News &
Updates

To view our archived Bulletins, click on a date below.

January 2011

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 Member

Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI)

New Supporting Members

Renewing Supporting Members

NERC NEWS

STATE UPDATES

Maine

Massachusetts

Local Governments Seek to Reduce Waste & Shift Costs to Brand Owners

New York

Rhode Island

Local America Recycles Day Celebration

ADVISORY MEMBER NEWS

OF GENERAL INTEREST

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.

MEMBERSHIP

We are delighted to welcome the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) as a renewing Sustaining Member, and two new Supporting Members — R2 Solutions and the TechSoup Global GreenTech Program. Thank you also to renewing Supporting Members New York State Legislative Commission on Solid Waste Management and the Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority.

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

Breaking News – NERC Offering C&D Workshop in Partnership with WasteCap Resource Solutions

On April 19, 2011, WasteCap Resource Solutions will present Building for the Future – A Construction and Demolition Waste Reuse and Recycling Workshop. NERC is very excited to be working with WasteCap to provide this day-long Workshop. Attendees will:

Receive WasteCap Resource Solutions’ accreditation in Construction Waste Management.
Be eligible to receive 7.5 CEUs for LEED AP’s.
Learn to develop, manage, monitor, document and promote a successful construction reuse and recycling program.
Receive the Construction and Demolition Waste Management Toolkit. Includes: market information, educational materials, monitoring checklists, economic analysis worksheets and much more.
Conduct a projected program analysis to determine volume, weight, and cost of a job.
Analyze hauling proposals based on projected quantities of trash and recyclables.
Learn how to best educate crews for maximum efficiency and compliance.
Learn how to effectively document reuse and recycling results.

Location: Hotel Northampton, Northampton, Massachusetts

Sponsorship opportunities available.

For more information, contact: Mary Ann Remolador, NERC.

National Expansion of State Electronics Challenge

In early 2011 the State Electronics Challenge will roll out across the United States; opening access to this successful program to all state, regional, tribal, and local government entities that want to reduce the environmental footprint of their computer equipment. The opportunity to offer this program and technical assistance free-of-charge throughout the U.S. stems from the recent and generous sponsorship of the Challenge by the private sector — including Samsung, ISRI, Panasonic, Sims Recycling Solutions, and the Consumer Electronics Association.

Interested public entities — including state, regional, tribal and local government, state colleges and universities and school districts—are encouraged to sign up for the Challenge as “Partners” and make a commitment to purchase environmentally preferable products, use power management, and ensure environmentally sound equipment recycling. In return, the Challenge program provides Partners with free resources and technical assistance for improving computer asset management practices and measuring results, and offers annual recognition to Partners that achieve program goals.

The State Electronics Challenge has grown steadily in its three years of operation. Before the national expansion, the program encompassed 22 states. The Challenge started as a pilot in the 10 Northeast states in 2007 and in 2009 expanded to six Rocky Mountain States (Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming) with funding from U.S. EPA Region 8. NERC is currently busy launching the Challenge in the Great Lakes States of Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin thanks to a grant from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative in fall 2010.

To date, nearly 50 government entities — representing almost 60,000 employees — have signed on as Challenge Partners to reduce their environmental footprint. In the first two full years of the program (2008-2009), 24 Partners — representing more than 36,000 employees — purchased almost 16,000 “green” computers defined by the EPEAT® environmental performance standard and recycled over 17,500 units. Their collective efforts resulted in the reduction of 44 million kWh of energy, equivalent to the electricity needed to power 3,700 households annually; and 380 tons of municipal solid waste, equivalent to the waste generated by 180 households per year.

Challenge Partners come in all sizes, ranging from the entire Maine state government to cities such as Providence, Rhode Island and Keene, New Hampshire, state environmental agencies, school districts, universities, colleges, and regional programs. For the current list of Partners, visit http://stateelectronicschallenge.net/current_partners.html.

