NERC's 2023 Fall Conference - A Resourceful Future for Sustainable Materials Management

September 12, 2023

The Northeast Recycling Council’s (NERC) 2023 Fall Conference—A Resourceful Future for Sustainable Materials Management—offers attendees a multitude of opportunities for engaging in critical discussions with colleagues and promote circular economy practices while hearing from noteworthy speakers, panelists, and exhibiters. The Conference topics include Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), Recycling Market Development, Recycling Media Literacy, Recycling and Composting in Environmental Justice (EJ) Communities, and Policies to Support Organics Programs. The one-and-a-half-day Conference will be held in-person on November 1-2 at the Hotel Providence in Providence, Rhode Island. 

Brett Smiley, Mayor of Providence will kick off the Conference with welcoming remarks and the keynote address, Incentives for Eco-design in Extended Producer Responsibility Programs, will be given by Reid Lifset, a Research Scholar and Resident Fellow in Industrial Ecology from Yale University. Following the opening remarks, four presenters will provide updates on existing packaging EPR laws in four states: Darla Arians, EPR Program Lead at Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment; Jessica Nadeau, Environmental Specialist at Maine Department of Environmental Protection; Karen Kayfetz, Branch Chief, Product Stewardship Branch, of CalRecycle; and Rachel Perlman, a Consultant at Resource Recycling Systems. The following session will discuss EPR for Hard to Recycle Materials, specifically focusing on used electronics, batteries, and household hazardous waste. Naomi Manahan, a Senior Operations Program Manager from Reverse Logistics Group, will cover Illinois & South Carolina's Electronic Stewardship Legislation, and staff from the District of Columbia’s Department of Energy and Environment will detail DC's Battery Producer Responsibility Law. Wrapping up the EPR discussion, Josh Kelly, Solid Waste Program Manager at Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources, will describe the Household Hazardous Waste EPR Program. 

The second half of the day will feature three presenters on the New Approaches to Recycling Market Development session. Kate Walker, Executive Director of SUNY Center for Sustainable Materials Management, will speak about Partnerships for Zero Waste Projects in New York State. Sean Sylver, Recycle Planner at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, will speak about using a Diverse Stakeholder Recycling Market Development Workgroup for State Planning. Ross Bergman, GreenBlue Institute's Director of Recycled Material Standard, will present on Attributes of Recycled Content Certificates for New Revenue Streams and More Resilient Markets. 

Concluding the first day will be a four-person panel on Media Literacy as It Pertains to Recycling. Gretchen Carey, Sustainability Manager of New England Region, Republic Services, and President of Mass Recycle, will lead a discussion on Creating and Sharing the Story. Dan Green, CEO of Helpsy, will speak about Increasing Awareness and Dispelling Myths About Textile Recycling. A Communication Strategies and Key Messaging discussion will be offered by Oregon Metro’s Program Manager, Jill Hrycyk. Finally, JoAnn Gemenden, Executive Director of New Jersey Clean Communities, will lead a conversation on using a Digital Platform for Increasing Recycling Rates.   

Day Two will begin with a presentation on Scaling New Recycling & Composting Programs in Environmental Justice Communities by Chris Gaynor, Climate Justice Specialist with the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management; and Amelia Rose, the Executive Director of Groundwork Rhode Island. The final topic, Policies and Regulations to Encourage Organics Programs, will be discussed by a panel of professionals. The Center for Ecotechnology’s Heather Billings will focus on Assessing Food Waste Policies. The topic of Pivoting Organics Diversion Messaging to a Rodent Control Measure will be covered by Michael Orr, Recycling Director of the City of Cambridge Massachusetts Department of Public Works. The third panelist, Shannon McDonald, Natural Resource Planner at Maryland Department of the Environment will cover Creating Sustainable and Equitable Programs. 

The Conference Agenda provides greater details about the sessions and schedule.

At the Conference, NERC will also premiere the Emerging Professionals Program, designed to foster the growth and development of new talent in the field of sustainable materials management. The Program gives organizations the opportunity to sponsor their newest employees or interns to attend the conference at a reduced rate, network with colleagues, and hear from and make connections with industry experts and seasoned professionals. 

