June 2007
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
Renewing Sustaining Members
· Newspaper Association of America
NERC NEWS
· NERC’s Fall ‘07 Conference Planning is Well Underway
· NERC Continues Work On EPP For Businesses
· Spring Board of Director Meeting Minutes Posted
STATE UPDATES
CONNECTICUT
· What’s in Your Medicine Cabinet?
· Waste Matters – You Can Help Find Solutions
· Keeping the Mercury from Rising
MASSACHUSETTS
· Toxics Use Reduction Act Regulations Amended to Allow Alternative Planning
· Upcoming Massachusetts WasteWise Forum
· Organics Summit 2007 Sets Record Attendance
NEW JERSEY
· DEP Commissioner Promotes Recycling Policies
RHODE ISLAND
· Classroom Presentations & Tours Break Attendance Records
VERMONT
· Next Steps in Vermont’s Waste Prevention Planning Process
· The First Annual Vermont Organic Summit
· Workshop: Making Your Print Jobs More Environmentally Friendly
NEWS FROM ADVISORY MEMBERS
· CRRA Upgrades its Hartford Recycling Facility
· WERECYCLE! To Open New York Metropolitan Area Facility
OF GENERAL INTEREST
· Job Opening – Executive Director, Association of Vermont Recyclers
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Send an email to executive.director@nerc.orgmaking the request. Please be sure to include your full name and organization.
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NERC's mission is to advance an environmentally sustainable economy by promoting source and toxicity reduction, recycling, and the purchasing of environmentally preferable products and services. |
State and Advisory Member Updates are provided as submissions to NERC and may not reflect the policy or position of the Northeast Recycling Council, Inc.
TOPICS
We are very pleased to share with you the following:
Renewing Sustaining Members:
· Newspaper Association of America
Thank you!
It is through the active participation and support of its Advisory Members that NERC is able to provide the strength of multi-stakeholder involvement and problem solving.
To see a listing of Advisory Members and the benefits of membership, visit the NERC Advisory Membership web page.
It is the broad spectrum of interests represented by NERC’s Advisory Members and Board Members and their willingness to participate that significantly contributes to the unique and important role that NERC plays in recycling in the region.
New Office Manager Joins NERC Staff
We are delighted to announce that Mr. Moon Morgan of Greenfield, Massachusetts, has joined the NERC staff as Office Manager on May 21. Moon replaces Chaille Blais, who left NERC after 3-1/2 years for a fundraising position at the Brattleboro Memoria lHospital. Among other responsibilities, Moon will provide support to the NERC staff and Board.
Moon brings more than 25 years of professional experience in nonprofit management to his position at NERC. He was General Manager for Creative Classrooms Inc. and Walnut Hill Seminar House in Raymond, New Hampshire, for seventeen years and Office Manager at the Western Massachusetts Enterprise Fund Inc. in Greenfield, Massachusetts, for six years. Facilities at Creative Classrooms included an educational materials recycle center, which provided a variety of materials from local manufacturers to educators for use in classrooms.
Please join us in welcoming Moon to the NERC staff.
NERC’s Fall ‘07 Conference Planning is Well Underway
NERC staff would like to thank the NERC State and Advisory Members that provided us with your “picks” on Conference session ideas. Over the next month, staff and the Executive Committee will be developing the agenda design. Look for the preliminary agenda on NERC’s website in July.
Fall Conference Dates & Location - October 16 -17, Hotel Northampton, Northampton, MA
Contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC’s Conference Organizer, if you have any questions regarding the Fall Conference.
Northeast States’ Boat Wrap Survey Prompts Interest in Starting New Boat Wrap Collection & Recycling Program
As part of the preparations for NERC’s Spring ’07 Conference, staff surveyed the ten Northeast states on the boat wrap collection and recycling programs being implemented in each state. Directly after the Conference, the summary of survey responses was posted on NERC’s website. As a result, a woman from Pennsylvania found the summary and contacted NERC to find out who she could talk to about getting the boat wrap collected and recycled at the marina she was associated with on the Delaware River.
