In response to COVID-19, the Recycling Depots may be reducing their hours and services. Please contact your Recycling Depot to confirm their hours of operation prior to dropping off your electronics, paint, tires or used oil materials. Ensure social distancing best practice when visiting a depot. Thank you and stay safe!
Dedicated to environmental leadership, the Alberta Recycling Board of Directors has members representing a broad spectrum of stakeholders and each contribute their expertise to guide the organization.
The Board is comprised of six member organizations representing stakeholder interests and each member organization appoints a director to the Board. Two additional directors are appointed by the Minister to represent the public and industry respectively. The Chairs of the Designated Material Industry Councils for each of Electronics, Paint, Tires and Used Oil are also Directors. One non-voting director serves as the Board liaison with the Ministry of Environment and Parks.
Caroline McAuley (Chair)
Public-at-Large (appointed by Minister of Environment and Parks)
Caroline McAuley has been a councillor with the Town of Vermilion since May of 2009 and is currently in her first term as Mayor. As an active community member she brings her passion, vision and action to lead a stronger community. Her accomplishments include championing economic development, improving recycling in the community and regional water.
Mayor McAuley continues to serve on a number of boards to promote collaboration with other municipalities and community partners including the Vermilion River Regional Alliance and the Vermilion and District Housing Foundation, to name a few. Her commitment in Economic Development and regional collaboration focusing on broadband access, increased senior housing and improved community engagement were the driving forces in her being elected.
Caroline has over 30 years of experience as a dietitian and manager within Alberta Health Services including supporting the development of the Health Advisory Councils and working in the strategic planning area of primary care. She has a Bachelor of Science degree with a focus on Nutrition and an MBA in Community Economic Development.
Mayor McAuley embraces the philosophy that when communities work together anything can be accomplished to make a better life for all. Together with her husband Cliff, Caroline resides in Vermilion and is a proud parent of three adult children, three grandchildren and one loving canine.
To view the Chair's quarterly expenses please click here.
John Graham (Retail Council of Canada)
Industry-at-Large (appointed by Minister of Environment and Parks)
John Graham brings to the board of Alberta Recycling over 20 years of senior level retailing experience, representing Safeway’s $5 billion business interests across Western Canada, as Director of Public Affairs and Government Relations.
As part of his duties, John has had exposure to a wide range of sustainability issues, including being part of Safeway’s onboarding team for many EPR programs across the West. In 2017, John joined the Retail Council of Canada (RCC), the voice of retail that represents more than 45,000 store fronts of all retail formats across Canada. As Alberta’s largest private sector employer, more than 250,000 Albertans are currently working in the retail industry.
RCC and its members understand the vital link between a healthy environment and a healthy economy, and currently participate in over a hundred environmental stewardship programs across the country, and invest hundreds of millions of dollars on environmental and sustainable activities every year.
John is married with two children, and is a director on the boards of Multi-Materials Stewardship Manitoba, Winnipeg Harvest and St. Boniface Hospital Foundation.
Rachelle Venne
Alberta Environment and Parks - Indigenous Relations
Rachelle Venne is the CEO of the Institute for the Advancement of Aboriginal Women (IAAW), a provincial organization serving First Nation, Métis and Inuit women. She has a wealth of experience in non-profit, corporate and government environments and has built a reputation on her ability to see many sides of an equation. Under her leadership, IAAW has built many collaborative programs, emphasizing the importance of ensuring the voices of Indigenous women are heard when decisions are made and all Albertan’s have access to advancement opportunities.
Rachelle’s work experience includes; community relations specialist at NOVA Corporation (TransCanada Pipelines), Contract Specialist at Government of Alberta Children’s Services, and Project Officer working at Homeward Trust Edmonton on the Government of Canada’s Urban Aboriginal Strategy.
A resident of St. Albert, Rachelle volunteers in several ways; as a past member of the St. Albert Community Advisory Board, past member of the Alberta Order of Excellence Council and secretary of the St. Albert/Sturgeon Métis Local 1904.
Cathy Heron
Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA)
As the first female Mayor in 20 years, and only the second in the history of St. Albert, Cathy Heron represents the values of our modern community. She is proof that St. Albert has grown beyond the debate of women in politics and is ready to tackle the rights of our LGBTQ+, environmental stewardship, responsible growth, and first nations through respectful engagement within our community.
