New RecycleMania champions crowned

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

This year's RecycleMania Tournament has concluded, with 523 participating colleges and universities collectively recovering 90.3 million pounds or recyclables and organic materials.

The eight-week competition, which ran through February and March 2013, seeks to use college rivalries and schools' competitive spirits to drive waste reduction and recycling efforts at U.S. and Canadian colleges.

During the 13th annual tournament, updated weekly rankings allowed schools to track their performance in eight categories, including recycling rate, overall recycling by weight, lowest amount of total waste, as well as per capita recovery for paper, cardboard, cans and bottles and food waste. Colleges also participated in several special categories, as well as the "Game Day: Basketball" category, which ranked schools based on recyclables collected at a single home basketball game.

The colleges and universities that took home top prizes in the three primary categories include:

• The University of Missouri-Kansas City, which took home the "Grand Champion" title for recycling 86 percent of scrap during the competition.
• California State University-San Marcos won the "Per Capita Classic" by collecting 53 pounds of recyclables per person, the highest total pounds of recyclables collected of any participating college.
• Valencia Community College in Kissimmee, Florida won the "Waste Minimization" award for generating only 3.20 pounds per person, the lowest amount of recyclables and trash generated per capita at any participating college.

 

Alec Cooley, director of recycling programs for national beautification organization Keep America Beautiful and program manager for RecycleMania, says that while the organizers of the competition will be doing a survey to get more feedback on how things went, he saw some positive improvements in this year's event.

"Overall, we had a drop in the number of schools participating, but we saw an increase in [the volume] materials recycled," he says.

This year, e-scrap was introduced as a material category in the competition for the first time, with about 86 schools participating, he says. Of the participating schools, the University of San Diego came out on top, collecting 80,000 pounds of e-scrap or 8 pounds per capita.

Plastic film was another category of material introduced to the competition this year, as it has become used more frequently on college campuses, says Cooley. However, schools did not collect a large volume this year. Bowdoin College in Maine collected the most out of participating school at 1,410 pounds, or about half a pound per capita.

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Survey finds with age comes more recycling

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

The results of a new survey have found a generational gap in recycling behaviors, among other findings.

According to marketing firm DDB's Life Style Study, a long-running study of attitudes and behaviors, millennials lag behind boomers in making efforts to recycling. The survey-based study found that 66 percent of boomers recycle everything they possibly can, versus 53 percent among millennials. Sixty-four percent of boomers separate recyclables from the rest of the trash, while only 53 percent of millennials do so. Additionally, 54 percent of boomers use reusable grocery bags as much as possible. Only 46 percent of millennials do so.

The study, which did not define the ages for the two generations, also found, however, that there are few, if any, differences in their level of concern about the environment when compared to the boomer generation.

Other findings in the study include 83 percent of American adults saying that protecting the world's ecosystem is important, and 85 percent saying that recycling is important. Overall, 61 percent of American adults say they make a strong effort to recycle everything they possibly can.

However, most Americans are not willing to choose the environment over their wallets or quality of life, according to the study, which found that only 43 percent of respondents would pay more for an environmentally-safe version of a product and that only 37 percent would be willing to accept a lower standard of living to conserve energy.

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Minneapolis single-stream expansion hits second phase

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

Minneapolis is continuing its expansion of its single-stream recycling collection program, which will eventually encompass every single-family household in the city.

The city's Department of Public Works has begun Phase 2 of the program by sending out 80,000 One Sort carts to single-family households, reports MinnPost. The program began last fall, with an initial 30,000 of the 95-gallon carts being delivered to households. The online newspaper reports that during the program's first six weeks, collection of recycled material increased by 63 percent.

Under the old system, according to MinnPost, only 18 percent of households participated in the recycling program. Under the new system, the materials allowed in the bin were expanded as well, to include plastic containers Nos. 1 through 7 as well as cartons.

The $9 million overhaul of the city's recycling collection program is expected to be completed in June.

