THOMAS MEMORIAL LIBRARY
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(Almost) Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Ocean Plastics, with ecomaine and the Cape Elizabeth Recycling Committee
Thursday, January 25 -- 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Did you know that there are trillions of pieces of plastic trash floating in our oceans? Or that this staggering number continues to grow as people continue mismanaging their waste? Much of the plastic floats at the ocean’s surface in areas like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, where currents diverge. The rest of this errant trash can be found as microfibers floating throughout the depths of our oceans. These tiny plastic particles are a great concern for our environment and our health, as microplastics have even found their way into the human bloodstream. Join ecomaine and the Cape Elizabeth Recycling Committee for this special presentation about the future of ocean plastics. We’ll learn how we can minimize our own pollution and what technologies can help clean up the growing problem of plastics in our oceans.
This program will take place in person at the library and will be streamed simultaneously on Zoom, for those wishing to attend virtually. If you plan on attending, please register for this program below so that we can send you a reminder on the day of the event, as well as an optional Zoom link to join us. All are welcome!
Please register by filling out the form below
and we’ll send you a reminder on the day of the event!
ecomaine — originally named Regional Waste Systems — was founded in 1976 by the municipalities of Cape Elizabeth, Portland, Scarborough and South Portland in response to a new Maine law that called for the closing of privately owned landfills. Two years later the group purchased 240 acres (primarily located in South Portland and Scarborough) for a jointly owned landfill and bought a baler to satisfy their processing needs. By 1985, the regional organization had grown to 20 municipalities.
Guiding principles set forth by ecomaine’s governing communities have been – and continue to be – commitment to efficient waste services for their citizens and protection of the environment.
The waste-to-energy plant was built in 1988 and provided two major benefits: 1) use of municipal waste as fuel to generate and sell electricity for the financial health of the organization, and 2) reduction in the volume of trash by 90 percent to greatly extend the life of the landfill.
Recycling was added in 1990 and single-stream recycling was added in 2006 for both environmental and financial considerations that have succeeded beyond expectation.
Currently, ecomaine has grown to include more than 73 communities under contract for services, and implemented an Environmental as well as Health and Safety management system.
ecomaine provides comprehensive, long-term solid waste solutions in a safe, environmentally responsible, economically sound manner, and is a leader in raising public awareness of sustainable waste management strategies.
At ecomaine, we prioritize the solid waste hierarchy, which is guidance from the federal Environmental Protection Agency and enshrined in Maine state statute. We look to push waste up the hierarchy as far as possible: reduction of waste generated; reuse of resources; recycling and employing materials back into the marketplace; composting or digestion of organic waste; creating electricity via waste-to-energy; and landfilling as a last resort.