July 2020
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
New & Renewing Memberships
Renewing Benefactor
Renewing Sustaining Member
Renewing Supporting Members
- Carton Council
- City of Reading, Pennsylvania
- Connecticut Recyclers Coalition (CRC)
- Foam Cycle
- Pennsylvania Recycling Markets Center (RMC)
- Resource Recycling Systems (RRS)
NERC News
- NERC’s Fall Event, Now a Virtual Conference—October 20 - 22
- Be Recognized for Environmental Leadership - NERC Environmental Sustainability Leadership Award - Deadline August 14
- AgSTAR’s Anaerobic Digestion Resource for Farms - July 16, 1:30 pm eastern
- Introduction to the Government Recycling Demand Champion Program - Webinar July 22, 2 pm eastern
- Teaching Practical Strategies for Reducing Wasted Food Through Community Events Webinar - August 5, 2 pm eastern
- NERC to Hold Northeast Glass Virtual Forum – September 1 – 2
- New NERC Leadership
- Minimum Recycled Content Mandates - NERC Committees at Work
- NERC’s Social Media Presence Continues to Grow
Newly Posted
State Updates
MASSACHUSETTS
- Recycling Works in Massachusetts Updates & New Resource
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Free Webinar: Recycling 101 for Multifamily Property Managers
Advisory Member Updates
New & Renewing Memberships
Membership is key to NERC's regional and national commitment to sustainable materials management. We would like to thank renewing Benefactor Samsung, and renewing Sustaining Member Marcal, a Soundview Paper Company.
Several Supporting Members also recently renewed:
- Carton Council
- City of Reading, Pennsylvania
- Connecticut Recyclers Coalition (CRC)
- Foam Cycle
- Pennsylvania Recycling Markets Center (RMC)
- Resource Recycling Systems (RRS)
Thank you to all our Advisory Members. To see a complete listing of NERC's Members and Supporters, as well as the benefits of membership, visit the NERC Advisory Membership web page.
NERC News
NERC’s Fall Event, Now a Virtual Conference—October 20 - 22
NERC has made the decision to hold its Fall event as a Virtual Conference. Not an easy decision, but we are aware of the continued limitations and constraints resulting from the Pandemic. To ensure the greatest benefit and enjoyment to attendees, the Conference has been reformatted to three consecutive afternoons:
October 20, 21, and 22, 1 – 5 pm eastern
The Changing Face of Recycling: Finding New Solutions is the new theme for the Conference. Insightful panels and sessions will explore strategies for moving forward with recycling end-markets, effective recycling messaging, textiles reuse, managing lithium batteries, and more.
All registrations previously received for NERC’s Spring ’20 Conference will be applied to the Fall Conference.
The Conference Registration and Agenda will be available by mid-July.
For more information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director & Events Coordinator.
Be Recognized for Environmental Leadership - NERC Environmental Sustainability Leadership Award
Advancing and supporting a sustainable economy and environment is especially critical this year. In recognition, NERC seeks nominees for its annual Environmental Sustainability Leadership.
The award program offers a unique opportunity for individuals and companies in NERC’s 11-state region that demonstrate an impact on an environmentally sustainable economy in furtherance of the NERC mission. Awards are given to the public and private sector, with a special category reserved for NERC Advisory Members.
To be eligible, an organization or individual must be located within one or more of NERC’s 11-member states. Applications are due August 14.
Award presentations will be made in October during the NERC Conference. For more information about the Conference, visit the NERC website.
A copy of the Award Application – 2020 NERC Environmental Sustainability Leadership Award is available for download.
For more information, contact Lynn Rubinstein, Executive Director.
AgSTAR’s Anaerobic Digestion Resource for Farms Webinar - July 16, 1:30 pm eastern
Register Here
On-farm anaerobic digestion is a great way to process manure and other organics. Understanding the details about how to make it all work is vital to its success. The webinar will feature EPA’s—Anaerobic Digestion Project Development Handbook—a new resource that outlines the details of setting up and operating an on-farm anaerobic digestion system. AgSTAR’s Handbook includes:
- Process Fundamentals
- Digester Feedstocks
- AD/Biogas System Products, Equipment and Uses
- Economic and Financial Factors
- Screening and Feasibility Studies
- Business Relationships
- Permitting
- Public and Community Outreach
- Safety, Operation, and Maintenance Considerations
- Additional Tools and Resources
Webinar Presenter 
Vanessa McKinney is the Program Manager for EPA’s AgSTAR Program, where she works with U.S. livestock, biogas, and government stakeholders to advance the deployment of digesters and biogas systems. She has over a decade of experience in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and air emissions regulation and policy.