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EPA to allow plastics recycling from shredder scrap

By Jake Thomas, Resource Recycling

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced an interpretation of regulations that will allow more plastics recovered from metal and automobile recycling facilities to be recycled.

In 2011, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries sent a letter to EPA requesting clarification about separating plastics from automotive shredder residue (ASR) recovered from metals recycling facilities, maintaining that taking measures to reduce any polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) is legal under current regulations. The letter stated that resolving regulatory uncertainty surrounding the recovery of plastics from shredder residue could result in more of this material being recycled.

PCBs are flame retardants that were banned from being used in most manufacturing in 1979 by the Toxic Substances Control Act, but continued to be allowed to be used in some "enclosed use" products, such as capacitors and insulation fluids in transformers. The vast majority of PCBs at issue, however, come from older cars that were manufactured before the ban came into effect more than three decades ago.

The EPA held a public comment period in 2012 on its proposed interpretation of regulations that would allow for the recycling of plastics recovered from ASR. Most of the comments supported EPA's interpretation, arguing that it would produce environmental and economic benefits. Others objected, questioning the data and analysis of the interpretation, as well as its legal basis. Some also raised environmental justice issues.

On April 4, the EPA issued a notice of its interpretation of the regulations that will "generally allow for the recycling of plastic separated from shredder residue" under procedures developed by ISRI in consultation with the agency. Generally, the interpretation allows for the processing of materials with PCBs with concentrations that are less than 50 parts per million.

"EPA has concluded that the costs associated with the strict prohibition on PCB activities are large and outweigh the risks posed by these activities," reads the notice.

"The technologies for separating and recycling the plastics are already being employed in Europe and Asia, and the agency's action will now allow similar investments to be made here in the U.S., instead of overseas," Robin Wiener, president of ISRI, said to Bloomberg BNA, commenting on the rule change.

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RR Conference 2013: Looking at dual- and single-stream

It's widely known that single-stream recycling collection has become increasingly popular in North America. The primary factors cited for the switch include potential cost savings and the potential for higher diversion, but how has this switch actually impacted municipalities? A thorough assessment, prepared for the Continuous Improvement Fund, turns a critical eye towards nearly 30 single- and dual-stream systems as it examines implications regarding collection, processing, end-market material quality and diversion potential.

Find out what works for recycling at the 2013 Resource Recycling Conference to be held August 26-28 at the Marriott Louisville Downtown in Louisville, Kentucky. For more information, including information on booking a hotel room, session topics, or exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities, please visit www.rrconference.com or click on the banner below.

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NewsBits

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

In Iowa, backers of an expanded bottle bill are trying a new approach to promote adding materials to the Hawkeye State's beverage container redemption program that involves cupcakes. Supporters of legislation that would put a 5-cent deposit on non-carbonated beverage containers, such as water bottles and energy drinks, put plastic bottles in the mailboxes of lawmakers with note saying that it could be redeemed for one cupcake from bottle bill supporters on the first floor rotunda, reports WHOTV.com.

Webber Energy Group at the University of Texas, Austin has a released a video highlighting its recent research, with support from the American Chemistry Council, on converting residue from materials recovery facilities into solid fuel recovery pellets. The pellets are made from 60 percent plastic MRF residue and 40 percent post-industrial paper waste.

St. Petersburg, Florida's recycling program is overpriced, antiquated and insufficient compared to many other cities in the state, according to a report from Kessler Consulting reported on by The Tampa Bay Tribune. The report, commissioned by the local chapter of the League of Women Voters, also found that, of the 50 most populous cities of the Sunshine State, only St. Pete doesn't offer regular curbside pick-up of recyclables. It further noted that residents of the city recover about 122 pounds of trash per household annually through drop-off recycling centers, compared to an average of about 260 pounds for cities that offer curbside collection of recyclable materials.

