MAINE
Eleven states united for environmentally sustainable materials management
December 2006
NERC’s Advisory Members
Distinguished Benefactors
Benefactors
Sustaining Members
A list of all the logos of our Sustaining Members can be found under Advisory Members
MEMBERSHIP
Renewing Supporting Member
- DSM Environmental Services
NERC NEWS
- Mary Ann Remolador Honored for 12 Years of Service to NERC
- NERC Fall '06 Conference Presentations Available For Members
- Update on Regional Recycling Message
- Procuring Green Electronics Presentation Available
- Future NERC Conference Dates - Mark Your Calendars!
- NERC Board Members & Haulers Meet
- New Hampshire Board Member Promoted
STATE UPDATES
- Governor Proclaims Maine Recycles Week
- Maine Recycles Week 2006 began on Wednesday, November 8
- Newly Adopted New York State Law for Automobile Manufacturers
NEWS FROM ADVISORY MEMBERS
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| NERC's mission is to advance an environmentally sustainable economy by promoting source and toxicity reduction, recycling, and the purchasing of environmentally preferable products and services. |
TOPICS
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MEMBERSHIP
We are very pleased to share with you the following Renewing Supporting Members Thank you one and all! It is through the active participation and support of its Advisory Members that NERC is able to
It is the broad spectrum of interests represented by NERC’s Advisory Members and Board Members |
NERC NEWS
Mary Ann Remolador Honored for 12 Years of Service to NERC
the NERC Board of Directors meeting in October, Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director of NERC, was recognized for 12 years of dedicated, outstanding service. Brenda Grober, President of the Board, made the presentation and spoke on behalf of NERC in honoring Mary Ann.
"Mary Ann has been the Assistant Director of NERC since 2003. During her tenure with NERC, Mary Ann has been responsible for so many of the great programs that we all use and refer people to
- She was key to the development and implementation of the NERC Recycling Investment Forums -- a program for which NERC earned national recognition and which kicked off similar, successful efforts around the country.
- She wrote NERC's Recycling Economic Development (RED) Bulletin.
- Mary Ann is responsible for an incredible tool that many of us use to help promote the purchase and use of environmentally preferable products, the EPPnet listserve. That service has been wonderful for allowing networking between all professionals working toward to encourage government and private businesses to make EPP standard practice.
During her 12 years with NERC, Mary Ann has become an expert at providing technical assistance to expand recycling and accomplish recycling business development. Some of the key areas that she's worked on have include:
- Electronics recycling business development and good practices for recycling and recovery of electronics;
- Rural special events recycling;
- Hazardous waste management for small businesses;
- Materials exchanges marketing tools and referrals to sources of recycling market information; and
- Organizing and holding all of NERC's conferences.
Just recently, Mary Ann also became an ad hoc board member for Pennsylvania's Recycling Markets Center.
No matter what she has been involved with, she has always been available to us. I consider her my friend and an excellent person to bounce ideas off of.
On behalf of all of us,
We love you,
We admire you,
And we so greatly appreciate you.
Congratulations on this very special anniversary.
NERC Fall '06 Conference Presentations Available For Members
The PowerPoint presentations from NERC's Fall Conference are now available on the "Members Only" section of NERC's website. If you are not a NERC member, but attended the conference and want a copy of a presentation, please contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC's Conference Organizer.
Update on Regional Recycling Message
As you may recall, in March 2005, NERC members engaged in a facilitated session to agree on a message/slogan that the ten Northeast states could all use to communicate the importance of recycling. We assumed that each state's approach to using the slogan would be different and dependent on individual budgets. The slogan that received the most votes on that day is
- Recycle - It really does matter!
- Saves energy
- Creates jobs
- Creates revenues
- Helps to preserve the environment
A Committee of NERC Board members was convened to further refine the slogan (added the bullets below the slogan, which states may or may not decide to use with the first line) and to develop a plan for market testing it before suggesting NERC member states use it. The Committee also identified potential uses for the slogan including as a byline on all emails sent by the state's environmental agency, as a topic for press releases, on departmental recycling brochures (with or without art work), and to be incorporated into public presentations. The target audiences for the slogan were also identified as the public, legislators, local decision-makers, educators, and more.
In addition to organizing the Committee, NERC staff identified two colleges that may be willing to conduct test marketing of the slogan - Bryant University and Connecticut College. (Thanks to Peggy Harlow of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for approaching her alma mater, Connecticut College, with this request.) We should know in late winter if either of the colleges will be able to assist with the research.
For more information on this project, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC's Assistant Director.
Procuring Green Electronics Presentation Available
Another very successful informational conference call about how to procure green electronics using the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) was held on November 2 - with more than 100 people participating from around the country.
NERC has grants from EPA Regions 1 and 3 to promote the use of EPEAT by large purchasers such as government agencies, institutions, and large companies. EPA Region 10 generously sponsored the conference call.
