Kingston Area Recycling Centre

Lately, I’ve been logging some serious hours in the yard, and I’m pretty proud of the progress I’ve been able to make at this point in the season.  From painting and installing a new lock on a gate, to cutting down pesky Manitoba Maples, trimming the hedge, and prepping our vegetable garden, the homestead is beginning to look rather stately.  Or if nothing else, like a well pruned bonsai.  When my first round of yard work was all said and done, I was left with a massive pile of brush and heavier logs that wouldn’t fit into the green bin.  A quick call to a family member landed me a trailer, which I loaded up and headed out to dispose of at the Kingston Area Recycling Centre (KARC).

Many people know KARC as the processing facility for Kingston’s blue and grey bins, however it is also home to huge piles of compost, logs, Christmas trees, and other yard waste. Local residents  can use the facility free of charge, and speaking from my first experience, the attendant is happy to help you unload your trailer.  While she was lending me a hand, I enquired as to what KARC does with all the composted material.  While some of it ends up feeding city owned parks and various municipal flower gardens, KARC also sells the composted material.  For $3 to $5 per bag, you can get everything your garden and yard needs, from nutrient rich soil to wood chips and more!

With new and exciting environmentally friendly programs on the horizon, more and more people are buying in to Kingston’s bid to become Canada’s most sustainable city.  Recently implemented initiatives such as the green bin program have proven to be a huge success, diverting 6.5 million pounds of organic material from the landfill.  In my mind, KARC is yet another underutilized tool we have at our disposal.  Spread the word, use it often, and check out our latest Flickr set for a better glimpse of KARC.