February 2010
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 Sustaining Members
- Newspaper Association of America
- Casella Waste Systems
Renewing Supporting Members
- Northeast Resource Recovery Association
- New York State Legislative Commission on Solid Waste Management
- Housatonic Resource Recovery Authority
- Association of New Jersey Recyclers
- Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania
NERC NEWS
- Spend Less by Registering Early for NERC’s Spring ’10 Workshop: “Boost Your Marketing Efforts with Web-Based Resources”
- NERC Launches Online Reuse Marketplace Network - First Multi-State Materials Exchange Helps Lower Costs, Cut Carbon Emissions
- Electronics Recycling Coordination Clearinghouse Kicks Off At Consumer Electronics Show
- NERC Begins Zero Waste Construction & Demolition Project
- Technical Assistance for Rural Schools
STATE UPDATES
MASSACHUSETTS
- Center for Ecological Technology Named ‘Endorser of the Year’
- School Green Team Program Receives Sponsorship from Got Books
- Massachusetts Receives $1.15 million “Green in the Middle” Grant from Learn and Serve America
- Suffolk Hosts Fall CURC Meeting
NEW YORK
ADVISORY MEMBER NEWS
OF GENERAL INTEREST
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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.
State and Advisory Member Updates, as well articles of General Interest are provided as submissions to NERC and may not reflect the policy or position of the Northeast Recycling Council, Inc.
NERC is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
TOPICS
MEMBERSHIP
We are delighted to welcome the Newspaper Association of America (NAA) and Casella Waste Systems as renewing Sustaining Members, and the Northeast Resource Recovery Association, the New York State Legislative Commission on Solid Waste Management, the Housatonic Resource Recovery Authority, the Association of New Jersey Recyclers, and the Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania (PROP) as renewing Supporting Members of NERC.
A hallmark of NERC is the strength of multi-stakeholder involvement and problem solving. This is a direct result of the active participation and support of NERC’s Advisory Members. To see a listing of Advisory Members and the benefits of membership, visit the NERC Advisory Membership Web page.
The broad spectrum of interests represented by NERC’s Advisory Members and Board Members and their willingness to participate significantly contribute to the unique and important role that NERC plays in recycling in the region.
NERC NEWS
Spend Less by Registering Early for NERC’s Spring ’10 Workshop: “Boost Your Marketing Efforts with Web-Based Resources”
With ever-tightening budgets limiting travel, NERC offers a reduced registration rate for its Spring Workshop until February 18.
The Workshop offers expert speakers and training sessions to help you:
- Utilize social marketing tools to promote your business or organization.
- Measure the environmental benefits of your purchasing and recycling efforts and highlight these practices to promote your products or services.
- Use materials trading to save money — by getting rid of unwanted items or purchasing materials for reuse.
Speakers include:
- Social Media Tools - Joseph Shoenfeld, Associate Director of Outreach Marketing and Technology, University of Massachusetts
- Environmental Benefits of Recycling and Reuse - Jessica Wozniak, Executive Director, MassRecycle
- Materials Trading - Eugene Jones, Executive Director, Southern Waste Information eXchange
- Environmental Benefits of Computer Purchasing & Recycling - Patricia Dillon, Program Manager, Northeast Recycling Council, Inc.
Workshop Details
Date: March 23, 2010
Location: Hotel Northampton, Northampton, Massachusetts. Rooms are available at the hotel by calling 800 547-3529. The discounted rates of $135 for a single and $145 for a double (plus tax) are available until February 22 on a first-come, first-served basis.
When making your reservation, refer to NERC to ensure that you receive the discounted rates. Reservations cannot be made online.
Reservations must be cancelled by noon one week before arrival to avoid charges.
Who Should Attend: Representatives from business, business service providers, state environmental agencies and nonprofit organizations; plus municipal recycling coordinators, sustainability coordinators, and consultants.
For questions on the Workshop agenda, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC’s Assistant Director and Events Organizer.
NERC Launches Online Reuse Marketplace - First Multi-State Materials Exchange Network Helps Business, Government Lower Costs, Cut Carbon Emissions
NERC has announced the launch of the Reuse Marketplace, the nation’s first multi-state Materials Exchange network enables businesses, government agencies, and nonprofits that have unwanted materials to connect with markets beyond their local areas. The Reuse Marketplace helps participants in seven states find alternatives to the disposal of valuable materials, and in the process, trim their waste removal costs, reduce the quantity of items they send to landfills, and lower carbon emissions. “The Reuse Marketplace is the first step in what could become a national effort to link Materials Exchanges in all 50 states,” said Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director, NERC.