According to a survey conducted by the National Asphalt Pavement Association under contract to the Federal Highway Administration, record-high levels of recycled materials were used in the construction of new pavements and the use of energy-saving warm-mix asphalt also reached a new high during the 2011 construction season. The survey found that about 66.7 million tons of reclaimed asphalt pavement and 1.2 million tons of reclaimed asphalt shingles were collected in the U.S. during 2011 for use in making pavements.

During the last six years, Winchester, Virginia-based Trex, a maker of maker of composite building products, has kept more than 2.5 billion pounds of plastic and wood scrap out of landfills by using the materials to make decking and railing.

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Operation Green Fence is deeply affecting export markets

By Jerry Powell, Resource Recycling

China no longer wants to receive garbage from other countries. As a result, enhanced import inspections by Chinese customs officials have led to severe recycling market confusion worldwide, especially for shippers of recovered paper and plastics.

China's new president, Xi Jinping, says that checking containers of recyclables for waste must be a top priority for customs officials. Existing regulations limit the amount of non-recyclable materials in bales, but enforcement of these rules has been lax. According to many sources, this laxity is going away.

Inspectors are now operating under a new program, "Operation Green Fence," and are reportedly inspecting nearly every container. A special team of inspection officials has been created to attack the problem of high levels of waste in bales imported from Europe, North America and elsewhere. Because inspections slow down port operations, shippers are now seeing rising demurrage costs as they pay ports to hold containers until they are inspected.

Definitive assessments of the market impact of enhanced inspections are not available, with much of the current analysis relying on rumor. It is known, however, that a number of containers have been rejected in China, especially for mixed paper and mixed rigid plastics scrap.

It is also known that several large exporters, such as America Chung Nam, have increased their container inspections here in the U.S., before the containers are delivered to the port for shipping. Resource Recycling has obtained a "Supplier Letter of Awareness" from ACN, the largest exporter of recovered paper from the U.S., which details numerous "items of concern" including:

• Zero tolerance for banned items, such as e-scrap, textiles, green waste, animal/human waste, insects, animals, food waste, medical waste, etc.
• Prohibitive levels must be maintained below 1.5 percent on a bale-by-bale basis. Common examples include wood, metal, glass and plastic.
• Material shipped as "waste paper" but incorrectly declared is cause for customs penalty, including shipment of convertible items such as rolls, reels, boxed or plastic-wrapped paper, cut sheets, etc. Wire baling is the only acceptable form of packaging for "waste paper."
• Wet material (exceeding 12 percent "air-dry" standard) creates an environment for degradation where material can pick up dirt, inviting additional scrutiny, regardless of prohibitive level.
• Loading photos for each container must be sent on or before the cut-off date for each booking, so that they may be reviewed in a timely manner. Shipment will be suspended and potentially returned for any failure to do so.
• Make sure each container is clear of foreign matter/debris before loading (items such as those for blocking/bracing and items such as moisture absorbent gel packs left by previous shipper).

 

Some recycling market analysts contend that this changing situation in China is the key reason why prices for some recovered materials in the U.S, have declined over the past few weeks. Several recovered paper shippers say they are more and more unwilling to ship to China, and they are seeking domestic orders instead. They contend this has resulted in domestic mills being able to push prices down by about $10 per ton. Other recycling industry players report the same activity in the plastics market.

And demand in China has slumped. For example, global shipments of recovered paper to China in the first two months of this year, at 5.1 million tons, were down 18.4 percent in comparison to the same period in 2012.

Several observers have offered ideas on what may now happen under Operation Green Fence. For one, some plastics shippers say their Chinese buyers will begin pushing for washed or granulated plastics and no longer seek bales of mixed material. And some market players feel Vietnamese buyers will jump in the void by buying bales of paper or plastics containing high levels of contaminants. These buyers will then manually sort the bales, remove the garbage and rebale the fibers or plastics before shipping the containers to China.

One likely effect of the Chinese bale inspection program will be revised bale specifications by U.S. consumers of fibers and plastics. This was a topic at this week's annual convention of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries in Orlando. An executive of a domestic recycled paper producer said his company was likely to tighten the specifications soon for the bulk grades consumed at the firm's mills. "We're pleased that the Chinese government has taken this action," he said. And a large plastics reclaimer said his company had already started to reject bales that previously, before the Chinese crackdown, it would have been forced to buy.

