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January 2023

NERC’s Advisory Members

Distinguished Benefactors

Consumer Technology Association (CTA)

Benefactors

Coca-Cola

Samsung

Waste Management

Sustaining Members

  • Advanced Drainage Systems

  • American Beverage Association

  • Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR)

  • Blount Fine Foods

  • BlueTriton Brands

  • Bulk Handling Systems

  • Casella Resource Solutions

  • CLYNK

  • Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast, Inc.

  • Council of State Governments/Eastern Regional Conference

  • Eco-Products

  • Fire Rover, LLC

  • GDB International

  • Glass Packaging Institute

  • Henkel

  • Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI)

  • International Bottled Water Association

  • Keep America Beautiful

  • Keurig Dr. Pepper

  • MRM

  • Nestle USA

  • NEWMOA

  • PaintCare

  • Plastics Industry Association

  • Re-TRAC

  • Recycling Partnership

  • Republic Services

  • Reverse Logistics Group

  • Revolution

  • Serlin Haley

  • Sims Municipal Recycling

  • Sonoco

  • Strategic Materials

  • Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council (SPLC)

  • TOMRA

  • US Composting Council (USCC)

A list of all the logos of our Sustaining Members can be found under Advisory Members

Advisory Member Spotlight

Advanced Drainage Systems

New & Renewing Members

Distinguished Benefactors

Sustaining Members

Supporting Members

Newly Published

Blog

  • Does EPR Increase Consumer Costs? Spoiler alert - Not As Much as Critics Say
  • What's up with the global plastics treaty?

Webinar Recordings and Presentations

  • Strategies for Residential Food Waste Reduction & Composting
  • Rubber Modified Asphalt Workshop
  • Ground Glass Pozzolans - A More Sustainable Solution for Recycled Glass & Concrete
NERC In the News

Upcoming Virtual Events

Save the Date for NERC's Spring Conference

State Updates

MARYLAND

MASSACHUSETTS

PENNSYLVANIA

VERMONT

Advisory Member News

ADVISORY MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Advanced Drainage SystemsADS logo

Amongst the doom and gloom in much of today’s media concerning plastics recycling, there stands a success story in new NERC Advisory Member Advanced Drainage Systems (ADS). Headquartered in Ohio, ADS’s 3,500 field employees manufacture storm water and onsite septic wastewater solutions; more than 10 billion feet of ADS pipe are in service around the world. The company’s water management solutions are designed to last for decades.

In October, the Plastic Pipe Institute’s (PPI) Drainage Division awarded ADS its Project of the Year Award. The ADS warehouse project in Greencastle, Pennsylvania, uses five large underground stormwater storage systems that required 17 miles of Dual Wall N-12 corrugated pipe.

“The project shows how the use of HDPE pipe can protect the environment, lower greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the number of truck loads as a result of nesting the lightweight pipe,” PPI President David Fink said. “There is also the fact that HDPE pipe can be made using a high amount of post-consumer recycled HDPE material, taking single use HDPE bottles, for example, and turning them into pipe that will last for generations.”

The company’s accomplishments in the recycling space are considerable. The most recent annual ranking from Plastic News designates ADS as the largest plastic recycler in North America. “More than half of the plastic ADS purchased in 2021 was recycled, made possible by our pioneering plastic-blending program, company-owned and operated recycling facilities and unmatched engineering expertise,” the company stated. “In 2020, we also consumed 28% of all high-density polyethylene (HDPE) bottles in the entire country. HDPE is used to make plastic bottles for products such as laundry detergent, milk and shampoo.”

According to Kristen Rinehart, Vice President and General Manager of Recycling, ADS recycled about 600 million pounds of plastic in FY2022; drew nearly 61% of pipe product revenue from remanufactured products; and acquired Jet Polymer Recycling to quickly increase its recycling capacity. “Historically, the company has focused so intently on the materials science of recycled materials that today we’re producing the highest-quality recycled plastic pellets ever,” Rinehart stated. “It’s having a positive impact on both our production capacity and the quality of pipe we produce for our customers managing stormwater for our communities.”