Please contact Lynn Rubinstein, NERC Executive Director, to sign up for any of these webinars, or for any additional information.

1st Anniversary of Electronics Recycling Coordination Clearinghouse Celebrated with Addition of State Members

With 24 state electronics take-back laws passed in the U.S., half of those states are now members of the Electronics Recycling Coordination Clearinghouse (ERCC). New state members North Carolina and Indiana join California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, South Carolina, and Wisconsin, along with New York City, on the first anniversary of the national organization. Three more states are intending to join in the coming months.

The ERCC is a forum for coordination and information exchange among the state/local agencies that are implementing electronics recycling laws and all impacted stakeholders. In addition to the state and municipal members, there are 16 affiliate members representing manufacturers, recyclers, trade associations, non-profits, and electronics recycling programs.

It has been a very active first year for the ERCC. Staffed by the National Center for Electronics Recycling and administered by NERC, a number of databases, maps, and reports have been produced and added to the Website. Additional resources are available on a members-only side of the Website. An effort is in progress that will result in performance measure recommendations for state recycling. The recommendations are expected to be published in late January. Other key projects will address consolidated manufacturer and recycler registration, collector best practices, and consistent product definitions.

For more information about the ERCC or membership opportunities, contact either Jason Linnell, Executive Director NCER, or Lynn Rubinstein, Executive Director NERC.

First NERC Compost Marketing Workshop Offered in New Jersey

The workshop — Making Your Compost Product Work for You! — will provide an overview of best management practices for producing a quality marketable compost product. Marketing insights and sales techniques, including technical information on compost applications and benefits, feedstocks, quality standards, market segments, marketing principles, and distribution strategies will be covered. Participants in the workshop receive a Resource Toolkit on a CD containing hundreds of compost marketing and general compost operation management articles and technical papers.

The workshop is being held on Friday, January 28, 2011, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Duke Farms in Hillsborough, NJ.

Presenters include:

Michael L. Westendorf, Ph.D., PAS
Extension Specialist in Animal Sciences, Rutgers University;
Loren S. Muldowney, M.S., Staff Scientist Rutgers/NJAES Soil Testing Lab;
Erich V. Bremer, Supervisor, Organic Certification Program, New Jersey Department of Agriculture, Division of Marketing & Development; and
Athena Lee Bradley, NERC staff.

The workshop is one of eight such events that NERC is offering in New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. All workshops are free. Funding for the workshops and NERC’s Compost Marketing project is from the Northeast SARE (Sustainable Agriculture, Research, and Education). Sponsors for the New Jersey workshop are NERC, the Northeast Organic Farming Association of NJ, and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

Resources developed by NERC for the project, as well as presentations from the workshops, are available on NERC’s website.

To register or for more information contact Athena Lee Bradley, Projects Manager, by email, or by phone at 802-254-3636.

Grant Received from the Lydia B. Stokes Foundation

We are delighted to announce that NERC has been awarded a grant from the Lydia B. Stokes Foundation to promote agricultural environmental sustainability in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. The grant will enable NERC to work with farmers and the organizations representing these constituencies in Franklin, Hampden, and Hampshire Counties, Massachusetts on manure management, composting, and compost market development education.

For more information, contact Athena Lee Bradley, Projects Manager.

Vermont Hotels Continue to Strengthen Recycling & Composting Programs

For almost two years NERC has been working with two hotels in Vermont to develop comprehensive recycling and composting programs. The project is funded by a Resource Conservation Challenge Grant from EPA New England.

The Sheraton Burlington is the largest hotel in Vermont and it began a recycling program long ago. NERC’s project allowed the hotel management to reassess its program implementation and to add food waste to the mix of materials diverted from the property. This has resulted in 76 tons of materials being diverted from landfilling — 48 tons of food waste and 28 tons of recyclables.