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Resource Recycling Conference 2013: Getting more out of multifamily recycling

If you are responsible for managing apartment recycling or are looking for ways to increase residential recycling rates, then you can't afford to miss this informative panel focused exclusively on new research on improving the distinct and sometimes challenging world of multifamily recycling. Be prepared to take extensive notes and go back to work armed with valuable, concrete information on how to improve your outreach strategies and boost your recycling rates. Case studies, tips and best practices will be shared at this can't-miss presentation.

Open up to new ideas at the 2013 Resource Recycling Conference to be held August 26-28 at the Marriott Louisville Downtown in Louisville, Kentucky. For more information, including information on booking a hotel room, session topics, or exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities, please visit www.rrconference.com or click on the banner below.

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EPA spared large cuts in new budget

By Jake Thomas, Resource Recycling

President Barack Obama has introduced his 2014 budget, which cuts funding to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency by 3.5 percent from 2012 levels, affecting some recycling programs.

The president's proposed budget for the EPA includes a reduction in funding to waste minimization and recycling programs operating under the purview of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which establishes the agency's authority to control hazardous and non-hazardous waste. While RCRA gives state and local agencies the authority for managing waste as recycling, EPA still provides information, guidance and polices to these entities to help them increase recycling and reduce waste.

Under the president's budget, $9.4 million would be directed to waste-minimization and recycling programs under RCRA, $68,000 less than the amount in the 2012 budget.

Another initiative operating under the purview of RCRA is the EPA's Sustainable Materials Management Program, which includes several components meant to increase recycling and reuse of resources while seeking to shift "waste management" to "materials management." Under the program, EPA convenes dialogue with "key stakeholders," provides science and information to the public, while also establishing challenges to specific sectors, including government agencies, aimed at reducing waste.

During fiscal year 2014, EPA will seek to use the SMM program to offset the annual use of virgin resources by 8.6 million tons, while also working on ways to manage food and used electronics more sustainably.

In a conference call with the EPA's top officials, Resource Recycling asked how the cuts to RCRA would impact the SMM program.

"That cut is not going to result in cuts to Sustainable Materials Management," replied Mathy Stanislaus, EPA assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response.

"The EPA wants to move forward on that because of the environmental and economic benefits of that program," he added.

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Recology trial heading to jury

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

In California, a whistle-blower lawsuit against Recology, a large waste management and recycling company, will be given a jury trial.

In 2009, Brian McVeigh filed a lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court alleging that Recology, which employed him as a supervisor in the Bay Area, illegally fired him in retaliation for complaining about other employees who were defrauding the state's bottle bill program.

According to documents in the case, McVeigh witnessed employees overpaying customers who brought in bottles and cans at a Recology redemption center, in addition to other unscrupulous activities.

McVeigh's suit sought redress under the state's whistle-blower protection law, but had his case dismissed by the San Francisco Superior Court. In January of this year, an appeals court partially reversed the decision by the lower court, ruling that he did have a case under the state's whistle-blower protection law.

On April 4, 2013, the appeals court formally sent the case back to the lower court. David Anton, an attorney for McVeigh, told Resource Recycling that he expects the trial to occur within a year. Both sides have asked to have the trial held in May of next year, he said.

Recology did not return a request seeking comment.

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Vermont bottle bill draft report raises eyebrows, objections

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

As the Vermont legislature considers an update to the state's 40-year-old bottle bill, the state's Agency of Natural Resources has issued a draft report comparing an expansion of Vermont's container deposit law to other waste and recycling management options.

House Bill 375 and Senate Bill 65 would expand the state's container deposit law to include bottled water and all carbonated and non-carbonated beverage containers (excluding milk and milk substitutes). Currently, both bills are in their respective Natural Resources and Energy Committees.