This inquiry is a great example of an ad hoc request we get at NERC, the process used for responding to inquiries, and how the responses can lead to recycling market development opportunities. Inquiries from the general public account for approximately 25% of the calls we get. In this case, NERC staff knew from the survey that there is no specific person working on boat wrap in Pennsylvania. Instead, we turned to the people we know from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the Pennsylvania Recycling Markets Center to assist this person. In response, potential processors for the material were identified. This information, as well as the enthusiasm of the recycling professionals in the state, has prompted the Pennsylvanian woman to commit to organizing the collection herself.
For additional information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC’s Assistant Director
NERC Continues Work On EPP For Businesses
NERC staff continues to promote its Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Peer-to-Peer Business Mentoring project and tools by making presentations at state events--the Federation of New York Solid Waste & Recycling Conference on May 8, and the 7th Annual South Texas Resource Recovery Roundtable on Green Purchasing on June 8. The PowerPoint presentation from these presentations will be available on NERC’s website in mid-June.
A Guide to EPP Mentoring is available that describes the peer-to-peer mentoring process and how it can be replicated.
For additional information, contact Mary Ann Remolador, NERC’s Assistant Director
Spring Board of Director Meeting Minutes Posted
Minutes from the March 15, 2007 NERC Board of Directors meeting are now posted.
CONNECTICUT
Advice from the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection - What’s in Your Medicine Cabinet?
Have you looked in your medicine cabinet lately? You might find unused prescription medicines, expired over-the-counter products like aspirin, cold remedies, vitamins and supplements, even pet medications. Do you think that flushing them down the toilet or the sink is the best way to get rid of them?
Flushing unwanted drugs down the toilet or sink does prevent someone from accidentally or intentionally taking the medicine. But, disposing of them in this way causes water pollution because they pass through septic systems and sewage treatment plants untreated.
Drugs in the water, even in highly diluted concentrations, can have adverse effects on fish and other aquatic wildlife. For example, estrogen and estrogen-mimicking compounds have been shown to cause a “feminization” of some kinds of fish.
Health care facilities and businesses are regulated and have systems in place to safely dispose of pharmaceuticals and hazardous wastes. But individuals have fewer options. However, we can do our part to prevent environmental damage by disposing of these products in the best way possible -- by safely putting them in the trash.
The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection recommends that you carefully follow these steps before you put any medicines in the trash:
1. Keep the medication in its original container.
§ To protect privacy and discourage misuse of the prescription, cross out the patient’s name with a permanent maker or duct tape the label.
2. Modify the medications to discourage consumption.
§ For solid medications, such as pills or capsules: add a small amount of water to at least partially dissolve them.
§ For liquid medications: add enough table salt, flour, charcoal, or nontoxic powdered spice, such as turmeric or mustard to make a pungent, unsightly mixture that discourages anyone from eating it.
§ For blister packs: wrap the blister packages containing pills in multiple layers of duct or other opaque tape.
3. Seal and conceal.
§ Tape the medication container lid shut with packing or duct tape.
§ Place it inside a non-transparent bag or container such as an empty yogurt or margarine tub to ensure that the contents cannot be seen. Do not conceal medicines in food products because animals could inadvertently consume them.
4. Discard the container in your garbage can. Do not place in your recycling bin!
Waste Matters – You Can Help Find Solutions
You may know that the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection has a new plan in place to manage the state’s trash through the year 2024. However, what you may not know is that you can play a big role in helping accomplish the goals set out in the State’s Solid Waste Management Plan by being part of the Advisory Committee.
CT DEP needs creative ideas to meet some very challenging goals that have been set, like doubling the current rate of recycling, dealing with issues such as electronic wastes, getting the toxics out, reducing the amount of packaging, and composting.
Keeping the Mercury from Rising
Mercury has become a household word. Statewide, there has been a tremendous effort over the past five years to educate residents about the dangers of mercury, and laws have been put in place to ban the sale of many products that contain mercury. Mercury thermostats, blood pressure cuffs and fever thermometers are among those products that are no longer available in Connecticut since non-mercury alternatives exist.
While most people know that thermometers and thermostats have mercury, many may not realize that compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) also contain a small amount, about 5 mg, and need to be disposed of properly. However, since CFLs are much more energy efficient than regular (incandescent) bulbs, and last almost 10 times longer, using them reduces mercury emissions. This is because burning fossil fuels to produce electricity releases mercury into the environment, and incandescent bulbs use more electricity.
