Finally something good can come from all those election signs
A beekeeper in Kamloops has a great idea for repurposing used campaign signs.
Murray Willis is the owner of Clear View Glass in Valleyview and tends 60 boxes of honeybees.
“I was driving past all of the election signs thinking of ways to reduce, reuse or recycle them,” he said.
Every bee box has a screen on the bottom. In the summer heat, Willis flips open a bottom board and pulls out a tray to expose the screen to increase air flow. The tray is made of corrugated plastic, the same material the campaign signs are made out of.
He is hoping candidates running in the municipal election will donate used and unwanted signs to his bees.
“The campaign signs are close to the right size and won’t need to be cut down much so there won’t be much waste,” he said.
READ MORE: Crime rules the room at Kamloops election forum for seniors
Willis typically has to purchase big sheets of the plastic material from a wholesaler and cut them down to size. The trays wear out and need to be replaced every six to eight years.
The 2022 municipal election on Oct. 15 is quickly approaching, where voters will elect a mayor, eight city councillors, and five school trustees.
A total of 38 Kamloops residents are running for one of these positions, and that means a lot of signs are set up around the city and many could end up in the landfill.
“Some candidates will keep their signs because they are planning to run again in the future, but I expect some of them will no longer need them and don’t want them piled up in their garages,” Willis said.
Joe Kang, who is running for a position as a school trustee, is planning on donating his signs after the election. He guesses he has more than 100 signs he’ll start collecting next weekend.
“This is a great idea, we might as well reuse them for a good purpose,” he said. “As soon as Murray reached out I immediately agreed. I will personally drop them off and he’ll give me a tour of the honeybee farm.”
READ MORE: CP Holiday Train set to return after two-year hiatus
Willis said he has reached out to other candidates and is waiting to hear back from them. If he can’t use all of the donated signs, he said he’ll pass them onto someone else.
Signs can be dropped off at Clear View Glass in Valleyview at 2059 Trans-Canada Highway.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Ainslie or call 250-819-6089 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.
We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.