As the report is still in draft form, the authors – DSM Environmental Services and the Tellus Institute – have yet to make final recommendations on the expansion of Vermont's bottle bill, but do offer an interesting analysis of the cost and returns of the expanded bottle bill versus single-stream and dual-stream collection of recyclable materials, as well as other options, which has some bottle bill advocates crying foul.

For example, the study calculates the cost of the current system to be $19.5 million per year, at a cost per ton of $210. Under an expanded bottle bill, the annual cost is estimated to be $35.6 million at $282 per ton, compared to $18.3 million per year at $156 per ton under a hypothetical scenario where the state's container deposit law is repealed and replaced with single-stream collection.

Both the Container Recycling Institute and the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, had previously issued statements highlighting the bottle bill's success in Vermont, but have now responded directly with criticisms of the findings and methodology used in the Vermont ANR report.

"The study used some significantly different assumptions about the costs of the bottle bill system compared to their previous two reports. Their numbers just don't add up," said Susan Collins. "I looked up the numbers in previous reports in 2007 and 2010, and the system cost estimate roughly doubled in this new report from $5.6 million to $10.5 million, without explanation."

Collins says the study includes "special trip costs" as part of the consumer costs for a bottle bill system, assuming containers are only returned to redemption centers using a dedicated trip, and not part of other errands or other trips. She also points out that study assumes only 1 percent of paper tonnage would be lost to contamination under a single stream system for instance, which she described as "overly optimistic."

Additionally, VPIRG and CRI say several stakeholders have weighed in on the perceived conclusions of the report, and on the Vermont bottle bill in general. Stephen Segebarth, Government Relations VP for glass giant Verallia North America said, in a letter to the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, "Recovering a product that is usable by glass manufacturers from single-stream collection is akin to unscrambling an egg."

Another letter to VT DEQ was more blunt.

"The study appears to underestimate the cost of a stand-alone single-stream system, and overestimate the cost of single-stream recycling accompanied by the current bottle bill or an expanded bottle bill," said Vermont Sierra Club vice chair David Ellenbogen. "I'd like to emphasize is that the study externalizes the cost of a dirtier, more littered, Vermont. The study also regards cost as if it doesn't matter whether the cost is borne by consumers, distributors, manufacturers, or by Vermonters who may not even consume bottled beverages."

"Our charge was to analyze Vermont's bottle bill," explains Ted Siegler, principal at DSM Environmental Services. "This report was a first draft report to Vermont ANR. It is highly unusual for a first draft report prepared for the client to be circulated throughout the U.S. before the client has had a chance to review it, but that is how Vermont ANR chose to move this process forward because of all the interest in the report. While CRI and VPIRG are making those statements, Vermont ANR actually received 16 sets of comments from solid waste districts, MRF [materials recovery facility] operators and the Vermont Beverage Association arguing that we have underestimated costs and that we have overestimated contamination rates specific to Vermont's two MRFs. Perhaps the true costs lie somewhere in between."

The Vermont Legislature is expected to adjourn in mid-May, although the reports have been prepared independently of any legislative action. The final version of the report is expected to be released this fall.

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Ontario reconsiders eco-fees

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

In Ontario, officials are planning an overhaul of a controversial set of fees meant to pay for the recycling of some consumer products.

The Canadian province implemented its "eco fee" program in July of 2010. The program tacked on a charge ranging from a penny to a few dollars for certain recyclable items. However, the Liberal-led provincial government found itself with a public relations crisis after consumers reacted negatively to finding the unexpected charges on their receipts. In the aftermath, the provincial government overhauled the fees, leaving them in place only for electronics and tires.

Since the initial snafu, the fees have become a political football.

Now, legislation is being introduced by Jim Bradley, Ontario's Environment Minister, that would prohibit companies and retailers from charging the recycling fees separately, reports the Toronto Star.

"It's a cost of doing business... there's no need to be plunking it on as a separate fee as though it's some kind of penalty," Bradley told reporters at a press conference.