We would like to thank the Conference sponsors. They include Recycle Coach, Networking Reception sponsor; The Association of Plastic Recyclers and Republic Services, Silver Sponsors; and Carton Council, the Environmental Research & Education Foundation, and PaintCare, Bronze Sponsors. Finally, our Supporting Sponsors are American Recycler, Recycling Today, Resource Recycling, and WasteAdvantage magazine. 

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Maryland webinar gives tips on countering misinformation

By Antoinette Smith • April 1, 2025
In recent years, the recycling industry has seen negative media coverage that has not only perpetuated myths but also contributed to public mistrust of collection and recycling – and ultimately could be contributing to lower collection rates. To help counteract the misinformation, the Maryland Recycling Network presented a March 27 webinar featuring Gretchen Carey, president at MassRecycle, and Chaz Miller of Miller Recycling Associates. Misinformation about recycling was merely “background noise” to Carey until October 2022, when Greenpeace published a scathing report about the failings of plastic recycling. Soon NPR and The Boston Globe picked up the story and compounded the issue with statements like “not even plastic water bottles are recyclable,” Carey said, calling this “a patent lie.” Carey and her colleagues were “crushed,” but after overcoming her initial anger, she reached out to NPR and the Globe to rebut the story. She also tried to get other local publications to publish her written response to the negative coverage but was rebuffed. Seeing that these efforts weren’t going far, MassRecycle invited members of the media and the general public on MRF tours at several sites in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Providing real-time evidence of recycling infrastructure helped industry outsiders step out of the echo chamber and hear a contrasting perspective, Carey said in the webinar. “You can talk the game, but them seeing for themselves is the important part,” she explained. During the tours, the public attendees learned that throwing away recyclables deprives the community of valuable commodities, she said, and that state guidelines restrict what can be put in the landfill. Carey added that the tours brought home the message by explaining that recycled materials need a consistent end market to justify collection and processing. For example, Ardagh closed its glass bottling facility in Massachusetts in 2018. The closure eliminated a key end market for recycled glass and caused collector Strategic Materials to stop taking local recovered glass. Local MRFs subsequently lost that revenue stream. When residents don’t trust recycling infrastructure, they put fewer items in their curbside bins, and ultimately paper, metals and glass wind up as collateral damage, Miller said. So it’s vital to make sure the public knows where their recyclables and that end markets exist to use these materials. Read the full article.

City of Laurel

By Sophie Leone • March 26, 2025
The City of Laurel, Maryland, established in 1870, has a deep and rich history within the state. Its long-standing independence and stability have fostered a strong sense of community, providing residents with valuable resources and support. Laurel is deeply committed to sustainability, embedding green initiatives into its core values, creating a Sustainability Division and completing the City’s first Sustainability Plan as one of many ways to support a sustainable Laurel community. The city’s mission is guided by four foundational pillars: People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace and Partnership. Laurel defines sustainability as “meeting the environmental, social, and economic needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” Residents can engage with their community in numerous ways, including joining local clubs, participating in municipal committees, and taking part in community surveys. The city also hosts in-person events such as parades, farmers markets, and sustainability initiatives, further strengthening community bonds. To make waste management, recycling and organics recycling more accessible, Laurel provides detailed information on its dedicated Green Living Resource page found on the City’s website and partners with Recycle Coach, an app that helps residents easily access tailored information on residential collections, recycling and organics recycling. The Recycle Coach app also notifies residents of changes to their service days and special sustainability events. The City of Laurel continues to lead by example in sustainability and community engagement. As environmentalist Wendell Berry once said, “The Earth is what we all have in common.” Laurel’s dedication to green living ensures that future generations will inherit a thriving, sustainable community. NERC is thrilled to welcome the City of Laurel to our growing list of municipality members. We look forward to working with them to help advance our collective missions in safeguarding the planet. For more information on the City of Laurel visit.

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