The Comfort Inn Hotel St Johnsbury is the other hotel NERC has been working with. It is the largest chain hotel in the northeast corner of the State. At the project start, the Inn was not recycling, but felt the pressure of its customers to do so. Since April ’09, the hotel has diverted 10 tons of mixed recyclables from the landfill.

NERC has recently added a third hotel to this project — Holiday Inn Rutland. Like the Comfort Inn, the Holiday Inn was not previously recycling and has begun to do so.

What makes this project unique is the willingness of the hotel management and staff to make recycling work at their facilities. They bring enthusiasm to the table and are genuinely interested in finding ways to recycle more. As a result, NERC has been able to conduct waste sorts at each property, provide cleaning and kitchen staff with training about what is recyclable at two hotels, as well as shadow cleaning staff at one hotel to troubleshoot the barriers to recycling while trying to manage the workload and the cleaning carts through tight hallways.

As part of this project, NERC will write a case study on each participant hotel and develop a model waste reduction and environmentally preferable purchasing (EPP) plan for the hotels. These materials will be posted on NERC’s Website as they become available.

NERC would like to take this opportunity to thank our project partners for assisting with the on-site visits and waste sorts. They include the Green Hotels in the Green Mountain State, a program staffed by the Vermont Small Business Development Center; the Chittenden Solid Waste District; and the Rutland County Solid Waste District.

For more information about the project, contact Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director.

Paper Recycling Resurfaces at NERC

For many years, NERC’s past was dominated by paper recycling issues and projects. When NERC members decided that most of the challenging issues were addressed, NERC’s focus turned to other materials that were screaming for help. Recently, paper recycling has once again arisen as an issue that needs attention.

In October, NERC was awarded a Resource Conservation Challenge grant from EPA New England to work with two businesses based in New England with satellite offices elsewhere in the Northeast. The goal is to help large generators of printing and writing paper to recycle. On the surface this sounds easy, but we all know the intricacies of large corporations and the difficulties in getting information to trickle down, be understood, and be implemented. Some of the objectives to be accomplished by this project are providing direct technical assistance, training, and written resources to the participant businesses so they are able to fully implement their paper recycling programs.

For more information about this one-year project, contact Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director.

STATE UPDATES

Maine

Maine DEP Posts 1st Report under Maine’s Product Stewardship Law

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has completed its first report under the Maine Product Stewardship Law. This report, titled Implementing Product Stewardship in Maine, is available on-line at www.maine.gov/dep. Interested parties may submit comments on the report to the DEP until January 7, 2011.

The Events of Maine Recycles Week 2010 Wrap Up!

In late November, members of the Maine Recycles Week Steering Committee met and reviewed the annual school posters contest entries and reports. Taking part in this judging was: Tom Kane, CPRC Group; Diane Doe, Auburn Share Center; Janet Cummings, AVCoG; Beth Young, Casella Waste Systems; Suzanne Duplissis, and Rhonda Carl from the State Planning Office.

More than 1,700 entries were received for this year’s contest, challenging the steering committee members in their efforts to select the top 13 entries which would be showcased on the 2011 Maine Recycles Calendar. One of those would also earn the top spot and would be used in the promotion of next year’s Maine Recycles Week. This top spot was awarded to a 7th grader from Chelsea, Tessa, and was the third year in a row that her poster was selected as a finalist. Other posters selected will be posted on the SPO Waste Management and Recycling Program Website. The calendars will be available around mid-December from SPO and will be mailed to each school and municipal office in the state.

2010 Poster contest winner Tessa, 7th grade, Chelsea

The three schools selected as finalists in the school recycling competition were: Bowdoinham Community School; St. John Regional Catholic School in Winslow; and the W. G. Mallet School in Farmington. Each school will receive $500 to be used toward projects in science, the environment, or recycling.

Massachusetts

Local Governments Seek to Reduce Waste & Shift Costs to Brand Owners

What does the town of Milton, in southeastern Massachusetts, have in common with Springfield, the fourth largest city in New England? What does the city of Salem, on Massachusetts Bay, share with Northampton, a college town on the Connecticut River?

