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Empowering Curbside Recycling for Small & Mid-Sized Communities

Bulk Handling Systems has released a flyer on Empowering Curbside Recycling for Small & Mid-Size Communities. This informative flyer highlights the limited space left in landfills and the lack of curbside recycling, as well as outlines breakthroughs in technology that have been powered by AI. BHS is encouraging individuals to take the first steps towards curbside recycling processing in communities. Reach out to them at CRS@bhsequip.com.

NERC’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Journey

The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC)’s work on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) began approximately 20 years ago and continues today. The effort, spearheaded by Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director and Conference Organizer, started with the realization that NERC’s events were comprised of one-dimensional presenters and attendees. NERC knew it needed to diversify its constituency to gain different perspectives in conversations and obtain a deeper understanding of the issues facing Sustainable Materials Management (SMM).

Microplastics: The What, Where, Why And Impact

Today's guest blog is authored by Craig Coker is a Senior Editor at BioCycle CONNECT and a Principal at Coker Composting and Consulting near Roanoke VA. The original post can be read here.

Among the organics recycling challenges du jour is the potential presence of microplastics in compost and digestate. Two-part article series starts with an overview and ends with findings of current research. Part I

 

Food waste disposal bans have been implemented in four states (New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont) and diversion requirements are established in six others (California, Oregon, Washington, Connecticut, New Jersey and Maryland). There are also food waste landfill bans and/or diversion policies in a number of communities (San Antonio TX, Boulder CO, Hennepin County MN, Seattle WA and New York City). The oldest of these diversion requirements is in Vermont, which passed its Universal Recycling Law in 2012 and which covers both commercial…

NERC Embraces Reuse & Recycling for Office Closure

By Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director, NERC

After working virtually for more than three years, it became obvious to staff that NERC’s office in Brattleboro, Vermont was no longer necessary. Upon making that decision, we were then faced with figuring out a plan for tackling the 36-year accumulation of paperwork, supplies, equipment, and furniture. As you might expect, we explored all of the different available options for reuse and recycling in the area.

We started the clean out process with the arduous task of culling through the paper in nine very full filing cabinets. This required assessing each and every piece of paper to discern if needed to be saved, shredded, or recycled. This experience taught us all a valuable lesson about saving unnecessary items. 

The amount of paper to be recycled filled the collection containers at the Hooker Dunham Building for several weeks. The thoroughness of this part of the clean out was both uplifting and painful. We could see the progress we were making and had sore muscles from the many trips of carrying the recycling bins upstairs to be emptied. 

The next step was to find out who we could donate…

Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe on Repair and Reuse

Last year in Akwesasne, the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe’s Solid Waste Program diverted 1176.4 lbs. of reused items from the trash during reuse/fix events. The most reused item was clothing. The most commonly repaired item was lamps. We recognize the SRMT community made this reuse event a reality. People in Tribal lands are familiar with the reuse concept.

ComicKwiss & Tiio, the SRMT environmental cartoon characters explain how back in the day people would rely on reusing items, making items last through the times. 2022 wasn’t the exception, and we started the STOP & SWAP event where people donated unwanted used items and others took what they found valuable for free. Mostly books, lamps, and clothing.

Another 2022 outcome was the very first FIX-ITFix it Cafe flyer CAFÉ. People brought broken items so the repair coaches could fix them for free. A few lamps were fixed and they also did small soldering repairs. Thanks to Les Benedict the 2nd from the Akwesasne community…

NERC Convenes Committee for Planning Annual Fall Conference

NERC convenes an Agenda Planning Committee (APC) for each of its annual conferences. Committee members include NERC Board of Directors and Advisory Members and are responsible for finalizing the list of topics to be included in the Call for Papers, reviewing and selecting abstracts to be featured at the Conference, and developing an overall theme and title. 

The APC members for the 2023 Fall Conference include:

  • Mike Nork, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services
  • Andrea Serlin, Serlin Haley
  • Elena Bertocci, Maine Department of Environmental Protection
  • Megan Mansfield Pryor, Maine Department of Environmental Protection
  • Tom Pollock, GreenBlue/Sustainable Packaging Coalition
  • Christien Ducker, Safety Management Systems, Inc.
  • Chaz Miller, Ex Officio Board of Director
  • Erin Jenson, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
  • Richard Watson, Delaware Solid Waste Authority
  • Toby Alves, Eco-Products
  • Jenni…

Where Do Our Recyclables Go?

This guest blog is authored by Chaz Miller and published in Waste360. The original post can be read here.

I asked myself this question as I was preparing to speak at my home county’s Recycling Awards ceremony. I wanted to let our award winners know their efforts are not in vain. While they may have seen or read stories claiming recycling is a hoax, I knew our county’s recyclables are being turned into new products.

I decided to start off with a series of before and after pictures. Before was pictures of the different materials we put in our curbside bins: aluminum and steel cans, corrugated boxes, PET bottles, etc. After was the products they are recycled into. 

Some new products are easy to show. Our aluminum cans are turned back into cans. Our steel cans are made back into cans or other steel products. Our boxes are turned into linerboard and corrugated medium and then used to make new boxes. Our mixed paper is used to make recycled paperboard for cereal boxes and other products.

Food and yard waste are…

A skeptic's hope for packaging

Today's guest blog is authored by Jon Smieja of GreenBiz Group. The original post can be read here.

Last week I made my annual trip to the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) Impact conference in Austin, Texas. I continue to be skeptical of anything that combines "packaging" and "sustainability" because of all of packaging’s detrimental effects on the environment to date. That said, I did walk away from this year’s conference with a newfound hope for the future. Here are three reasons for that hope.  

1. Policy

Packaging policy is not new. Parts of Europe, for example, have had extended producer responsibility (EPR) laws on the books as far back as 1991, and those laws have

Let's Talk Grants: Securing Funding to Prevent Fires in Waste and Recycling Facilities

Today's guest blog is authored by Ryan Fogelman of NERC Advisory Member Fire Rover. The original post can be read here.

Investing in new technology or infrastructure comes with a cost, but a fire in your waste and recycling operation can potentially come at a higher price tag when all is said and done. Therefore, it’s important to look at your budgets and apply for available grants to better keep your facilities and employees safe.

In this month’s column, I not only highlight recent fire data but also useful information on how to find and apply for grants.

January, February and March 2023 Fire Data

As we come off a record year for reported fires at our waste and recycling facilities, highlighted in my recently released…

The new EU law that’s looking to stamp out greenwashing

Today's guest blog is authored by Tom Howarth of GreenBiz Group. The original post can be read here.

Consumers today face a barrage of eco-friendly messaging from the corporate world as it hopes to cash in on increasing concern for the environment. At the same time, an absence of common rules for companies making voluntary green claims has left the door open to greenwashing, making it increasingly difficult to gauge the fact from fiction when it comes to sustainable business practice. This is not just a problem for the eco-conscious shopper, who must now sift through reams of "sustainable" products to find one with bona fide green credentials — it is a problem for businesses, too. 

Companies making a genuine effort to reduce their environmental impacts, often at significant cost, are having to compete against others making the same claims but without putting…

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