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July 2022

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

New & Renewing Membership

Renewing Benefactor

New Sustaining Member

Renewing Sustaining Member

New Supporting Member

NERC News

Newly Posted

State Updates

MASSACHUSETTS

Advisory Member News

New & Renewing Memberships

Membership is key to NERC's regional and national commitment to circularity and sustainable materials management. We thank our renewing Benefactor, Coca-Cola, and welcome our newest Sustaining Member Henkel Corporation, and renewing Sustaining Member Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast. We are also welcoming our newest Supporting Member, the Ag Container Recycling Council.

Thank you to everyone for supporting NERC and its mission. 

NERC News

Applications being Accepted for NERC Executive Director Position

NERC is seeking an experienced leader with well-developed management and facilitation skills who can broaden NERC’s impact on minimizing waste, conserving natural resources, and advancing a sustainable economy through facilitated collaboration and action.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Board of Directors and managing a remote staff of 2, the Executive Director will oversee NERC’s programs, projects and collaborations, operations, fundraising and external communications to forward NERC’s mission.

Interested candidates can read the full position description and application instructions at Northeast Recycling Council Executive Director.

If you have any questions or suggestions for potential candidates or referral sources, please feel free to share them with me directly or forward to TSNE Executive Search Consultant, Anna Asphar, anna@a3boston.com.  

NERC’s Fall Conference Agenda & Registration Coming Soon

NERC’s staff is in the process of finalizing the Fall Conference sessions with the Agenda Planning Committee.  The topics to be featured at the Conference are:

  • Food Waste Reduction
  • Reuse/Waste Reduction
  • Market Development & Support
  • Relationship Between Materials Management & Climate Change

We anticipate posting the agenda and registration later this month.

Conference Dates:  November 2 – 3 

Location:  Hartford South Hotel, Rocky Hill, Connecticut 

Sponsorship and Exhibitor Opportunities Available

Conference contact:  Mary Ann Remolador

Annual Environmental Leadership Award - Applications Being Accepted

Advancing and supporting a sustainable economy and environment is especially critical this year.  In recognition, NERC seeks nominees for its annual Environmental Sustainability Leadership.

This year, NERC will honor an organization or individual that has demonstrated activities that resulted in expanded markets for post-consumer feedstock of materials collected from residential recycling programs in one or more of the NERC member-states. The end-market itself, does not need to be in one of the NERC states, but preference may be given if it is. Applications are due August 12.

The award will be presentations November 2, during the NERC Conference in Rocky Hill, Connecticut. For more information about the Conference, visit the NERC website.

A copy of the NERC 2022 Environmental Sustainability Leadership Award Application is available for download.

For more information, contact Lynn Rubinstein.

NextCycle - A Model for Recycling Market Development Webinar

NERC, in partnership with RRS and NextCycle, will be hosting a webinar on August 10, 2 eastern, about the NextCycle model for recycling market development. The webinar will focus on Michigan and include presenters from the public and private sectors.  Register here.

Presentations will include:

  • Identifying the Circular Economy Gap – Matt Flechter, Recycling Market Development Specialist, Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) 
  • Utilizing Co-Design to Ensure Equity & Inclusion – Kamal Patel, Co-Founder + Designer, Traversal (tentative confirmation) 
  • NextCycle Approach to Building Circular Economies – Elisa Seltzer, Senior Consultant, RRS 
  • NextCycle Team Perspective (Private Sector) – Rebecca Hu, Co-founder, Glacier 
  • NextCycle Team Perspective (Public Sector) – Brad Austin, Director of Operations, Marquette Solid Waste Authority
  • NextCycle Project Partner Perspective – Paulina Leung, Chief Sustainability Officer, Emterra 

Register here.

Newly Posted

NERC FY23 Operating Plan & Budget

NERC's programming expectations and priorities for are available in the NERC FY 2023 Operating Plan & Budget. For more information, contact Lynn Rubinstein.

Avoiding Contamination in Food Waste Feedstock for Composting

Webinar recording

Glass Webinars - Presentations & Recordings Available

With funding from USDA, NERC hosted the webinars— Successful Glass Recycling in Rural Communities and The Nuts & Bolts to Starting a Glass Recycling Program in a Rural Area. 

The links to the speaker presentations and webinar recordings are available:

Glass Contact: Mary Ann Remolador.

State Updates

MASSACHUSETTS

Massachusetts School Green Team Winners for 2021-2022

State environmental officials recognized students from 27 schools across the Commonwealth for outstanding environmental actions as members of the “Green Team,” a statewide environmental education program sponsored by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). Students of any age can participate in the Green Team program, an initiative composed of students that share the goals of reducing pollution and protecting the environment.