These municipalities, like many others in the Commonwealth, are concerned about trash: the high volume generated its toxicity, and the costs of managing it. They have adopted resolutions calling for legislation that requires producers of products and packaging to pay those costs.

“Most of our waste is products and packaging,” says Northampton City Council President, David Narkewicz. “Making brand owners financially responsible for their discarded products provides a financial incentive to make them more durable, repairable, and easier to recycle.”

This month Narkewicz was elected Chair of the newly formed Massachusetts Product Stewardship Council, made of cities and towns from all over the state. The purpose of the Council is to promote Extended Producer Responsibility, often shortened to “EPR,” which would require brand owners to make a plan for collecting the products that they have put into the marketplace when they are discarded, and to pay all costs of collecting and processing them.

According to Bill Sheehan, Director of Product Policy Institute, a North American organization, EPR is sweeping the country. “It’s been called a national trash revolt. Local governments say it’s time to shift the costs of managing product waste to the companies who design and market the products, and the consumers who choose to buy them.” Sheehan, who has assisted with the formation of the Massachusetts Product Stewardship Council, says there are 60 EPR laws for various product categories in 32 states including the New England states.

In May, Clean Water Action, Massachusetts convened the initial meeting of municipal representatives interested in forming a Council. Lynne Pledger, Solid Waste Director of Clean Water Action, and Coordinator of the Council says, “The main purpose of shifting the management costs from taxpayer to producer is to reduce the volume and toxicity of waste. Much of the problem goes back to the ways products are made and marketed as “disposable.” Another benefit she notes is that other states with EPR laws have seen an increase in recycling businesses and jobs.

EPR is identified as one of the five pillars of the draft state Solid Waste Master Plan, 2010-20, which calls for waste reduction instead of building more disposal sites. The draft Plan describes the change that the state hopes to facilitate as “a vision of full recycling bins, empty trash cans, active re-use markets, new green jobs, innovations in recycling technologies, reduced creation and disposal of toxic pollution, and small businesses that are flourishing.”

New York

New York Adopts Rechargeable Battery Product Stewardship Law

On December 10, 2010 New York’s Governor signed the New York State Rechargeable Battery Law, which requires manufacturers to collect and recycle rechargeable batteries in a statewide, manufacturer-funded program at no cost to consumers. Many rechargeable batteries contain toxic metals that can be released into the environment when improperly disposed. Consumers in New York State will now be able to safely return to retailers rechargeable batteries, from a large number of electronic products, for recycling or proper management at the end of their useful life. The rechargeable batteries covered by this law include a number of different types of batteries including; nickel cadmium, sealed lead, lithium ion, nickel metal hydride and any other rechargeable batteries weighing less than 25 pounds. The law does not cover vehicle batteries or non-rechargeable batteries such as common alkaline batteries.

Under the new law, manufacturers of rechargeable batteries will be responsible for financing the collection and recycling of the batteries collected, advertising this program to consumers, and reporting on the progress of this new program. Retailers that sell rechargeable batteries will be required to accept used rechargeable batteries back from individuals during normal business hours and to post signs informing consumers about these requirements. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (Department) will be responsible for oversight of the program including reviewing and approving the manufacturer's collection plans and any reporting required. Manufacturers will have 90 days from the signing of the new law to submit a collection and recycling plan to the Department. Retailers are required to accept batteries for recycling 180 days from that date. Voluntary take back programs for rechargeable batteries are already in place in many retail establishments, such as Call2Recycle operated by the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation (RBRC).

The rechargeable battery law adds rechargeable batteries from laptops, cell phones, cameras and other electronics to a growing list of products residents of New York State can return to retailers for recycling or proper management at the end of their useful life. This action follows the enactment of New York's first product stewardship law, the Electronic Equipment Recycling and Reuse Act, in May, 2010. Used plastics bags, lead-acid batteries and most beverage containers may also be returned through retailers for proper management after use.

