NERC Blog

I recently read an interesting article in Environmental Leader about

PCC Natural Markets and its new on-site food scrap "Harvester."

PCC is the nation's largest member-owned grocery retailer, with stores located around the Seattle, Washington area. Its store in Issaquah is hosting the Harvester. The pilot project is in partnership with a local clean technology firm, WISErg Corporation, the developer of the Harvester.

Food scraps from the store are tossed into the sealed Harvester unit. The unit grinds the food scraps and digests the material to create an organic liquid fertilizer that will be sold at the PCC stores.

The pilot has been running for about two months without problems. Washington State University is testing the liquid fertilizer soil amendment properties.

Perhaps we'll see one in the Northeast soon!!

By Athena Lee Bradley

Successful C&D recycling, like other types of recycling, must make economic sense. Effective hauler contract negotiations and accurate record keeping are crucial.

In contract negotiations with a hauler or haulers it is essential that the following information be obtained:

• Tipping rates for landfill disposal;
• Processing fees for all recyclables to be collected;
• Distances to market/recyclers, as well as to the disposal site;
• Hauling costs for both recycling and waste; and
• Any revenue returns for material sales (including both reuse and recycling).

Put this data in a spreadsheet for easy comparison. Negotiating with the hauler may help get some materials hauled at no cost, in return for the hauler keeping revenues (such as metals and cardboard); some materials, such as clean wood can often be hauled at a lower rate. Apply avoided cost calculating—that is, calculate the costs of actually recycling a material vs. what it would have cost to dispose of the same material.

An easy formula for comparing recycling vs. waste disposal:

Number of trash dumpsters x haul rate x tip fee…

As with any recycling program it's not enough to have a plan and to know where the materials are going, you have to know the economics of implementing the program. Depending on the markets in your area, waste reduction, reuse, and recycling on the C&D jobsite can result in waste diversion of 60-95%. But does this translate into economic savings for the construction or demolition site? In many instances, yes, especially in areas with relatively high tip fees for solid waste disposal. Economic and diversion data for C&D recycling projects can be found on the Internet; a good source of project analysis is on the WasteCap Resource Solutions'website.

At one WasteCap project, a large construction job (460,000 square feet), completed by Mortenson Construction, achieved a recycling rate of 97.96%. Materials recycled included, metal, wood, concrete, and cardboard. For this $70 million job, 9,588 tons of materials were recycled and $700,000 saved. On another, smaller project, a 90% recycling rate was achieved. This resulted in 231 tons diverted to recycling and a savings of $6,000.

One beneficial way to approach C&D recycling at larger sites is to develop vendor lists and allow…

Just as with any recyclable material, construction and demolition recycling doesn't happen without markets.

On a demolition or renovation job, markets start with reuse for unwanted or surplus materials. Get buy-in from the project authority and put reuse as a priority in bid specifications and contracts. Select a coordinator for this aspect of the project. On demolition/deconstruction jobs, determine who controls the debris (does it belong to the owner, contractor, deconstruction or reuse person hired, or is it being done solely as a donation project and materials will be given away).

Identify target materials for reuse—including beams, hard wood floors, architectural salvage, doors, hardware, sinks, marble, kitchen cabinets, and light fixtures. (Caution: watch out for items that may contain lead, such as piping). Contact deconstruction or salvage operations, local architectural antique dealers, Materials Exchanges in the Northeast, nonprofit organizations (such as Habitat for Humanity, other building reuse organizations), artists, schools, and other potential reuse outlets. Determine storage needs and timing for removal of materials. A "reuse plan" is helpful to…

NERC is pleased to report that the American Chemistry Council (ACC) has generously renewed its support for the NERC social marketing program.  It is through their support, and that of the Steel Recycling Institute, that NERC is able to provide a Facebook page, Twitter account, and now its Blog.  Thank you ACC!

Submitted by Mary Ann Remolador

Do schools have an obligation to recycle? For most of us schools are an integral part of our early life—teachers are our mentors, books our tools for exploring the world. Civic lessons teach us the importance of obeying laws and voting. Hands-on activities, such as recycling and picking-up after ourselves, help to make us conscientious and concerned adults.

Schools should inspire passion. Many of us grew up with the "Crying Indian" and its strong visual image against litter. It became our responsibility to pick up after ourselves and not just throw our trash on the ground. Schools reinforced this message, helping us to realize that we a can make a difference in our community—that we care about ourselves, our family, and our community. School recycling can inspire students to care about the planet, to examine the resources that we use to make our world sustainable, to look at the consequences of using resources and generating pollution and waste.

Schools help to shape the habits that we continue as adults. Students who participate in recycling now will have more of an incentive to carry on this "habit" as adults. We learn as children the benefits of recycling, how…