Recycling, the company states, is one part of its sustainability commitments. It is a signatory to the US EPA’s America Recycles Pledge, to do their part in helping achieve the ambitious goal of increasing the national recycling rate to 50% by 2030. It has joined The Recycling Partnership’s Polypropylene Recycling Coalition, to advance their commitment to protecting water and keeping millions of pounds of plastic out of landfills each year.

Earlier this year, ADS signed a commitment to pursue Science Based Targets (SBTs) to reduce the Company’s greenhouse gas emissions. “ADS’ commitment to reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions reflects the Company’s broader goal to continue making progress on environmental stewardship initiatives,” President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Barbour stated. “We are proud to join the more than 2,000 businesses that are working with the Science Based Targets initiative to reduce emissions in line with climate science.”

NERC welcomes new Advisory Member Advanced Drainage Systems and looks forward to contributing to the company’s ongoing success through a collaborative partnership.

NEW & RENEWING MEMBERs

Membership is key to Northeast Recycling Council's regional and national commitment to circularity and sustainable materials management. For more information about NERC's Advisory Member program, please visit Nerc.org/Advisory-Members/What-Is-A-NERC-Advisory-Member and view our Advisory Membership Brochure.

Thank you to the following members for their support. We appreciate your commitment to Northeast Recycling Council and its mission.

Distinguished Benefactors

Sustaining Members

Supporting Members

NEWLY PUBLISHED

Blog

Does EPR Increase Consumer Costs? Spoiler alert - Not As Much as Critics Say

by Michael Washburn, The Recycling Partnership

The U.S. recycling system is not one unified entity – it is a network of 9,000 separate local recycling programs. Recycling access, infrastructure and education have been underfunded for far too long, leaving many U.S. residents, more than 40 million, without convenient access to recycling. Better access, infrastructure, and education is required for an effective and efficient system. We need smart, well-designed policy to improve the U.S. residential recycling system, to get it working efficiently, and provide sustainable funding for the system so that it can continue to improve in the future. Read more.

What's up with the global plastics treaty?

by Jon Smieja, GreenBiz Group

According to Pew and SystemIQ, plastic flows into the ocean are expected to triple by 2040. Immediate action, though, could stem the tide by more than 80 percent. That’s why when nearly 200 countries agreed to work toward a treaty to end the plastic pollution crisis in March, the circularity community cheered. That cheering, of course, was tempered by the fact that there is a long way to go and likely a lot of compromises to be made. Fortunately for all of us waiting, the International Negotiating Committee (INC) meetings have started. Earlier this week, I caught up with Erin Simon of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Dave Ford of the Ocean Plastics Leadership Network (OPLN), both of whom were in Uruguay for INC-1, to learn more about the process. Read more.

Webinar Recordings and Presentations

  • Strategies for Residential Food Waste Reduction & Composting
  • Rubber Modified Asphalt Workshop
  • Ground Glass Pozzolans - A More Sustainable Solution for Recycled Glass & Concrete

Watch recordings and view presentations here.

NERC IN THE NEWS

Experts tout the benefits of recycled glass pozzolans (Resource Recycling)

January 2, 2023 | by Jared Paben

Making new glass bottles is generally considered the highest and best use for cullet, but recycling glass into a cement substitute is actually better from a greenhouse gas perspective, speakers on a recent webinar said. The Northeast Recycling Council and Northeast Waste Management Officials’ Association recently hosted a webinar covering the recycling of MRF glass into pozzolans, which are a partial replacement for cement used in concrete. Read the full article.

Massachusetts C&D market recovering from major wood market disruption (WasteDive)

December 21, 2022 | by Cole Rosengren

Massachusetts C&D recyclers are recovering from a major market disruption for wood — their highest-volume commodity — that led to the state-approved disposal of material by two companies for many months this year…Massachusetts is also not the only state with some form of disposal limitation for wood, according to the Northeast Recycling Council. Read the full article.