For more information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, Assistant Director.
Introduction to the Government Recycling Demand Champion Program - Webinar July 22, 2 pm eastern
Taking action to support the recycling industry is essential - especially these days. A new national program, the NERC-APR Government Recycling Demand Champion Program, provides a simple strategy for closing the loop by buying products with post-consumer plastic recycled content.
Learn more on a free webinar, Wednesday, July 22, 2 pm eastern. All are welcome.
For more information, contact Lynn Rubinstein, Executive Director.
Teaching Practical Strategies for Reducing Wasted Food Through Community Events - Webinar, August 5, 2 pm eastern
ReCook Cafes and similar events are emerging as a fun and effective way to help residents learn about practical strategies for reducing wasted food. They also help to build and strengthen communities. This webinar, co-hosted by NERC and NEWMOA, will share the experiences in New York State and Vermont with planning and holding these kinds of events and the key results and lessons learned.
Presenters will be:
- Gary Feinland, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Anne Bijur, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation
- Jesse Kerns, Syracuse University Center for Sustainable Community Solutions.
For more information, contact Lynn Rubinstein, Executive Director.
NERC to Hold Northeast Glass Virtual Forum – September 1 – 2
Recycled non-bottle bill glass will be the focus of the Northeast Glass Forum. This virtual event will be held from 1 – 5 pm eastern on September 1 and 2. The Forum will focus on glass market issues specific to the Northeast with glass professionals, glass processors, and glass product manufacturers.
The Forum agenda includes the following sessions:
- Why Glass Recycling Remains Important
- Alternative Glass Markets for the Region’s Non-Bottle Bill Glass
- Economics of Glass Recycling – An overview of the costs for recycling and processing glass
- Preparing Your Glass for Recyclers: Know Your End Market Needs
- Strategies & Technologies for Cleaning, Handling, & Transporting Glass
- Strategies for Moving Glass Recycling Forward in the Northeast
For more details about the Forum speakers and schedule go to the Forum Agenda.
Sponsorship Opportunities Available
Forum Sponsors
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Government Sponsor |
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New NERC Leadership
With the new fiscal year comes a change in NERC's leadership team. The Executive Committee for fiscal year 2021 is:
- Robert Isner, Connecticut, President of the Board
- Josh Kelly, Vermont, Vice President
- Rick Watson, Delaware, Treasurer
- Lynn Rubinstein, NERC, Secretary
We'd like to thank Kaley Laleker, Maryland, for serving two terms the Board President.
Minimum Recycled Content Mandates - NERC Committees at Work
NERC has begun two initiatives focused on developing model legislation for minimum recycled content in products sold into a state.
Glass
- The NERC Glass Committee is working on model legislation for minimum recycled glass content in beverage containers. Mary Ann Remolador is staffing the committee.
Other Products & Packaging
- A joint initiative with NEWMOA is focused on developing model legislation for non-glass packaging and products. The committee is still working on identifying what materials and products will be the focus of the effort. Lynn Rubinstein is staffing the committee.
NERC’s Social Media Presence Continues to Grow
When I started managing NERC’s Facebook and Twitter (handle @NERecycling) social media platforms, I envisioned the role as one in which I could exercise my research skills and indulge my curiosity. Cast one’s line far enough, and the gamut of subject material, from the humorous to the deadly serious, from the local transfer station to international associations, can be caught.
Email has always been important at NERC for documenting communications. If anything the medium has become even more so during the pandemic, as co-workers work remotely; associates whom we usually see at NERC’s twice-yearly conferences increasingly rely on email to keep us informed of their current activities. When I arrive in the office, the first thing I do is launch my email, followed by Facebook and Twitter (and QuickBooks; my primary role at NERC is bookkeeper). In addition to those emails from State and Advisory Members and others, I subscribe to several weekly email newsletters which often lead me to stories of interest.
