Toronto, Ontario, November 8, 2011 – The Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC) is proud to report the results of its greening efforts for the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Greenbuild International Conference & Expo (www.greenbuildexpo.org) recently held at the MTCC. Even for the world’s largest conference & expo dedicated to
green buildings, the results were impressive, with a significantly reduced footprint achieved through an unprecedented 95% waste diversion rate, energy and water conservation and an ever increasing commitment to greening through the education of
MTCC employees.
The premier event featuring three days of extensive educational programming, workshops, a vast exhibition floor and ample networking events attracted over 23,000 attendees and 1,700 exhibit booths over three days in October 2011. While an event of this size can have a significant impact, both the organizers and the MTCC team were invested in minimizing the environmental impact of the conference. There was no opportunity too small to be considered. Working collaboratively over several months leading up to the show, the MTCC, along with its waste management contractor Turtle
Island Recycling and the USGBC, set ambitious goals and put rigorous implementation plans into place.
A major focus on waste management saw the MTCC’s already high average diversion rate of 86% rise to an industry-inspiring height of 95%. This audited diversion rate surpassed the USGBC’s goal of 90% as well as its highest historical diversion results. To achieve this extraordinary mark, waste streams were carefully scrutinized both on the show floor by Greenbuild volunteers and by Dock Monitors at the loading docks to ensure waste was properly sorted and placed in the right compactor. Two new MTCC waste reduction initiatives were also utilized during and after Greenbuild: a newly installed in-house composter broke down 8,021 pounds of food waste; and a high-tech carpet recycling system diverted 4,465 pounds of carpet from landfill. The process separates the nylon fibers from carpet scraps and discarded carpet pieces, then melts
and reforms them as pellets that are reused to make new plastic materials.
MTCC continues to build momentum for sustainability with an unprecedented 95% waste diversion rate for USGBC’s recent Greenbuild conference.