Overcoming obstacles (Resource Recycling)

December 14, 2022 | by Mary Ann Remolador

“Skeptical” is the word that comes to mind when describing how many people feel about starting a municipal glass recycling program. This is a natural reaction. In recent years, glass has been removed from some curbside programs due to end-market closures as well as concerns about broken glass contaminating other materials at a time when bale quality standards were rising. Read the full article.

Upcoming VIRTUAL Events

 

NERC Webinars provide professional development opportunities to learn about a variety of topics related to material management. All webinars are offered at no cost and are open to anyone. View our webinar page.

Gypsum Wallboard Webinars 1 & 2

These two webinars will focus on improving the management of gypsum wallboard waste. Gypsum wallboard is a common construction material. When it becomes waste, it creates many problems at processing and disposal facilities. Diversion and recycling options are currently limited, especially in the northeast region.

Problems, Recommendations, & The Current State of Recycling
January 9, 2023, 1:00 - 3:00 eastern
 
Opportunities to Increase Recycling
January 24, 2023, 1:30 - 3:00 eastern
 
 NERC and NEWMOA logos
 

Material Reuse Forum 3

This quarterly deep dive forum discusses issues impacting the reuse of durable items—construction materials, consumer and household items, electronics, books, textiles, and fixtures and furnishings. Forum 3 will focus on data about the economic impacts of reuse at Finger Lakes Reuse, Reuse Minnesota and Zero Waste Washington.

Measuring Economic Impacts of Reuse
April 11, 2:00 - 3:30 eastern
 
CT DEEP logoNERC logo

SAVE THE DATE

NERC'S Spring Conference

Building a Diverse Materials Management Workforce
Recruitment, Hiring & Retention

April 3 - 4, 2023

Registration for NERC’s Virtual Spring Conference will open soon.

Stay tuned, and add the event to your calendar:

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State News

MARYLAND

During the 2021 legislative session, the Maryland General Assembly passed House Bill 264 or the Solid Waste Management – Organics Recycling and Waste Division – Food Residuals, Chapter 439 (law). The law requires certain persons that generate food residuals to separate said residuals and divert them from refuse disposal systems. The law took effect on January 1, 2023 and affects businesses generating at least 2 tons of food/week and are located within 30 miles of a facility that will accept and enter into a contract to all of the food waste. Complete details are available here.

MASSACHUSETTS

Annual C&D Materials Management Summit

The Environmental Business Council of New England (EBC) will host its 17th Annual C&D Materials Management Summit on the morning of Friday, January 27, 2023 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Westborough.  For more information and registration, go to the EBC website. This year’s summit will feature well respected industry and public policy leaders to address current economic impacts, recent industry trends, and changes in the C&D market. The event will be conducted in-person again for the first time in three years. And consistent with most EBC events, there will be time allotted for networking and panel discussions.

RecyclingWorks

RecyclingWorks in Massachusetts (RecyclingWorks), in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), hosted the RecyclingWorks MA Fall 2022 Forum virtually on November 9, 2022. This year’s forum focused on updates and resources to help businesses and institutions understand and comply with changes to MassDEP waste disposal bans on commercial food waste, textiles, and mattresses that took effect in Massachusetts on November 1, 2022. Over 130 businesses, institutions, service providers, nonprofit organizations, and other Massachusetts stakeholders came together to learn about the specifics of these changes, ask questions, and collaborate to find solutions. Read the full article here.

RecyclingWorks in Massachusetts has webpages dedicated to the reuse and recycling of mattresses, textiles, food waste, and other materials banned from disposal. Gauge whether your business or institution falls under the organics waste ban using RecyclingWorks’ food waste estimation guidance. The guidance presents sector-specific calculations that help assess whether your business or institution is generating a half-ton of food waste or more per week.

USEFULL and Mount Holyoke Partnership

Through a partnership with USEFULL on implementing reusable takeout containers, Mount Holyoke College has prevented over 3,000 pounds of single-use items from being disposed of since February 2022. The college’s switch to returnables has saved over 92,000 gallons of water and mitigated over 10,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions. Learn more about how the program works in this RecyclingWorks’ blog post.

PENNSYLVANIA

Food Recovery Infrastructure Grant; Opening of Grant Application Period – The Department announces an opportunity to apply for up to $50,000 in grant funding offered through the Food Recovery Infrastructure Grant Program. This funding is available for section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in this Commonwealth for grant assistance for the proper management and operation of food waste reduction. Grant applications must be submitted online through the Commonwealth’s Electronic Single Application web site, eGrants, at www.esa.dced.state.pa.us. Applications must be received by 11:59 p.m. on March 17, 2023, to be eligible for funding. Read the notice.

VERMONT

The State of Vermont, Department of Environmental Conservation, Solid Waste Management Program has posted it’s draft 2-page 2023 Biennial Report on Solid Waste for public comment. The final report will be submitted to the Vermont Legislature in January 2023. The report highlights future need for disposal capacity, PFAS toxicity impacts across waste and recycling systems, increasing HHW costs, challenges with recycling markets and bottle bill program operations, and impacts from rechargeable batteries in the waste and recycling systems.

Advisory Member News

Casella Announces First Electric Refuse Vehicle in Vermont

Casella Truck

Casella Waste Systems, Inc. recently introduced its Mack® LR Electric model, the first electric refuse vehicle in the State of Vermont.

Casella’s LR Electric refuse truck is the first in its fleet and has been equipped with an automated side-loader with a split body for collecting waste and recycling simultaneously. By switching one truck from diesel to electric, Casella expects to conserve over 7,500 gallons of diesel fuel per year, which has an immediate benefit to our air and climate. Because the fleet will be charging with Green Mountain Power, which delivers 100% carbon-free electricity, the company expects to eliminate over 78 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions per year, which is equivalent to taking around 16 passenger vehicles off the road.

The Mack LR E will be used on residential routes in the Rutland Region and was partially made possible when Casella successfully secured grant funding through the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust. Casella believes that Vermont will provide the right proving ground for the pilot program, testing against the mountainous terrain and cold winters.

“Sustainable innovation is core to everything we do as a company,” said Casella Chairman and CEO, John W. Casella. “The opportunity to pilot the Mack LR Electric in Vermont will help us evaluate whether this is a viable option in other markets that we serve. The opportunity to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, while maintaining a high level of service to our customers, is key to us.”

In 2005 Casella joined the EPA Climate Leaders as a charter member, and in 2012 the company was awarded the EPA’s Climate Leadership Award for Excellence in Greenhouse Gas Emissions after reducing its carbon footprint by more than 45 percent and has recently established a goal to reduce it by another 40 percent by 2030.

“This is another important milestone in our pursuit of becoming a more sustainable business while serving our customers in a way that helps them meet their sustainability goals as well,” Casella said. “This pilot program is an important step in understanding the viability of the technology and how we could potentially scale it.”

For more information on Casella’s sustainability efforts, visit www.casella.com/sustainability.

Clean Energy Renewable Natural Gas to Fuel Trucks for Pennsylvania Refuse Authority, WM and Others

Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE), the largest provider of the cleanest fuel for the transportation market, announced it is has begun providing renewable natural gas (RNG) for the Centre County Recycling and Refuse Authority (CCRRA) in Bellefonte, PA, supporting a transition to a cleaner, low-carbon fuel produced from organic waste.

“The recycling and refuse industry has long embraced natural gas to mitigate the impact of greenhouse gas emissions,” said Chad Lindholm, senior vice president, Clean Energy. “Our CCRRA station is one of the first on the East Coast to transition to RNG, and will further our sustainability goal of providing RNG at all of our stations by 2025.” 

Clean Energy constructed the station, located at 100 Transfer Road, which will provide fuel for both CCRRA vehicles and other fleets, and is expected to dispense an estimated 500,000 gallons of RNG annually. Switching the station from conventional natural gas to RNG will reduce carbon emissions by 3,696 metric tons each year – the equivalent of removing 803 passenger cars from the road, recycling 1,484 tons of waste instead of landfilled, and planting 61,601 trees.

“As a refuse and recycling authority, we are constantly promoting the benefits of a circular economy by purchasing products generated from the materials we handle daily,” said CCRRA Executive Director Ted Onufrak. “Migrating to RNG is just another example of how closing the loop can be beneficial economically and environmentally.

CCRRA also collaborated with the local WM affiliate to provide RNG as fuel for eight new CNG tractor-trailer units hauling over 4,300 loads of waste annually. This will support WM in meeting its goals of fleet conversion from diesel to RNG. Read the full press release.

CSWD MRF Receives Overwhelming Support

Chittenden County voters approved authorization for the Chittenden Solid Waste District to issue general obligation bonds to fund a new Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) to sort and process recycling from Chittenden County and beyond. The initial results showed over 80% in favor of the MRF ballot initiative. These results will be certified in the coming days.

“When it comes to conserving natural resources, Vermonters step up to do what’s right,” said Sarah Reeves, CSWD’s Executive Director. “We want to thank the voters of Chittenden County for supporting this important bond initiative that will allow Vermonters to recycle more. The new MRF will be more efficient and effective, providing meaningful environmental benefits and reducing Vermont’s carbon footprint. It is being designed with the ability to adapt to future changes in recyclable materials, some of which are still on the drawing board or even ones that we can’t imagine yet. It will be a modern facility to match Vermonters’ love of recycling. With this new MRF we look forward to helping Vermonters recycle better and more over the decades to come.”

CSWD will supplement the $22 million in approved general obligation bonds and notes with funds from reserves and grants. The loans will be repaid from MRF operating revenue. The District will begin permitting and design in 2023 with construction extending into early 2025.

“On behalf of the CSWD Board of Commissioners, I would like to thank the voters of Chittenden County for their resounding support for CSWD and a new publicly owned Materials Recovery Facility,” said Paul Ruess, Underhill Commissioner and Chair of the CSWD Board of Commissioners. “You have made a real, tangible difference in our state and for our planet by voting in favor of this critical infrastructure for Vermont’s recycling.” View the press release.

New Resources for APR PCR Certification

APR PCR Cert RibbonWe all play an important role in plastics recycling, and with the right tools, we can work together to make the circular economy a reality. In that spirit, APR is increasing recognition opportunities for reclaimers that have demonstrated leadership by receiving APR PCR Certification. APR has also developed new tools and resources for the APR PCR Certification program to best serve the needs of our members, program participants, and the broader industry:

Why choose APR PCR Certification?

This checklist can help you decide if APR PCR Certification is right for your company. Our certification is designed to meet legislated PCR requirements, certifies both mechanically and chemically recycled resin, and offers multiple independent auditors to choose from with no additional fee paid to APR.

Overview of the PCR Certification Audit Process for reclaimers

PCR Certification is a simple process and here we provide you a three step overview on how to get started and what getting certified looks like along with a one pager that breaks it down a step further with time and cost.

Procurement Guidance for brand companies & converters

If you haven’t yet started requiring Certified PCR, this document provides some of the important questions your procurement team should discuss with suppliers.

Stay tuned for APR PCR Product Certification in 2023! We are in the development stage of extending our certification from the pellet level to the end-product level in 2023. 

Salem Recycles Textile and TerraCycle DriveSalem Recycles

The SalemRecycles Committee hosted the annual Textile & TerraCycle Drive on November 19th in Salem, Massachusetts.  There were over 360 residents who participated by bringing clothing, household textiles and TerraCycle items to be recycled. The 26 foot HELPSY truck was filled THREE times and a whopping 9,237 lbs of textiles were collected!

The committee has also introduced a new collection, Rubbermaid to the TerraCycle Recycling programs. The City offers a permanent collection for these items on the first floor of City Hall Annex at 98 Washington Street.

Along with the multiple Textile Recycling options in Salem, the SalemRecycles Committee will continue to host the annual Textile Drive in November 2023.

Sonoco: Yes, We Can! Coming together to increase recyclability of rigid paper containers

Collaboration is the key to success. AMP, Sustana, and Sonoco came together to increase the recyclability of rigid paper containers. Watch the webinar recording to learn how you can increase the recyclability of under recycled products: Watch the webinar recording at the following link: https://vimeo.com/768577990. View speakers and information here.