NERC serves as the administrator of the Reuse Marketplace, which has partnered with eight Materials Exchanges in seven states; Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Vermont. The Reuse Marketplace integrates the individual state reuse Exchanges through one Web-based portal to allow for easy access and increased listing of materials. The project was funded with a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “This project keeps valuable materials in the marketplace and keeps them out of the landfill,” said Christine Beling of EPA, Region I.
A Materials Exchange provides an around-the-clock venue for businesses, government, and nonprofits to advertise a wide range of items they no longer have a need for—from packing peanuts to office cubicles, and more. Participants offer their unwanted items at below-retail cost, or for free. In addition to avoiding the expense of disposing of such items, these entities cut down on the amount of solid waste they generate, which has important advantages for the environment.
“The marketplace is a powerful tool for businesses and governments looking to lower disposal costs, and for municipalities seeking to save taxpayer money,” said Ms. Remolador. “The Reuse Marketplace also helps industry and government meet sustainability goals, which have broad economic and environmental benefits, and are becoming more and more critical in these challenging economic times.”
The Reuse Marketplace is the first Materials Exchange network serving participants in multiple states. Entities wishing to list items with the Reuse Marketplace can post them on their state’s participating Materials Exchange. Visitors to the Reuse Marketplace will be able to browse all listings from the eight exchanges. Businesses, government agencies, and nonprofits will therefore have access to a much broader network of potential takers for their unwanted items than they could reach through their statewide exchanges alone.
Materials Exchanges bolster the reuse market, which generates significant environmental gains. Extending the useful lives of existing products avoids the costly energy-intensive extraction of natural resources used to make a wide range of new products. Lowering energy use leads to fewer carbon emissions produced by the burning of fossil fuels. Keeping more products out of the solid waste stream also helps to diminish greenhouse-gas emissions from landfills, which are the fourth-largest source of global warming pollution in the U.S.
“Material Exchanges strengthen our local economies by promoting the use of recovered materials,” said Greg Cooper, MassDEP’s Director of Consumer Programs for the Bureau of Waste Prevention. “And keeping these products out of the waste stream lengthens their life cycle and greatly reduces their environmental impact. By linking Exchanges into a national network, the Reuse Marketplace is helping to increase the potential environmental and economic benefits that local and regional Exchanges offer.”
NERC has partnered with the individual Materials Exchanges in each of the seven states to help them develop their Web sites and integrate into the new online Reuse Marketplace. Ontario-based iWasteNot Systems has developed the technical platform for the site.
The Reuse Marketplace includes the following Materials Exchanges:
Connecticut: Connecticut Reuse Materials Network
Florida: Southern Waste Information eXchange, Inc .
Massachusetts: Ecostar Exchange
Massachusetts: Massachusetts Material Trader
New York: New York C&D Material Trader
North Carolina: North Carolina C&D Material Trader
Rhode Island: ResourceXchange
Vermont: Vermont Business Materials Exchange
For additional information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC’s Assistant Director and Project Manager.
Electronics Recycling Coordination Clearinghouse Kicks Off At Consumer Electronics Show
On January 7, the National Center for Electronics Recycling (NCER) and the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) launched the Electronics Recycling Coordination Clearinghouse (ERCC) at the annual International Consumer Electronics Show.
The ERCC is a forum for coordination and information exchange among the state/local agencies that are implementing electronics recycling laws and impacted stakeholders. The ERCC will identify common area within the laws and coordinate joint approaches. At the kickoff, Founding Members were announced and several of them spoke about the importance of the ERCC.
The ERCC includes a voting state/local government members and an affiliate membership. Then NCER and NERC would like to thank all of the Founding Members listed below for a very successful launch. If you would like your organization to become a member, please contact Jason Linnell.