Future NERC Conference Dates - Mark Your Calendars!
| Event | Dates | Location |
| Spring '07 Conference | March 13 - 14 | Northampton, MA |
| Fall '07 Conference | October 16 - 17 | Northampton, MA |
| Spring '08 Conference | March 18 - 19 | To be announced |
| Fall '08 Conference | October 28 - 29 | Northampton, MA |
| Spring '09 Conference | March 17 - 18 | To be announced |
| Fall '09 Conference | October 27 - 28 | Northampton, MA |
NERC Board Members & Haulers Meet
A discussion on how haulers and NERC state members can work together to increase recycling in the region was held on October 26 in Northampton, Massachusetts. NERC would like to thank Bestway Disposal Services, Casella Waste Systems, EL Harvey & Sons, and Waste Management for their willingness to participate in this discussion. NERC would also like to thank the for their assistance in planning and facilitating the discussion. The meeting was very productive and we are looking forward to future collaborative efforts.
For more information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC's Assistant Director.
New Hampshire Board Member Promoted
Don Maurer, NERC Treasurer, has been promoted to Supervisor, Solid Waste Technical Assistance, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services.
Congratulations to Don.
STATE UPDATES
Governor Proclaims Maine Recycles Week
Governor Baldacci proclaimed November 8 - 15 as Maine Recycles Week 2006. The Governor's proclamation heralds the recycling success of Maine people, but emphasizes the need to increase our efforts in the years ahead. During Maine Recycles Week citizens are asked to do their part to recycle in their communities and purchase products made from recycled materials. Recycling is available to more than 98% of the state's population. The thrust of Maine Recycles Week is to get everyone effectively and efficiently participating. For more information on Maine Recycles Week 2006.
Maine Recycles Week 2006 began on Wednesday, November 8
Now in its eighth year, Maine Recycles Week kicked off on November 8 and ran for eight days, culminating with America Recycles Day on November 15. Communities throughout the state hosted activities in schools, businesses, and homes to help spread the word about the importance of recycling. Some of the activities that included: the official opening of the Sandy River Recycling Association's food waste composting operation in Farmington; the Camden Rockport "Fashion Show," which will be revived at the Samoset Resort in Rockport; and an open house at Ruth's Reusable Resources Center in Saco. In addition, schools participated in recycling program competitions and the eagerly anticipated poster contest. The goal of this year's Maine Recycles Week was to encourage increased recycling by residents and businesses, helping push the statewide recycling rate closer to its 50% goal, while refocusing our attention on sustainable efforts.
NEW YORK
Newly Adopted New York State Law for Automobile Manufacturers
New York State's Governor, George E. Pataki, recently signed into law new requirements for automobile manufacturers, importers, and distributors. Chapter 611, Laws of 2006, (effective January 1, 2007), requires the phase out of mercury-added components from motor vehicles sold in New York State. Model Year 2012 motor vehicles sold in calendar year 2011 will be the first vehicles required to be mercury-added component free. The law states, "Mercury-added component means a motor vehicle component that contains greater than fifteen milligrams of mercury, which was intentionally added to such vehicle in order to provide a specific characteristic, appearance or quality, to perform a specific function, or for any other purpose. Such components shall include, but not be limited to, switches, sensors, lights and navigational systems."
If a motor vehicle contains a mercury-added component that is necessary to comply with federal or state safety or health requirements, or for national security, the manufacturer may apply for an exemption. If an exemption is granted by the Department of Environmental Conservation, the motor vehicle with the mercury-added component must be labeled by the manufacturer. The law also requires that state agencies give a preference to purchasing mercury-free motor vehicles taking into consideration competition, price, availability and performance.
NEWS FROM ADVISORY MEMBERS
Pennsylvania Economic Development in Emerging Recycling Markets - Deconstruction Workshop Held
With 40 people in attendance on November 8, the Pennsylvania Recycling Markets Center (RMC), the Mid-Atlantic Consortium of Recycling and Economic Development Officials, (MACREDO) and the Green Building Association of Central Pennsylvania (GBCPA) hosted an applied workshop on deconstruction and reuse of building materials. Workshop attendees consisted of Pennsylvania economic development professionals, consultants, contractors, and business owners, the National Park Service, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fort Indiantown Gap, and the Pennsylvania State University.
Funded through an EPA grant to MACREDO, the workshop was moderated by Dave Sheridan, GBCPA. Featured presentations included Bob Bylone, RMC, on tools and resources for support of LEED® related programming and building material reuse projects; Linda Knapp, MACREDO, presented Unbuild-Rebuild project results of Philadelphia row house demolition and material reuse; Scott Horst of the 7 Group discussed life cycle savings of building material reuse; and Mike Gable, Construction Junction, shared information on the challenges and opportunities of recovered material reuse at Construction Junction, with ultimate sale of these materials to builders and the public. Dave Mazza, PRC's Western PA Regional Director and a RMC Board Member, paired the RMC with Construction Junction.
Bringing national level information to the Commonwealth, workshop attendees were provided a handbook and resource CD. The resource CD, compiled by the RMC, consists of numerous building material reuse and deconstruction resources. This includes 15 environmental or building material reuse benefit calculators, featuring the Northeast Recycling Council's (NERC) Environmental Benefits Calculator; model specifications for deconstruction; sample deconstruction policy documents such as municipal ordinances and resolutions; and building material reuse case studies. In total, the resource CD features building material reuse information from approximately 18 different states.
The Pennsylvania Recycling Markets Center, located at Penn State Harrisburg in Middletown, PA, is a non-profit organization supported with funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.