The Bureau of Waste Reduction and Recycling (Bureau), within the Division of Materials Management will be coordinating the implementation of this new law. For additional information on the law and it’s requirements you may contact the Bureau’s Product Stewardship and Waste Reduction Section .

NYSDEC Finalizes Plan To Put NY On A Path “Beyond Waste — New Solid Waste Management Plan Focuses on Minimizing Waste Up Front

For the first time in more than a generation, New York has finalized a new solid waste management plan, State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Acting Commissioner Peter Iwanowicz announced. The plan — “Beyond Waste: A Sustainable Materials Management Strategy for New York” — sets forth a new approach for the state, shifting from focusing on “end of pipe” waste management to reducing waste from the start. Municipalities, businesses and the public now have a framework that can help minimize waste, increase the use of materials that can be reused or recycled, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create green jobs.

“Beyond Waste: A Sustainable Materials Management Strategy for New York” guides DEC, municipalities, businesses and individuals in ways to significantly reduce the amount of materials destined for landfills and municipal waste combustion. New Yorkers produce more than 14 million tons of waste each year that is destined for landfills and waste combustors. This is a clear cost to communities and to the environment. In contrast, waste prevention saves money, conserves energy, avoids pollution, and protects our natural resources.

The plan seeks a progressive reduction in the amount of waste destined for disposal from the current estimate of 4.1 pounds per person per day to the ultimate goal of 0.6 pounds per person per day by 2030. That goal can be achieved through aggressive actions to reduce waste and increase reuse, recycling and composting.

“It has been more than 20 years since New York took a hard look at the amount of waste generated in the state and how to manage it. The old plan was out-of-date and no longer sufficiently effective,” Acting Commissioner Iwanowicz said. “This new plan takes the lessons we’ve learned over 20 years and sets forth a strategy that will be instrumental in helping the state and local governments reach attainable goals for waste reduction.”

Tom Rhoads, Executive Director with the Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency (OCRRA), said, “This plan raises important considerations on the direction and funding of trash and recycling programs in New York State. These essential environmental programs are important to all New Yorkers, who each have a stake in protecting the environment though waste reduction, recycling and proper disposal.”

Kate Sinding, Senior Attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, said, “The Solid Waste Management Plan reflects a sound, comprehensive, forward-looking approach to ensuring that New York State has a modern plan that reflects twenty-first century realities. The strong emphasis on extended producer responsibility in particular - which envisions a future in which those who manufacture products that end up as waste are financially responsible for their responsible recycling — demonstrates New York's commitment to being a progressive leader on managing the growing solid waste problem.”

A Different Approach
New York last issued a solid waste management plan in 1987. It placed a priority on preventing waste and made recycling mandatory. However, despite an increase in the awareness of recycling and reuse among the public and significant efforts by local governments, New York still generates about the same amount of waste today as in 1990 and only 20 percent of the municipal solid waste is being recycled.

The plan will help to guide communities around the state and will also be used by DEC and other state agencies in policy-making. The recommendations detailed in the plan include:

A new broad policy with a focus on waste prevention.
Education and incentives for consumers and businesses to help them reduce their generation of waste and recycle what cannot be reduced.
Policies and programs to improve waste prevention, reuse and recycling and to increase the recycling of organic materials, especially food waste.
A stronger emphasis on product and packaging stewardship, to extend responsibility for end-of-life management to manufacturers and, thereby, encourage them to use more recyclable and less toxic materials. By shifting some responsibility to the manufacturers, the plan also will aid local communities that currently shoulder the entire burden for materials management.

“Governor Paterson’s Electronic Waste Reuse and Recycling Act, enacted earlier this year, is a perfect example of how New York is at the forefront of this new shift in waste management,” Acting Commissioner Iwanowicz said. “The e-waste law requires manufacturers to take back their products for reuse or recycling, giving them an incentive to design electronics to maximize materials recovery. Over the long run, this will not only reduce costs but also help the environment.”