When CFLs burn out they should be recycled at a household hazardous waste (HHW) collection and not just thrown in the trash.
MASSACHUSETTS
Toxics Use Reduction Act Regulations Amended to Allow Alternative Planning
Significant statutory changes to the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Act (TURA) now allow resource conservation planning and environmental management systems ( EMS) as options to traditional toxics use reduction (TUR) planning. TURA – enacted in 1989 - requires certain facilities to report their use of toxics and explore ways to reduce their toxics use and waste through toxics use reduction planning.
The TURA statutory changes provide new flexibility for TURA filers that may not have significant remaining TUR opportunities to focus on source reduction opportunities in water, energy, solid waste, or non-TURA regulated chemicals and to identify facility improvements that result in both economic and environmental benefits. The first opportunity for alternative planning will be the 2008 TURA planning cycle.
The TURA planning regulations are now being revised by MassDEP, along with specific guidance materials. MassDEP expects to go out to public comment with these changes in July 2007 with the goal of issuing final regulations and guidance in January 2008. Proposed regulations will be posted on the MassDEP web site at http://www.mass.gov/dep/service/regulations/newregs.htm. For more information on TURA visit http://www.mass.gov/dep/toxics/toxicsus.htm. For more information or questions on the planning changes, please contact Julia Wolfe.
Upcoming Massachusetts WasteWise Forum
The next Massachusetts WasteWise Forum will be held on Thursday, June 21st at Worcester State College. The theme of the forum is "Don't Waste Our Climate". Speakers will be discussing relationships between waste and climate. Learn how to calculate your greenhouse gas emissions and ways to reduce your carbon footprint. Case studies presented by WasteWise members will demonstrate corporate climate change initiatives taking place locally. A tour of Worcester State College's "single stream" recycling program will be conducted after the technical session. This event is open to current and prospective WasteWise members.
Organics Summit 2007 Sets Record Attendance
In keeping with its theme Gaining Ground in Organics Recycling, the MassDEP's 7th Organics Recycling Summit held on March 6th, experienced its largest attendance yet, with nearly 220 attendees from 16 states. Conference participants were able to visit with 22 exhibitors, hear presentations on anaerobic digestion, commercial organics collections programs, expanding municipal yard waste programs to include food waste and purchasing biodegradable food service ware. In addition, MassDEP incorporated biodegradable plates and cutlery into all meals. MassDEP also offered site tours the following day to WeCare Organics, a commercial composting facility in Marlboro, Whole Foods Market in Bellingham, a MassDEP certified supermarket and Groundscapes Express in Wrentham, a compost facility and erosion control and landscape company.
NEW JERSEY
DEP Commissioner Promotes Recycling Policies
The Garden State remains a national leader in reducing the amount of solid waste it sends to landfills but must do more to reverse sagging municipal recycling rates, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa P. Jackson said during ceremonies marking the 20th anniversary of the landmark law that made New Jersey the first state to make recycling mandatory.
“Two decades ago, New Jersey became the first state to require recycling because we were facing a dire shortage of landfill space,’’ she said during ceremonies commemorating the Statewide Mandatory Source Separation and Recycling Act of 1987.
“Recycling remains just as relevant today, and has implications for the future of our entire planet,’’ she continued. Equally important in the battle against global warming, making products from recycled aluminum, paper and glass requires a small fraction of the energy needed to make the same products from raw materials, Commissioner Jackson added.
Meanwhile, the Department’s Reinvigorating Recycling Work Group has recommended an action plan that includes development of a new “branded” recycling message; increased enforcement for achieving recycling goals; and development of legislative initiatives to, among other things, reduce packaging and increase recycling of electronics.
DEP’s Bureau of Recycling and Planning has also commissioned a survey of state residents to help state and local governments better understand what levels of convenience and other factors would boost public involvement in recycling. Survey results will be released later this year.
More information on recycling in New Jersey, including county-by-county breakdowns of recycling rates, visit http://www.nj.gov/dep/dshw/recycling/.