NCER & NERC thank the ERCC’s FOUNDING MEMBERS
Voting Members
- California CalRecycle
- Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection
- Hawaii Department of Health
- Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
- Maine Department of Environmental Protection
- Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
- New York City Department of Sanitation
- New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
- North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Affiliate Members
- Best Buy
- Brother International
- Consumer Electronics Association
- ecoATM
- ECS Refining
- Funai Group
- IMS Electronics Recycling
- Samsung
- Sims Recycling Solutions
- Waste Management Recycle America
NERC Begins Zero Waste Construction & Demolition Project
NERC has received an EPA Resource Conservation Challenge grant for construction and demolition pilots in three states (CT, NJ, and NY), to take place over the next two years. The pilots will strive for zero waste through source reduction, reuse, and recycling. As part of the project, NERC will work with construction site managers to develop zero waste materials plans; provide on-site technical assistance; document materials diverted at each location; and develop training tips, implementation tools, fact sheets, and case studies.
For additional information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC’s Assistant Director and Project Manager.
 Classroom Waste Sort |
 Classroom Waste Sort |
 Cafeteria Waste Sort |
Technical Assistance for Rural Schools
NERC staff recently visited six schools as a part of its USDA funded rural assistance project to promote source reduction, recycling, and composting in schools. Participating schools include: Liberty School District High School and Middle School (New York State), Eldred School District Junior/Senior High School and Mackenzie Elementary School (New York State), and the Academy of the Holy Family School and Sayles School in Connecticut.
The school visits included a meeting with each school’s Recycling Advisory Committee; comprised of representatives from administration, teachers, students, and parents. An overview of the school waste assessment to be conducted for each school, including a review of current recycling activities, as well as desired waste reduction goals and potential projects for schools to undertake to reach their goals was discussed with each Committee. NERC staff also conducted waste audits at two of the schools.
In addition to providing onsite technical assistance to participating schools, NERC staff is developing tip sheets on reuse, recycling, and composting, as well as project ideas and case studies. Special research, as requested by the schools, is also being done, including ideas encouraging (and maintaining) middle and high school student participation in environmental programs, competitive bid opportunities for waste services in rural area, and ideas for conducting school recycling fundraising drives. Each school in the project will be visited by NERC staff three times.
For more information, contact NERC Projects Manager Athena Lee Bradley.
STATE UPDATES
MASSACHUSETTS
MassDEP Names Center for Ecological Technology as ‘Endorser of the Year’
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) recently presented the Center for Ecological Technology (CET) with the Massachusetts WasteWise “Endorser of the Year” award in recognition of the organization’s efforts to promote waste prevention, recycling and environmental protection. WasteWise Endorsers agree to recruit organizations to become WasteWise partners and provide partners with promotional, educational, or technical information.
“For over 30 years, CET has provided assistance to small- and medium-sized businesses to foster an environmentally sustainable business culture,” said MassDEP Commissioner Laurie Burt about the award that was presented at one of the semi-annual WasteWise regional forums.
CET, a non-profit organization with offices in Pittsfield, Northampton, and Springfield, Massachusetts, provides hands-on technical assistance to businesses, communities, and homeowners in western Massachusetts interested in recycling, reducing waste, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. CET promotes practical solutions that make sense for the community, economy, and environment.
“CET is honored to receive this recognition for its green business efforts,” said CET Associate Director John Majercak. “We’re proud of the environmental and cost-saving results we have achieved in partnership with hundreds of area businesses, including Big Y Foods, Shriner’s Hospital for Children, Cooley Dickinson Hospital, Williams College, and HAP Housing.”
Massachusetts WasteWise is a free, voluntary partnership program founded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to assist businesses and organizations in implementing waste reduction and recycling programs. The national program, established in 1994, currently has over 2,000 members. Massachusetts partnered with EPA in 2002 and has over 150 member organizations.
School Green Team Program Receives Sponsorship from Got Books, Inc.
In September, MassDEP kicked off its 2009 - 2010 school Green Team program, an interactive recycling and environmental education club for Massachusetts K-12 schools, and was thrilled to receive a $1,500 donation from Got Books, Inc., a Massachusetts book-recycling business.
Now in its eighth year, The Green Team continues to grow and become institutionalized in many schools. Over 350 teachers have signed up to date, representing 250 schools and 65,500 students. Green Team participants receive a classroom poster, lesson plans, and suggested activities. As they complete activities, classes advance through three levels of participation. Each class that takes the Green Team Pledge receives a Certificate of Recognition and is eligible to win great prizes at the end of the school year. Last year, 127 classes received certificates and awards for their students, and their accomplishments are described in the Green Team newsletter. Many classes focus on climate change and energy-related activities, in addition to recycling, composting, and waste reduction efforts.