A graduate of both the University of Alberta and NAIT, Mayor Heron values diverse knowledge, education, and experience in herself and those around her. In addition to her education, Mayor Heron has extensive experience in regional governance, including 2 terms as a city councillor and several years of volunteer work on committees, such as the Community Services Advisory Board.
Mayor Heron understands the value of leading by example. She serves as Vice President (Cities under 500,000) at the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association, Director of Alberta Recycling Management Association, 4 years as Director of the Alberta Capital Region Waste Water Commission, Capital Region Growth Plan Task Force and many more. The result is extensive and diverse relationships throughout the region with elected, civil, and business stake holders that she can rely upon to help her further her goal of a stronger and more respected City of St. Albert.
Her personal life focuses on her relationship with her 3 teenaged children. Will, Heather, and Holly have continuously been a source of both strength and pride for Cathy. Sunday family dinners are dear to her, a value she hopes will carry forward into the next generation.
Raised in St. Albert, she is a graduate of Paul Kane high school though she won’t allow us to publish what year she graduated. When it was time to start her own family and instill core values in her children, living in St. Albert was an obvious and non-negotiable choice. It takes a village to raise a child, and she strongly believes St. Albert offers the best values she wants in her own children.
It is her goal, as Mayor of St. Albert, to contribute to a community where her children will choose to raise their children. The strong values of community and diverse respect that drew her parents to raise her here remain the values she hopes St. Albert will continue to instill in future generations.
Joe Kostler, P.Eng
Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA)
As APEGA’s representative, Joe Kostler brings 40 years of wide ranging environmental experience from both government and industry to the Board.His work experiences include:
- some 14 years with Alberta Environment that included work in the Water Quality Control Branch, head of the Air Quality Approvals Branch and head of the Waste Management Branch (which at the time covered programs such as various recycling programs, waste education programs, litter programs, hazardous waste legislation, beverage containers and regional landfill development).
- some 26 years in both the petrochemical industry and electrical industry with the majority of those years with ATCO Power and ATCO Electric.
- Participation in APEGA’s Environmental Committee (both as a member and chair) and currently as member of the Discipline Committee.
- As an industry representative on the CASA Board and various committees; and with the Canadian Electrical Association (CEA) where one of the key works was on the utilities climate change committee.
Joe’s educational background includes a BSc in Chemical Engineering and an M.Eng. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Alberta. He has also completed certificate programs from the U of A in Management Development for Professional Engineers and in Occupational Health and Safety. He has been recognized for his work with APEGA with a designation of FEC and FGC (Hon).Both Joe and his wife – Leola - were born-in, raised-in, educated-in and are long-time residents of Edmonton.Some outside interests include volunteering at one of Edmonton’s Food Bank Depots, their church music ministry, international travel, travel trailering, golf, photography and many other indoor/outdoor physical activities.
Ian Young, P.Tech. (Eng.)
Environmental Services Association of Alberta (ESAA)
Ian Young is a professional technologist with over twenty years of experience in the environmental consulting industry. During this time, he has become an accomplished project coordinator and manager in the assessment, investigation, remediation and reclamation of a varied portfolio of green and brownfield sites across the western provinces and Northwest Territories.
Ian works at SLR Consulting (Canada) Ltd. as the Technical Discipline Manager for the Alberta Land Quality & Remediation Team and Edmonton Office Manager. Responsibilities include financial performance, recruitment and retention, training, coaching, health and safety leadership and collaborate with SLR’s business sector leaders.
Dave Schaaf, P.Eng.
Recycling Council of Alberta (RCA)
David Schaaf has recently retired from the position of Waste & Recycling Services Manager for the City of Lethbridge. He held this position from 2003 till 2018. He has been with the City of Lethbridge since 1991, working in a variety of areas including Fleet management, Facility management, and Information technology.
Dave graduated from the University of Saskatchewan with a degree in Agricultural Engineering. His work experience involved working as a design engineer within the agriculture manufacturing sector, prior to employment with the City of Lethbridge. Responsibilities as the Waste & Recycling Manager included:
- the delivery of waste prevention programs,
- commercial & residential recycling programs,
- commercial & residential waste collection programs,
- and management of the Waste & Recycling Centre.
Al Kemmere
Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA)
Al Kemmere was elected to his first term on the RMA Board as Director in the fall of 2010 and has served as President since November of 2014. In his role as RMA President, Al represents rural Alberta on a number of committees such as board member for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), board member for the Alberta Water Council, and a member of the Strategic Transportation Advisory Committee.
