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CLUB MEETING HIGHLIGHTS - October 10, 2023 Fleming Centre, Beamsville Attending were 17 Lincoln Rotarians and 2 guests, Darren Fry & Elizabeth Duguay. President Joanne Serkeyn welcomed everyone and invited POD #2 members to proceed with opening exercises. Terry Kotwa offered the Land Acknowledgment and followed with his invocation where he reflected on Lincoln Rotarians coming together in a spirit of generosity, honouring one another by keeping an open mind, voicing our truth and listening with an open heart  For his Point of Pride John Lundrigan shamelessly plugged the Environment Committee, which he co-chairs with Vernah Fleming. Strongly supporting committee members include Maria, Paul, Sue & Phil. Focused on “Rebuilding Nature”, the committee’s priorities are: 1) Increasing native plants for pollinators and biodiversity 2) Improving watershed conditions 3) Increasing tree coverage As a small team, the committee has proudly… - Established partnerships with leading organizations in the region - Provided opportunities for club members to participate in environmental actions throughout the year including a Speaker Series on “Helping Pollinators” (coming in late winter and early spring); Watershed Clean-up (late spring/early summer); Tree Planting (fall) In closing, John encouraged members to participate in tree planting opportunities available with both Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority and the Niagara Chapter of Trout Unlimited Canada. He will provide details in an e-blast to all. 50/50 DRAW Anna Murre had the lucky ticket but pulling the 6 of clubs wasn’t so lucky. HAPPY BUCKS Happiness abounded for Thanksgiving weekend gatherings & activities with family & friends Joanne - not so happy with the poison ivy she contracted on a recent tree planting expedition John K - offered high praise for this year’s Lamplighter Tour production that debuted to a large crowd at the Premier Performance at Providence Church, October 3 Margaret - happy and thankful for Martha’s extraordinary leadership with Lamplighter over 5 consecutive productions Bob - says “It's the end of the Jays” Vernah - happy for a “forgiving group” as she arrived a little late to the meeting + looking forward to joining other volunteers for the fall clean-up in the Val Fleming Butterfly Garden on Saturday, October 14. John M - soon heading to California on a family vacation PROGRAM TOPIC: Redefining Waste - Walker's Perspective on Resource Recovery Rob Foster took great pleasure in introducing SPECIAL GUESTS…  Darren Fry - a life-long Niagara resident who committed to a career in the environmental sector at an early age and pursued studies in Geological & Geotechnical Engineering. As a Project Director at Walker, Darren is responsible for long range planning and project development for some of Walker’s larger projects such as compost sites, renewable energy projects and other waste management infrastructure. Elizabeth Duguay - has an academic background in Urban Planning from the University of Waterloo and previous work experience in city-building and sustainable development. She moved to Niagara Region at the start of 2022 to attend Niagara College’s Environmental Management and Assessment post-graduate program. There she met Rob - one of her instructors. Upon graduating, Elizabeth joined Walker as a Project Support Specialist. In this role, she assists in the long-range planning of the company’s environmental operations, performs community outreach and engagement activities, and provides support to various corporate and divisional initiatives.
Darren began his presentation with a brief overview of Walker Industries - a five-generation family-owned business, headquartered in Niagara, that has grown into a multi-divisional enterprise with 1400 employees and facilities coast to coast. Click here for a short video that tells the Walker story in a nutshell. Continuing, he highlighted that “Building a sustainable future, together” is Walker’s vision as a diversified, solutions-based company, supporting and strengthening communities. Taking problems and turning them into opportunities to meet today’s needs without compromising future generations underpins all that Walker does. Darren explained that Walker applies “generational thinking” by providing critical services and infrastructure for communities to manage waste, recover resources and contribute to a circular economy through the Environmental Division… Waste Services - 750,000 tonnes of organics are processed and composted annually through the Green Bin program serving Niagara’s population of 500,000 - facilities in Alberta, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Ontario process over 100,000 tonnes of biosolids annually through their patented N-Viro® process. This process blends alkaline admixtures such as lime with dewatered biosolids and other organic wastes to produce valuable and sustainable agricultural fertilizers - at the landfill site in Niagara Falls , methane is captured from the waste as a renewable source of electricity for adjacent businesses and in partnership with Enbridge the production of renewable natural gas for 25,000 homes in the adjacent area. Landscaping & Farm Products - Premium, earth-friendly soils, mulches and fertilizers are produced to support plant growth naturally. Walker’s rich history of organic materials handling allows for the transformation of raw materials into nutrient-rich blends that contribute to sustainable landscaping and agriculture Grease Trap Services - Canada’s largest provider (serving 11,000 locations) of scheduled commercial and industrial grease trap cleaning services operating 24/7. Fats, oil & grease are processed into renewable energy, compost or nutrient-rich soil supplements wherever possible. These are just a few of the highlights of Darren’s extremely interesting and well-delivered presentation about innovative things Walker is doing to redefine what we typically think of as waste.
He ended with Walker’s focus on “Investing in Our Future” and the high priority they place on creating “green jobs for future generations”. Currently, 35 Brock University and Niagara College students are employed in co-op and apprenticeship opportunities designed to help them build their expertise and support responsible, sustainable and inspiring employment.
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