Earlier this year when the plan was first proposed, DEC conducted hearings and provided a public comment period which resulted in constructive input from stakeholders and the public. As a result, changes to the draft were made prior to finalization including: added emphasis that the plan does not establish any new mandates, but rather provides a framework with which municipalities and planning units can guide their management strategies; and retaining the original goal of reducing waste disposed to 0.6 pounds per person per day, but extending the time frame for realizing the plan’s goals from 2018 to 2030.

Rhode Island

Local America Recycles Day Celebration

You know you’ve had a successful recycling event when the lines are more than a mile long. Such was the truth on November 20, when Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation (RIRRC) held its annual Rhode Island Recycles Day event. By offering public favorites, they virtually guaranteed a high-volume turnout.

On hand was a shredding vehicle, which ripped through 110 tons of sensitive documents during the four-hour event. RIRRC helped residents sort non-sensitive documents onsite so that all consumer paper was captured.

An HHW and e-waste collection was held, and both were enormously popular — despite the fact that RIRRC holds similar collections throughout the year.

Although 3–7 plastics aren’t collected curbside in R.I. municipalities, RIRRC did accept them on R.I. Recycles Day. Adorning the parking lot of the facility was plenty of deck furniture, sand boxes, play houses and other assorted unwanted plastic.

By the end of the day, RIRRC had collected 30 tons of electronics, 115 tons of paper, 10 tons of household plastic, and 30 tons of HHW. The shredding vendor alone collected 110 tons of paper.

ADVISORY MEMBER NEWS

Bill Morris, President, Blue Star Recyclers (left) presents award to Perry Broxton, Purchasing Manager, Harrison School District 2.

Harrison School District 2 Receives Sustainability Star Award from Blue Star Recyclers

Blue Star Recyclers announced that it presented Harrison School District 2 with the 2010 Sustainable Star Award for their demonstrated commitment to responsible recycling of electronic waste, both in their school district operations and surrounding community.

The following is a list of their achievements in 2010:

Responsibly recycled over 18 tons of electronic waste
Hosted and sponsored the State Electronics Challenge Seminar for Southern Colorado public entities on September 17th, which resulted in other school districts enrolling in the SEC Program
Served as a role model for two other Southern Colorado school districts, who have implemented electronics recycling programs in 2010 as the result of their example

In addition to the significant and positive environmental impact resulting from their efforts, their support of Blue Star Recyclers has helped make it possible to provide vocational training and paid employment to over thirty adults with developmental disabilities.

e-Stewards Certification for e-Recyclers Growing Rapidly

As of early December, 19 electronics recycling operations had become Certified e-Stewards recyclers and another 59 sites were under contract with Certifying Bodies and at different stages of becoming certified.

"We are gaining momentum both with Pledged e-Stewards recyclers that are moving toward certification and recyclers that are entirely new to the e-Stewards programs", said Lauren Roman, e-Stewards Business Director for the Basel Action Network (BAN). "Our older Pledge program will sunset on September 1, 2011, at which time all recyclers in the e-Stewards program will be certified."

As market demand for e-recycler certification intensifies, BAN is fielding a growing number of inquiries from e-recyclers around world that are under mounting pressure from customers to undergo a third-party auditing and certification process. e-Stewards Certification, which incorporates ISO 14001 as the required environmental management system, is particularly attractive to global enterprises that generate e-waste at locations around the world and need to reduce the risks and costs of qualifying recyclers on their own.

To learn more about e-Stewards recycler certification, visit www.e-Stewards.org.

OF GENERAL INTEREST

Bill Heenan Steps Down & Gregory L. Crawford Appointed Executive Director, Steel Recycling Institute

The Steel Market Development Institute (SMDI) has announced that Steel Recycling Institute (SRI) President William M. Heenan, Jr. is stepping down due to health reasons after a distinguished career in the steel industry, including 20 years with SRI and 19 years with United States Steel Corporation. SMDI also announced the appointment of Gregory L. Crawford as executive director of the Steel Recycling Institute effective December 1, 2010, succeeding Heenan.

