An eco-kiosk selling environmentally-friendly products that are unavailable elsewhere in town will be set up in the front lobby of Banff’s town hall.
At its meeting on Monday (Jan. 24), Banff council approved the development of a pilot eco-kiosk, but told administration it should be revenue-neutral, not a profit making venture.
The idea is to showcase Banff’s environmental initiatives and sell a small range of environmentally-friendly items that are otherwise unavailable in Banff stores.
Although still in the early planning stages, items could include rain barrels, fire place stoppers, compostible bags or eco-friendly cleaning products.
The kiosk would also be used to divert people to merchants who do sell products that residents may be searching for.
Town officials say the eco-kiosk would help support the municipality’s environmental initiatives and reduce the environmental effects of everyday living in Banff.
They say providing an eco-kiosk will create a central location to help guide Banff residents through green choices, and be a starting point for other environmental actions.
“We have ideas right now, but we don’t have the exact products,” said Sarah Ramey, an environmental intern at the Town of Banff.
Over the past few years, the Town of Banff has been selling items at cost as part of getting some of its environmental programs off the ground.
For example, in 2007, recycling bins with the municipal logo could be purchased through town hall, and in 2008, composting containers were available for the food waste diversion program.
Water use reduction kits and Roam transit passes will also be sold.
The eco-kiosk would focus on selling products that are otherwise unavailable in Banff, and support the town’s environmental initiatives by providing tools to reduce residents’ energy use, water consumption and garbage generation.
For instance, only certain styles of compost bin liners are compatible with the Town of Banff’s organics recycling facility.
In addition, the eco-kiosk could work with local merchants by promoting locally available products that reduce environmental effects in Banff, and direct residents to those stores.
The town’s research showed that most local stores stock only a few environmentally-friendly alternatives scattered throughout their shelves.
“I think it’s a fabulous idea and I applaud the sensitivity to other merchants in town. We don’t want to compete (with businesses),” said Mayor Karen Sorensen.
But both councillors Stavros Karlos and Paul Baxter voted in opposition.
“It’s falling too far into the private market, and if there is a market, the private sector will pick that up,” said Coun. Karlos.
“As a venue for a small business, which is what I think this is, I don’t really have the appetite for it.”
Councillor Leslie Taylor voiced support for the project to be revenue-neutral over a profit-making venture.
“I think it’s to our advantage as a community to have as many people as possible to be undertaking environmentally-friendly options,” she said.
“Quite often the barrier is cost, and I don’t think we should be making a profit on this. I think we should be encouraging people to get used to these products.”
Part of the Town’s preliminary research for this project involved informal discussion with managers and supervisors at Nesters, Safeway, Bow Valley Basics and Home Hardware.
