Tennis Courts

Maria Diamantis-LJI Journalist

In a significant step towards sustainability, the City of Blainville has introduced a new initiative to recycle tennis balls, thanks to the innovative idea proposed by the Blainville Tennis Association. The city has acquired 50 dedicated recycling boxes for tennis balls, inspired by Tendev, an organization committed to making tennis more environmentally friendly.

“This initiative will allow Blainville’s tennis players to recycle nearly 10,000 tennis balls. Rubber, the main material in tennis balls, takes over 400 years to decompose and sometimes never does, making these balls highly polluting,” explained Francis Allaire, the environmental delegate.

The non-profit organization Tendev will collect the tennis balls and send them to a factory where they will be stripped and ground down to create new materials such as carpets and paint for tennis courts.

This innovative action aligns with the objectives of Blainville’s Ecological Transition Plan.

The recycling boxes are located in the following parks: Blainville, Fontainebleau, Des Hirondelles, Parc Équestre and Marc-Aurèle-Fortin

“Participation in this initiative is voluntary, but the City of Blainville believes in its importance. Every small gesture counts. I encourage tennis enthusiasts to give their old balls a new life by depositing them in the boxes located near the courts,” concluded David Malenfant, the delegate for recreation and community life.

The City of Blainville extended its gratitude to the Blainville Tennis Association for this idea, especially the former president, Julie Cauchy, Judith Roberge for her thorough research, and the current president, Charles Durocher.

Tendev is a Quebec-based non-profit organization dedicated to reducing the environmental impact of tennis. With a mission to make tennis more sustainable, Tendev focuses on recycling tennis balls by collecting and processing them to create new materials, such as carpets and paint for tennis courts. Through innovative recycling techniques and community engagement, Tendev aims to promote eco-friendly practices within the tennis community and contribute to broader environmental conservation efforts.