“Bill’s service to the steel industry over the last four decades will have an impact at least that far into the future,” Lawrence W. Kavanagh, president of the SMDI, said. “Building SRI from the ground up and establishing steel as the world’s most recycled material together are tremendous career accomplishments for one individual. However, Bill’s contributions to the industry go beyond these successes. His tireless work has positioned our industry to meet the increasing global demand for sustainable materials. We appreciate all that Bill has accomplished during his career and we wish him all the best for the future.”

“Bill has been a long-time friend and supporter of NERC, and many other important national recycling organizations and he will be greatly missed,” commented NERC Executive Director Lynn Rubinstein.

In announcing Crawford’s appointment, Kavanagh said: “Greg brings a broad range of technical and managerial expertise in both recycling and sustainability to his new position. This will be important as the mission of the Steel Recycling Institute broadens to include the exceptional life cycle performance of our material. We see this shift in focus as critical in helping the steel industry and its customers meet the changing needs of society and the marketplace.”

The Steel Market Development Institute (SMDI), a business unit of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), grows and maintains the use of steel through strategies that promote cost-effective solutions in the automotive, construction and container markets, as well as for new-growth opportunities in emerging steel markets. For more information, visit www.steel.org.

Manufacturers Demand for Recycled Materials Fuels Southeast Economy

At the November gathering of recycling professionals from across the region in Point Clear, Alabama, The Southeast Recycling Development Council (SERDC) unveiled the conclusion of a two year study documenting the heavy regional presence of manufacturers that depend on postconsumer recycled glass, plastic, paper, aluminum, and steel to make consumer and industrial products. The study finds that more than 206 key industrial facilities across the Southeast depend on recycled feedstocks that flow from community and commercial recycling efforts. These companies collectively employ more than 47,525 persons and see a sales volume exceeding $29.4 billion per year.

The economic data is presented in an interactive, on line map detailing the location of the 206 facilities. For each facility the mapping tool indicates the direct dollar impact and the number of manufacturing jobs created. Also included is information about which material is used and the consumer products produced. Additional information is readily available through links imbedded in the tool. The map can be sorted by material type, zoomed to specific areas or regions, and focused upon selected companies. “The Mapping Tool provides unique insight to the reliance upon recycling that has developed over the years in the Southeast. With the capability to drill in on any given location within a user defined radius while selecting the material types in question, planners and decision makers can now see the true effect of recycling on their local economy,” said Will Sagar, SERDC Policy Director, in his presentation of the mapping tool at The SERDC Recycling Summit, The Measure of Success in Point Clear, Alabama.

Also developed were individual statistics for the eleven SERDC states, quantifying specific manufacturing figures. Projections for the dollar value and tax generation created by moderate increases in recycling are presented as well. The mapping tool and state cards have been added to SERDC’s Resources page where other economic reports, state specific market directories, and links to waste exchanges are available to program coordinators and decision makers.

The motivation behind this project lies in connecting recycling’s impact to the Southeast’s strong manufacturing base. “Some of the nation’s and world’s largest recycling end users call our region home. Unfortunately, many have to look beyond the Southeast to find materials, while these same commodities are disposed in landfills across the Southeast,” said SERDC Chairman Steve Carreras.

By collaborating across state lines, SERDC works to build effective recycling collection systems that deliver local supplies of valuable materials to manufacturers who employ 10’s of thousands of people in the region. “When communities invest in local recycling collection programs in the Southeast, they ensure a flow of commodities to some of our most important businesses that has a much smaller carbon footprint than material coming from California or New York,” explains Scott Mouw, SERDC Board Member and director of North Carolina’s recycling program.

