics are excellent thermal insulation products.

For Olivier Leblanc, “The separate collection of No. 6 plastics requires an effort from citizens and organizations. Through its alliance with the City, Pyrowave intends to demonstrate that citizens are ready in large numbers to make the necessary efforts to collect and recover these plastics to reduce the amount of materials ending up in landfills. Large organizations will have to follow in their footsteps. As far as he is concerned, during the press conference, the Mayor of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Mr. Miguel Lemieux, shared his pride and excitement: “In addition to being blessed with an outstanding economic drive, our city is committed to support research and technological showcases. Any solution addressing the plastic pollution issues and their huge consequences should be supported. Through this partnership, the City shows confidence in the Pyrowave corporation, who has devoted 8 years to the recovery of No. 6 plastics through a journey rewarded by several awards.”

Pyrowave has earned many research and innovation awards, including the latest award received this week from the Federal Minister of International Trade Diversification, the Honourable Jim Carr, for the start-up clean tech company with the greatest export potential in Canada.

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Source and enquiries:
Trade Relations Department
450-370-4875 | communications@ville.valleyfield.qc.ca
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