Commissioner Jackson recognized the following during the recycling law commemoration:
The Association of New Jersey Recyclers - For more than 20 years, ANJR has represented the interests of hundreds of local recycling coordinators in New Jersey.
Converted Organics - Converted Organics was issued a permit to build and operate an in-vessel digesting facility at Bayshore Recycling Corp. in Woodbridge. This will be the first of its kind on a large scale in the nation. It will take 500 tons per day of food waste and convert it into a soil amendment for farming.
Hesstech, LLC - Since its inception 10 years ago, Edison-based electronics recycler Hesstech has maintained a policy of not sending toxic materials to landfills or overseas. The company has more than tripled its processing facility, and now utilizes more than 50,000 square feet of processing space.
PSEG - As a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency WasteWise Hall-of-Fame member, PSEG has reduced waste dramatically since forming its Resource Recovery Group in 1993. PSEG has always been a premier member of the New Jersey WasteWise Business Network and is a member of DEP’s Reinvigorating Recycling initiative.
Steel Recycling Institute - Steel is the most recycled material in North America, surpassing the tonnage of recycled paper, plastic, aluminum and glass combined. The Steel Recycling Institute is dedicated to lessening the environmental impact of steel production.
Rutgers University - Rutgers finished in first place overall in this year’s RecycleMania, a nationwide recycling competition held on more than 200 college campuses. Rutgers recycled 50 percent more than the next finisher. The University was tops in the food-service recycling category and took second place in the collection of bottles and cans.
Valerie Montecalvo of Bayshore Recycling Corp. - Montecalvo started Bayshore Recycling Corporation in Woodbridge in 1995. Since that time, she has developed the company to include the Converted Organics facility.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 2 - EPA’s regional office in New York City has assisted New Jersey’s Reinvigorating Recycling initiative by dedicating the services of its WasteWise contractors to provide technical assistance to promote and refine recycling practices for businesses. Using the NJ WasteWise Business Network as a forum, technical assistance will be offered to businesses interactively through workshops.
Zozzaro Industries - Zozzaro Industries is a 65-year-old company and recycling pioneer in New Jersey. In a single shift, the Clifton facility generates more products per square foot than any other recycling plant in the country. They are already the single largest paper processor in the state, managing the paper marketing responsibilities for more than 100 New Jersey counties and municipalities.
RHODE ISLAND
Classroom Presentations & Tours Breaking Attendance Records at R.I. Resource Recovery
At Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation, tours of the Central Landfill and MRF have been more popular than ever since the beginning of this fiscal year.
Since July 1, they have welcomed 152 classroom tours. Educators also travel to classrooms to speak to schools that are unable to visit RIRRC headquarters. To date, 318 presentations have been given at schools throughout Rhode Island – 230 of them featuring MaxMan, RIRRC’s recycling superhero. During these presentations to students, MaxMan encourages children to participate in recycling in their homes and help their parents understand all the materials that can be recycled.
“We’ve broken all records with attendance so far this year,” said Paul A. Caccia, education/waste prevention coordinator at RIRRC. “Between our tours and classroom presentations, we have reached more than 60,000 students with our educational programming here at our facilities and out in the classrooms. Up until a few years ago, we were reaching 8,000-10,000 students annually, which was a number to be proud of. But the program has really grown by leaps and bounds in the last two years, allowing us to accommodate many more visitors.”
In 2005, the tour of the Central Landfill was named “Best Field Trip” by Rhode Island Monthly.
VERMONT
Next Steps in Vermont’s Waste Prevention Planning Process
Over 100 people participated in the Agency of Natural Resources Waste Prevention Forum on April 12. The Forum was the first step of the Agency’s stakeholder driven process to develop a state wide waste prevention plan.
As a follow-up to the Forum, the Agency is forming a statewide Waste Prevention Steering Group to include representatives from each of the major stakeholder categories (including environmental, retail, manufacturing, groceries, ski areas, hospitality, healthcare, waste haulers, disposal facilities, waste managers, institutions, education, colleges/Universities, legislature, agriculture, food service, offices, builders, contractors, reuse and C&D businesses, architects, engineers). The Steering Group’s charge will be to work with DEC to guide the development of an action-oriented Vermont Waste Prevention Plan.
