NERC in the News
Impact of Recycling: What the New Numbers Mean
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The Pennsylvania Recycler, published by the Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania (PROP), Summer 2009
By John Frederick, Outgoing PROP Executive Director
The economic benefits of recycling, composting and reuse have been widely publicized in Pennsylvania over the last ten years since the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) first completed its initial Recycling Economic Information (REI) Study.
Good News and Bad News
The magnitude of benefits in that first study were impressive and helped to build support for recycling, even among those who were not particularly motivated by its environmental benefits. But the report was based on data that was somewhat dated even in 2000. By 2008, the accuracy of the data became a concern.
At the urging of our Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Pennsylvania helped support funding for an update of REI. Beyond updating the information, the study partners also wanted to improve the methodology of the analysis, further enhancing the credibility of the report.
This turned out to be good news and bad news . . .
Click here to continue to read John Frederick's full report and the sidebar "Changes in Methodology." 