Green Team participants may also request recycling and idling reduction equipment from The Green Team, which benefited 78 schools last year. This year, the demand for recycling and idling reduction equipment continues to outstrip the supply. Already, MassDEP has distributed its entire supply of recycling equipment to 55 schools across the state. All communities switching to single-stream recycling should consider offering any excess recycling bins to their local schools, as the need for them continues to increase as more schools expand their recycling programs. Green Team member schools may continue to request compost bins from The Green Team, with a limit of one per school, while supplies last.
The Green Team owes a debt of gratitude to many people and organizations that have provided assistance over the years with equipment distribution, composting set-ups, educational programs, and other support. The Green Team would like to recognize and thank Abitibi Consolidated’s Mike Ames; Got Books, Inc.’s Abby Adler and Bob Tyce; Franklin County Solid Waste Management District’s Amy Donovan; Springfield Facilities School Recycling Coordinator, John Alphin; Holly Hill Farm’s Jon Belber and Janice McPhillips; Karen DiFranza of Hubbardston, Center for Ecological Technology’s Jamie Cahillane, Cynthia Grippaldi, John Majercak, and Lorenzo Macaluso; University of Massachusetts’ John Pepi, Barry Parker, and Kathy Rossi; Mass. Dept of Conservation and Recreation’s Kevin Hollenbeck, and all the recycling coordinators and educators who have helped schools with their recycling, composting and other environmental efforts. MassDEP looks forward to working together with all our partners on another exciting year of environmental learning and achievements by Massachusetts students and their teachers.
Massachusetts Receives $1.15 million “Green in the Middle” Grant from Learn and Serve America
The Massachusetts Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) received a $1.15 million three-year grant award from Learn and Serve America to support middle schools in implementing service-learning projects that connect to the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) subject areas and meet environmental needs. MassDEP partnered with DESE to obtain and implement the grant, and will provide recycling and other resources to the participating middle schools as they develop and conduct their projects.
Eleven school districts received “Green in the Middle” grants from DESE to conduct projects on topics such as recycling, composting, energy conservation, local environmental studies, pollution issues, and horticulture. The awardees are Lilla G. Frederick Middle School (Boston), East Middle School (Brockton), Kennedy-Longfellow Middles School (Cambridge), Community Day Charter Public School (Lawrence), Roosevelt Middle School (New Bedford), Drury High School 8-12 (North Adams), John T. Reid Middle School (Pittsfield), Sterling Middle School (Quincy), Garfield Middle School (Revere), Nathaniel Bowditch Middle School (Salem), and Forest Park Middle School (Springfield).
Suffolk Hosts Fall CURC Meeting
The MassRecycle College and University Recycling Council (CURC) met on December 11 at Suffolk University. Thirty representatives from Massachusetts institutions of higher education, MassDEP, MassRecycle, and the private sector were in attendance. The meeting consisted of presentations by CURC co-chairs Rob Gogan (Harvard Recycling) and Roger Guzowski (Five Colleges, Inc.), and Erica Mattison, Sustainability Coordinator for the host school.
Mattison presented on incentive programs to encourage student involvement in recycling, while Guzowski addressed the role of waste reduction in Climate Action Planning, and Gogan pitched the upcoming Recyclemania competition, which began on January 17. CURC is a technical council of MassRecycle, providing technical assistance, education, training, networking opportunities, and support to help members better manage their campus waste. The next CURC meeting is slated for Spring 2010.
NEW YORK
20th Annual NYS Recycling Conference
The New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse, and Recycling (NYSAR3) and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation held their 20th Annual Recycling Conference at the Otesaga Hotel in Cooperstown, NY, on November 17 & 18. Work began well in advance of the Conference to assist the hotel in developing a comprehensive waste reduction and recycling program.
Conference topics included:
- COOL 2012 Workshop (Compostable Organics Out of Landfills by 2012)
- Making the Connection between Recycling & GHG Reduction
- National & State Issues
- Extended Producer Responsibility
- And much more!
 Poster Contest Winners |
 20th Anniversary PowerPoint |
The New York Recycles Day Poster Contest winners received their awards in celebration of America Recycles Day. Also recognized was Jean Bonhotal of the Cornell Waste Management Institute, named as “Private Sector Recycler of the Year” for her work as a "composter extraordinaire.” Resa Dimino was named the “Public Sector Recycler of the Year” for her work on the New York State Solid Waste Management Plan, and Tompkins County Waste Reduction and Recycling Team, (Leo Riley, Linnett Short, and Kat McCarty) received the “2009 Recycling Team” award. The Tompkins County Team combined two successful programs to develop recycling programs in the schools of Tompkins County.