The First Annual Vermont Organic Summit
On March 29, the Agency of Natural Resources held the First Annual Vermont Organic Summit - Gearing Up for the Challenge. Over 100 people participated. The Summit provided the first opportunity for generators, haulers, composters, regulators, nonprofits, and administrators to hear about many of the programs occurring in Vermont. Jean Bonhotal, from the New York Cornell Waste Management Institute, provided the keynote address. The workshop covered basics on food donation to the Vermont Foodbank as well as all the basics of composting so attendees could come to a similar level of understanding. It also featured 12 information tables and seven vendor booths from companies and non-profits where attendees could get more detailed information on their topics of interest. Because of an overambitious agenda, regional round tables were not held. There was an energetic brainstorming session on steps the State could take to increase composting of organic waste.
Workshop: Making Your Print Jobs More Environmentally Friendly
The Business Environmental Partnership, in conjunction with Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility and the Vermont Environmental Consortium, is launching a free environmental networking series. Quarterly events will focus on creating a venue for Vermont business to network and learn about a variety of environmental topics. Future events will focus on “green” purchasing, energy efficiency, climate change, “green” building, and others.
Workshop -- Making Your Print Jobs More Environmentally Friendly -- Date -- June 5, 2007, 2:00 to 4:00, Barre, VT.
Does your organization utilize an outside printer for jobs like annual reports, business cards, marketing materials, and letterhead? Did you realize there are ways to make your print jobs more environmentally friendly? Come learn from the experts what options are available to “green-up” your print jobs. Representatives from Hull Printing will cover how to pick a “green” print shop and detail environmentally preferable paper and ink options.
NEWS FROM ADVISORY MEMBERS
CRRA Upgrades its Hartford Recycling Facility
The Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority (CRRA) has received a modified solid waste permit to construct and operate an intermediate processing facility in Hartford, Connecticut. The facility will accept mixed paper fiber and commingled containers, and will segregate, sort, bale and consolidate the materials for sale as commodities.
New processing equipment includes an eddy current separator for segregating aluminum, and infrared optical scanner for sorting plastics, a disc screen for segregating cardboard from other fiber, and a glass beneficiation process designed to produce a marketable glass product. The new equipment will significantly enhance the facility’s operational efficiency. This modification increases the facility’s daily capacity from 210 tons per day (TPD) to 560 TPD.
This facility will continue to support CRRA’s Mid-Connecticut Project, which provides solid waste recycling, resource recovery, and disposal services to 70 municipalities in Connecticut.
From Lancaster, Pennsylvania to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, communities all over the Northeast have taken advantage of a free radio PSA provided by the
Curbside Value Partnership – and so can you! In the spot, consumers are educated on the ease and importance of curbside recycling and are asked to go on-line to find out how they can participate locally.
And… it works! Since December, when it was launched, the “Desperate Housewives” PSA has already aired almost 1,000 times. The RE3 program in North Carolina also recently used the PSA during a statewide radio campaign. It’s available at no cost in: 15, 30 and 60 second versions that also include localization through a partnership with
Earth911.org.
WERECYCLE! To Open New York Metropolitan Area Facility
WeRecycle!, Inc., is expanding its recycling capacity by opening a new facility just outside of New York City. This new facility will provide local recycling infrastructure to process the growing electronic waste created by New York City’s businesses and residents. WeRecycle!’s 56,600 square foot facility in Mount Vernon, New York, is expected to open by July 1st, and will operate in addition to WeRecycle!’s current facility in Meriden, Connecticut.
WeRecycle!’s new facility will use cutting edge technology to guarantee data destruction, while recycling in an environmentally responsible manner. The facility’s demanufacturing process will be highly automated, and includes a 300 HP Quad Shredder specifically engineered to process electronics.
OF GENERAL INTEREST
Job Opening – Executive Director, Association of Vermont Recyclers
25-year old, environmental, non-profit based in Plainfield, VT is seeking an Executive Director to lead the organization in its efforts to provide environmental education and strengthen its membership. Responsible for managing five employees, administering/seeking grants, developing/tracking budgets. The position is full-time, salaried with benefits. Interested individuals should contact Paul Tomasi of the Northeast Kingdom Waste Management District for more information.