SERDC Policy Director Will Sagar is actively touring the Southeast meeting with elected officials, recycling associations, and industry representatives. Mr. Sagar says “The Southeast has active markets ready to grow and expand with local recycling collection programs. Today’s plastic bottles can turn into tomorrow’s carpet or new bottles, soda cans into more aluminum sheet, newspaper back into newsprint — all without leaving the Southeast. It’s a message that local officials are eager to understand and it is motivating them to step up material collection efforts.”

Findings of the research are housed in an interactive web database on SERDC’s Website www.serdc.org/regionalresources. Regional economic reports and state-specific fact cards are also available for download. This project was made possible in part with grants from the Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4 and Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs. For more information, contact Will Sagar, SERDC Policy Director.

Call for Presentations – DECON ‘11

The Building Materials Reuse Association is pleased to announce the Call for Presentations for the DECON 11’ Conference.

Deadline for Abstract Submittal: January 5, 2011.

The conference will feature three topic areas: Sustainable Communities, Deconstruction & Materials Reuse, and Construction & Demolition Debris Recycling. We will also welcome abstract submittals related to deconstruction and building material reuse outside of these topic areas. These tracks are intended to reflect the full spectrum of building materials conservation from new construction waste management to materials salvage to the incorporation of reused and recycled materials back into new construction.

We are looking for state-of-the-art and innovative presentations. We welcome slide presentations, videos, demonstrations, discussions and other forms of presentation. We encourage cross-cutting presentations that illustrate salvage, reuse, recycling and sustainable communities in one project.

Some suggested topic areas are given below. Please indicate which track and topic area your presentation best fits. If you are unsure, submit in the “other” category. All abstracts will be reviewed by the conference committee for acceptance. Speakers will be notified by the date below. All speakers must register for the conference to be assured a speaking slot.

Conference Topic Areas

Sustainable Communities Track

Deconstruction as a Economic Development tool
Green Jobs / Green Workforce Development
Building removal issues at the Municipal level
Deconstruction of Commercial and Industrial Properties (Schools, Hospitals, Warehouses, Businesses, Etc.)
Starting Reuse Stores (Feasibility Plans, Business Plans, Budgets, Etc.)
Reclaimed Materials Ordinances, Standards, Specifications
Case Studies – Shared Experiences
Other

Deconstruction and Materials Reuse Track

Deconstruction case studies
Innovative Deconstruction Practices & Reuse Case Studies
Safety Issues (including Hazardous Materials, Lead Paint)
Wage, Insurance, Liability, Tax Issues
Marketing of Materials and Services
Social Networking/Marketing (Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Websites)
Cost-Effective Inventory Tracking & Point of Sales Systems
Bidding
Designing with Reused Materials
Adding Value to Reclaimed Materials
Other

C&D Recycling Track

Writing construction and demolition waste management specifications.
LEED MR 2.1 and 2.2 - how to achieve construction waste management points
Case studies of construction and demolition debris recycling
Construction debris processing - equipment and methods
Hazardous materials in demolition and how they affect recycling
Drywall recycling
Shingle recycling
Educating and rewarding contractors
On site use of recycled materials
Demolition Partnerships
Other

Abstracts must be submitted electronically on the BMRA Website.
Instructions and Information for Submittal:

Navigate to the conference call for presentations, then click on Submit Your Abstract. You will only be able to submit your abstract once, so please have all information prepared ahead of time.
All information must be filled out to be considered. The conference committee will review your submission and respond by the date given below.
Abstracts must have (Presentation Title, Category, and Sub-Category, short description of presentation (one sentence suitable for inclusion in schedule) Presenters Name, Contact information, and short resume/bio of no more than 80 words.
Abstracts should be no more than 200 words.
Each presentation is limited to 45 minutes including Q&A.
Conference registration (discounted) is required for all speakers. See dates below.

DECON ’11 Co-sponsors: EPA, CT DEP, City of New Haven, and Yale University.