This year, 219 classes registered for the Green Team, which included more than 40,000 students at 192 schools. Of those, 27 classes received prizes for their efforts related to recycling, composting, and sustainability. Three schools won grand prizes for schoolwide participation in recycling and/or composting programs and will receive performances by environmental “edu-tainer” Jack Golden. Seven schools focused their efforts on composting and community gardens and received gift cards to local garden centers for trees and gardening supplies to further enhance their school or community garden.

To learn more about the Green Team, or to participate in the 2022-2023 school year, visit: https://thegreenteam.org/.

MassDEP 2021 Solid Waste Survey Data Now Available

The Municipal Waste Reduction Branch has posted the 2021 Municipal Recycling and Solid Waste Survey data on the MassDEP website at the following link: https://www.mass.gov/lists/recycling-solid-waste-data-for-massachusetts-cities-towns. This information is reported by municipalities on a yearly basis and includes annual trash and recycling tonnages, solid waste program and service descriptions, waste reduction elements and types of recyclables, difficult to manage and hazardous materials collected, and more. The spreadsheet includes data from municipalities that submitted their reports by the February 15th deadline. Municipalities are required to submit their 2020 and 2021 data through the online platform Re-TRAC Connect™, if they plan to apply for Recycling Dividends Program funds or other grants through our Sustainable Materials Recovery Program (SMRP).

Advisory Membership News

Massachusetts’ Springfield MRF Unveils Video

The Massachusetts’ Springfield Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) unveiled Me and My Bin, a light-hearted video about the important roles MRFs and individuals play in maintaining a strong U.S. recycling program. The highly entertaining, six minute video was professionally produced with financial assistance from the Carton Council of North America which aims to promote food and beverage carton recycling as well as supporting the improvement of all recycling.

Newest APR Recycling Demand Champion Companies & 2021 Impact Announced

The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) is pleased to announce that its program designed to drive market demand for recycled plastics generated 138.7 million pounds of new demand for postconsumer resin (PCR) in 2021. The APR announced the latest program results, as well as the new companies joining the program for 2022, during the recent June APR Member Meeting.

First launched in 2018, the APR Recycling Demand Champions Program has experienced tremendous growth over the years, with a combined 384 million pounds of new demand for PCR since its launch. The Program tracks incremental usage of PCR, meaning participating companies are increasing the amount of PCR they're using year after year. For 2021, the 138.7 million pounds of PCR isn't simply the total amount of PCR these companies used; this figure represents the increased PCR usage by these companies.

“We are thrilled with the growth we experienced in 2021 and since 2018, particularly during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” commented Ali Briggs-Ungerer, APR’s Director of Market Development. “It's particularly remarkable that every single one of the 2021 Champions is a renewing Program member, which really demonstrates their ongoing commitment to boost demand for PCR.”

The APR Recycling Demand Champions that increased their use of PCR in 2021 include:

  • Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc
  • Automated Drop Systems
  • Avery Dennison Corporation
  • Berry Global
  • Champion Polymer Recycling
  • Charter Next Generation
  • Chick-fil-A,
  • Clean Tech / Plastipak Packaging
  • Colgate Palmolive Company
  • General Mills
  • Intertape Polymer Group
  • ISOFlex Packaging
  • Keurig Dr Pepper
  • Novolex Holdings,
  • PAC Worldwide
  • Pactiv Evergreen
  • PepsiCo
  • Rehrig Pacific Co
  • Revolution
  • Scotts Miracle-Gro
  • Silgan Closures
  • Silgan Plastics
  • UPM Raflatac
  • Viva Healthcare Packaging (Canada)
  • Waste Management
  • Westfall-Technik

“The need for continued and growing demand for postconsumer recycled content is essential to the success of plastics recycling and a key focus for APR,” said Steve Alexander, President & CEO of APR. “Although we most certainly need more feedstock to achieve real growth, we must recognize the wide range of applications for recycled plastics including durable, non-food items, which are what this program was built on from the beginning.”

The following companies have committed to increase their use of PCR in 2022:

  • Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc
  • Automated Drop Systems
  • Avery Dennison Corporation
  • Berry Global
  • Champion Polymer Recycling
  • Charter Next Generation
  • Chick-fil-A,
  • Clean Tech / Plastipak Packaging
  • Electrolux North America
  • General Mills
  • Intertape Polymer Group
  • ISOFlex Packaging
  • Keurig Dr Pepper
  • Novolex Holdings
  • PAC Worldwide
  • Pactiv Evergreen
  • PakTech
  • Rehrig Pacific Co
  • Revolution
  • Scotts Miracle-Gro
  • Silgan Closures
  • Silgan Plastics
  • TC Transcontinental Packaging
  • UPM Raflatac
  • Viva Healthcare Packaging (Canada)
  • Waste Management
  • Westfall-Technik