For ten years I worked as a journalist, covering issues relating to sustainability and corporate social responsibility. In that role I developed literally scores of contacts who continue to regularly email me about developments affecting them. Not surprisingly, I soon learned there was considerable overlap between issues of interest to sustainability and resource management. So even before I reach the office in the morning, I scour my personal email account for stories that would interest NERC’s Facebook and Twitter followers.
About those followers: since I started managing the platforms, the numbers of followers have increased exponentially, to 900 on Facebook and over 2,200 on Twitter. Twitter followers have especially increased in numbers. The activities of all those followers provide yet another source of social media postings, as I often repost Facebook posts and retweet Twitter.
I wrote in a previous update, “Robert Kropp...scours numerous online sources to share important and breaking news affecting the whole of the recycling industry: citizens struggling with the specifics of what goes in their recycling bins, municipalities and states faced with challenging new recycling paradigms, and industry members seeking to increase their use of recycled materials.” Today, added to that would be the current concerns of recycling in a pandemic and employment diversity in the waste management industry.
“None of the impressive numbers recounted here would mean much if they did not contribute to NERC’s mission of impactful dialogues on mutually important subjects,” I also wrote previously. “NERC believes the increases (in social media followers) align with a resurgent commitment to the benefits to society that recycling and overall waste reduction bring.”
NERC also posts a weekly blog on its website. The blog, which features guest writers as well as pieces written by NERC staff, is regularly the most popular page on NERC’s website, according to analytics. NERC’s blog welcomes comments as well. Readers can scroll down to the end of any piece, where there is space for leaving a comment and engaging with the leading issues in the recycling and sustainability spaces.
NERC continues to welcome the opportunity to share some of the most important industry insights with its social media followers, and encourages those followers to enter into dialogue with us.
For more information contact Robert Kropp.
Newly Posted
How the COVID-19 Pandemic has Impacted Reducing & Recovering Wasted Food Webinar - May 20 - PowerPoints & Recordings Posted
NERC, in collaboration with NEWMOA, recently hosted a national webinar about COVID-19 and impacts on food waste reduction. A complete recording and the PowerPoint presentations are now available.
State Updates
MASSACHUSETTS
RecyclingWorks in Massachusetts Updates & New Resources
RecyclingWorks in Massachusetts (RecyclingWorks) is a statewide program in Massachusetts, funded by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) that provides free recycling assistance to Massachusetts businesses and institutions. RecyclingWorks recently published a new web page with recycling guidance and resources for property managers which is available here. This guidance focuses on what property managers need to do to comply with Massachusetts waste disposal ban regulations and how they can run effective recycling programs, whether for residential or commercial tenants. The web page also features this guidance in a fact sheet format.
RecyclingWorks also published an update on the number of Massachusetts businesses and institutions that have contracted with haulers for separate food waste collection. This number increased from 2,300 businesses and institutions in 2018 to 2,900 in 2019, a 26% increase. Since 2014, when Massachusetts’ commercial organics waste disposal ban went into effect, the number of these entities receiving food waste collection has grown from 1,350 to 2,900, more than doubling.
Free Webinar: Recycling 101 for Multifamily Property Managers
Multifamily property managers across the state are finding that as more people are staying home, so is their waste! A large part of that waste is actually resources, such as cardboard boxes and other materials that don’t belong in the trash. Increasing recycling is an important part of a healthy supply chain, as it provides feedstock for domestic box and container manufacturing companies. Recycling is also the law in Massachusetts.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection recently hosted a free webinar for multifamily property managers. The webinar, Recycling 101 for Multifamily Property Managers, featured speakers from RecyclingWorks in MA and Recycle Smart MA. Attendees learned how to comply with MA recycling regulations (aka Waste Bans), handle challenging materials, contract with haulers, and access free communication resources to help tenants become smarter recyclers. All are invited to watch and share the webinar recording.
RecyclingWorks recently published a new web page with recycling guidance and resources for property managers which is available here. The web page also features this guidance in a fact sheet format.
Advisory Member Updates
GreenBlue Composting Infrastructure Maps
GreenBlue has developed several interactive maps and charts of composting infrastructure and supportive legislation in the United States, available on Tableau Public: