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[X] CLOSEMENU

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Mary Ann Remolador, maryann@nerc.org
Date: January 28, 2022

Seeking Circularity with Non-Traditional Solutions—NERC’s Spring Virtual Conference

While we are busy continuing to live with the Pandemic, we risk losing sight of all the innovation occurring in reuse and recycling.  The Northeast Recycling Council’s (NERC) Spring Conference— Seeking Circularity with Non-Traditional Solutions—offers attendees an opportunity to virtually meet and discuss the industries’ many groundbreaking advancements. The two-day Conference will be held on April 12 – 13 (1 p.m. – 5 p.m. daily, eastern). The Conference Agenda provides details about the sessions and schedule.

Beginning with a keynote panel about Mergers & Acquisitions in Recycling, Doug Usifer of Capstone Partners, Cole Rosengren of Waste Dive, and Daniel Monahan of the United States Department of Justice will engage us in a provocative discussion about how to interpret and understand the impact of recent consolidations in the recycling industry.  The Conference continues with Kyle Wiens of iFixit and Camille Herrera of Driscolls talking about the latest developments in Ecodesign: Packaging & Circularity.  The first day wraps up with a lively panel discussion about The Sustainability of Batteries: Exploring Emerging Strategies; Mitchell Colbert of Vessel focuses on cannabis e-waste, Sean Plasse of Call2Recyle talks about the e-bike battery ecosystem, Ashlee Barker of New York City Department of Sanitation shares her educational strategies in the country’s most populous city, and Li-Cycle provides its perspective on the future of lithium batteries.

The second day begins with a session about Diversity, Equity & Inclusion as Part of Operations. While selection of panelists for the session is still underway at this time, the session will build upon a series of DE&I trainings hosted by NERC.

That is followed by a session about Agricultural Plastics: Challenges & Innovation.  Gene Jones of the Southern Waste Information Exchange talks about the obstacles and opportunities for agricultural mulch film recycling; Dan Martens of Novamont discusses microplastics in the soil; Richard Backer, EHS Manager, Tivoli, shares his findings from a 5-year review of the Northwest Solid Waste District’s (Vermont) single use agricultural plastics diversion program; and Cherish Miller of Revolution describes a circular approach to using post-consumer recycled agricultural film for direct food contact packaging.

A discussion about Construction & Demolition Debris: New Strategies for Reusing Old Materials will wrap up the Conference. John Culbertson of MSW Consultants talks about knowing the waste characterization of C&D; Tim Mulso of Scott Equipment Company focuses on drywall recycling; Paul Rolandini of USA Hauling & Recycling discusses LEED Credits; and Mathieu Germain, of Sanexen talks about the use of C&D Fines.