Al was elected Councillor and Reeve of Mountain View County in 2004. In his years on council, he has been involved in numerous committees, including serving as Chair of the Central Alberta Economic Partnership, founding member of the Municipal Area Partnership, and Chair of the Mountain View Waste Commission.
Al has a strong background in agriculture, formerly running a purebred dairy farm and farming with a combination of mixed and custom farming and trucking. He and wife Kathy have raised their three children on their farm north of Olds.
President Kemmere values a collaborative approach to leadership to support municipal partnerships and building effective relationships.
Jeff Faber
Electronics Recycling Alberta Industry Council
Jeff Faber began his career as a rental technician in 1985. After earning a broadcasting diploma from Mount Royal College, Jeff was excited to be part of a growing business and even more importantly, a changing and thriving industry. Numerous promotions, advancements and industry accreditation enabled Jeff to lead a management buyout of Apex Audio Visual and the launch of Apex AVSI.
Jeff assumed the role of President and Chief Executive Officer and further growth allowed the company to form a merger with Sharp’s Audio Visual. In 2017 Jeff lead a sale of Sharp's to AVI SPL the world's largest Audio Visual Integrator where he now leads the Canadian Operation for this global company as the Managing Director.
Jeff is reminded frequently of his career path and his beginning as a rental technician. In 1985, Jeff’s focus was attending to the needs of both coworkers and customers. And throughout his career that has remained his focus. Add a heavy dose of diligence, enthusiasm and perseverance, and the seeds for success – in the individual and the organization – are sown.
“I see communications on a global scale where sustainable, repeatable practices are the standard rather than the often ad hoc approach we are challenged to deliver.”
Lis Anderson, SCMP, BCom, MBA
Paint Recycling Alberta Industry Council
Lis Anderson is currently the Global Director, Category Management for Finning International in Edmonton, Alberta. She has thirty years of experience in supply chain management and has carried out substantive work in procurement, category and contract management and materials management in multiple industries, including more than two decades at a major paint and coatings manufacturer. Her focus has been on global buying initiatives with the main objective of reducing costs and stream lining processes across multiple facilities. Additionally, Lis has successfully implemented lean manufacturing techniques, inventory management systems to improve cash flow, procurement policies and procedures and ERP systems.
Lis has demonstrated strong Board Based Competencies through Strategic Vision and Thinking and Interactive Communication. Most recently she held a Director position on the Board of the Supply Chain Management Association Alberta (SCMA-AB). Throughout her career, Lis has been successful at influencing all organizational levels and leading transformational change.
Brent Kennedy
Tire Recycling Alberta Industry Council
Brent Kennedy is the dealer principle of Edwards Garage a GM dealership in Rocky Mountain House. He is a graduate of Northwood University with a Business and Marketing degree. He is the past Chairman of Motor Dealers Association of Alberta and is the current Chair of the Tire Recycling Council.
Alain Portelance
Used Oil Recycling Alberta Industry Council
Alain Portelance was born and raised in Montreal. He graduated from McGill University with a degree in Economics and Political Science. Alain first moved to Alberta in 1994 where he spent 17 years with Shell in diverse roles including Brand Manager in Lubricants and Marketing Manager for Bitumen in the Americas. He then moved on to Newalta (later Terrapure) to manage Base Oils and Lubricants Sales & Marketing. Since 2015 Alain has been with UFA Co-operative and is currently in the role of Director, Sales & Business Development. Alain is married with twin daughters.
Patrick Kane
Alberta Environment and Parks (Non-Voting Liaison)
Patrick Kane is a senior manager with Alberta Environment and Parks, responsible for the development of waste policy for Alberta. In his role with Alberta Environment and Parks, Patrick has played a key role in the establishment of recycling programs for beverage containers, used oil materials, tires, unused paint and paint containers and Canada’s first program for electronics recycling.His team was awarded the Recycling Council of Alberta “R’s of Excellence Award” for government leadership (2005) and for the development of Alberta’s Greening Government Strategy (2011), and was the recipient of an Alberta Emerald Award (2007) for the development of provincial waste stewardship programs. The Alberta Emerald Foundation showcases environmental leadership in Alberta, setting an example of environmental excellence for all to follow.Patrick is a Certified Management Accountant, has a Business Administration Degree from the University of New Brunswick, is a certified Environmental Practitioner (EP) and has obtained the Chartered Director (C.Dir.) designation from The Directors College (a joint venture of McMaster University and The Conference Board of Canada).