A special 20th Anniversary PowerPoint presentation was shown during the evening reception to commemorate 20 years of recycling! Look for it to be posted on the NYSAR website.
New York State Governor, David Paterson, proclaimed November 15, 2009 as New York Recycles Day! In his proclamation, Governor Paterson encourages every citizen to commit to waste reduction, reuse, recycling, composting, and buying recycled products whenever they can.
New York is part of America Recycles Day which is one of the most comprehensive recycling awareness campaigns in the nation. Each year millions of people become better informed about the advantages of recycling at home, at work or on the go, and of buying recycled products by participating in America Recycles Day activities. Last year, thousands of New Yorkers signed or e-mailed pledges to recycle more and buy recycled. Many events were staged to support the campaign in almost every county.
Some of the 2009 events were:
- Hudson Valley - The New York Team of the Global Sports Alliance organized a triathlon and teamed up with Putnam County Recycling to manage the event's recyclables.
- New York City - Clean clothing and textiles were collected, (shoes, bedding, linens, hats, handbags, belts) for the Council on the Environment of New York City’s first Clothing and Textile Recycling Day at the Staten Island Mall.
- Western New York - A Buy Recycled Scavenger Hunt was conducted where local celebrities hunted down recycled content products and packaging at Tops supermarket in Rochester.
- Niagara County also hosted an electronic waste and food/clothing collection event at the Niagara County Courthouse. They collected over 300 CRT's, 18 tons of electronic waste, 1 ton of clothing and 400 lbs of food for Community Missions (a community wide not-for-profit organization).
- Capital District - Schenectady County conducted an electronics collection for residents, tons of computers, TV’s and misc. electronics were collected.
- Long Island – The annual Evan R. Liblit Memorial Scholarship Fund breakfast in East Islip, NY was held to honor the memory and works of Evan R. Liblit (Worked at DEC), a pioneer and leader in the field of recycling and solid waste management. The Liblit Fund supports the work of graduate and undergraduate students at Stony Brook University and the Stony Brook Waste Reduction and Management Institute, part of the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences.
Many New York State schools and colleges conducted events including: SUNY Lockport. Students were given stainless steel sport bottles to carry and reuse rather than using plastic water bottles; SUNY Binghamton educated students and staff regarding campus activities for waste minimization, the waste stream coming out of the dining halls and held a clothing drive; and the Oxford Holiday Committee organized the 6th Annual Recycled Holiday Ornament Contest at the Oxford Academy Primary School.
ADVISORY MEMBER NEWS
More than 6 Million Pounds E-Waste Recycled in 2009 by Metech Recycling
Metech Recycling, of Worcester, MA, recycled over 6 million pounds of electronic waste in 2009. Its 80,000 FT2 facility is certified to ISO 9001 and 14001 standards, and processes e-waste received from electronics manufacturers, businesses, schools, and institutional sources.
In 2009, Metech ran a series of sponsored collection events, including public drop-off days and other collection programs. Non-profit organizations, government agencies, and schools participating in these programs across Massachusetts recycled over 1.6 million pounds of e-waste.
Metech recycles all e-waste by breaking it down to scrap metals, wire, and plastics so these materials can be reused, rather than landfilled. Hard drives and similar memory devices are physically destroyed protecting any remaining personal content. Materials recovered from electronic scrap after demanufacturing and shredding are shipped to fully audited down-stream recyclers of the materials recovered. Metech has a “0” landfill policy.
OF GENERAL INTEREST
Enter Today to Win a 2010 AF&PA Recycling Award
The AF&PA Recycling Awards recognize outstanding business, community, and school recycling efforts.
Award winners, who will be announced in March, receive a $2,000 cash prize, gain local and national recognition, and are highlighted on the paperrecycles.org website.
Paper recycling is a simple way for individuals and organizations to be good environmental stewards. In 2008, 57.4 percent of the paper consumed in the U.S. was recovered for recycling. Programs like those recognized as AF&PA Recycling Award winners will help us reach the industry goal of 60 percent recovery by 2012.