The government is reconsidering the fees, in part, because they are slated to rise sharply on some televisions and farm tires.

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Export watch

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

The volume of plastic scrap exported in January 2013, at 366.55 million pounds, dipped by 2.1 percent from its December 2012 figure. When matched against its January 2012 position, however, the volume of exports was up, by 4.8 percent.

The weighted price of recovered plastic exports in January, at 19.1 cents per pound, was down 1.4 percent from its December 2012 standing. And when compared to its year-over-year (YOY) level, the price was down by 9.6 percent.

As for other exported materials, recovered paper exports in January 2013 were 1.73 million metric tons, a 4.3 percent YOY decrease from 2011. At $160 per metric ton, the weighted average price of exported recovered paper in January was down 5.3 percent when compared to its January 2012 mark.

Regarding ferrous scrap, the 1.53 million metric tons exported in January 2013 resulted in an 8.1 percent YOY increase. However, at $421 per metric ton, the weighted average price of exported ferrous scrap was down by 10.0 percent.

Lastly, the 313.75 million pounds of aluminum scrap exported in January 2013 equated to a 9.1 percent YOY decrease from 2012. And, at 77 cents per pound, the average price of exported aluminum scrap in January was down 1.3 percent when compared to its January 2012 standing.

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NewsBits

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

In Iowa, a subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee has approved an expansion of the state's bottle bill to include water bottles and other beverage containers, reports KCRG. The proposal is still opposed by grocers, who are calling for expansion of curbside recycling programs instead.

The Lone Star State legislature has had some progress on its proposed beverage container redemption program, with Texas House Bill 1473 moving out of the Environment Regulation Committee. Supporters are now trying to get the bill to the next level and moved to the Calendars Committee.

Maryland lawmakers want to "leave no shell behind," passing a dollar a bushel oyster recovery tax credit, offering up to $750 annually to participants, according to CBS Baltimore. The shells are used by oyster hatcheries for shelter for new populations of oysters, with each adult shell acting as shelter for up to 10 young oysters.

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American Chung Nam wins $18 million in trade-secret court case

By Jake Thomas, Resource Recycling

America Chung Nam (ACN), the largest exporter of recovered paper from the U.S., has won a court case against competitor Cycle Link, securing more than $18 million in damages for trade secret misappropriation, unfair competition and breach of contract.

According to a statement from attorneys representing ACN, in 2010, Cycle Link hired two former ACN employees, Tony Chenh, the company's former senior logistics executive, and Jasmine Chung, a senior waste paper buyer at the company. These former employees, and others at Cycle Link, began contacting ACN's suppliers.

In 2011, ACN sued Cycle Link and its former employees for misappropriation of trade secrets and unfair competition. ACN also sued its former employees for breaching their employment agreements.

On Jan. 31, 2013, after a four-week trial in Los Angeles Superior Court, a jury unanimously found that Cycle Link engaged in unfair competition and Chenh and Chung had breached their contract with ACN. The jury also found that Cycle Link and the two former employees of ACN misappropriated its trade secrets. Additionally, the jury also found that Cycle Link, Chenh and Chung's misappropriation of trade secrets was "willful and malicious."

The jury awarded ACN more than $18 million in punitive damages. ACN will also be seeking attorney's fees and costs.

Attorneys for Cycle Link did not return calls seeking comment. Court documents show that Cycle Link is raising objections to the wording of the judgment, preventing it from being entered. ACN expects the issue to be resolved soon, and is unsure if Cycle Link will appeal.

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Indiana recycling advocates fight back

By Henry Leineweber, Resource Recycling

Thanks to the efforts of a coalition of stakeholders, recycling funding may soon be restored in Indiana, but those hoping for a container deposit law or other recycling initiative still face an uphill battle.

On the surface, these are not good times for recycling in the Hoosier State. Statewide budget cuts in 2009 under then-Governor Mitch Daniels froze 90 percent of Indiana's recycling fund, with the 50-cents-per-ton landfill disposal fee instead used to shore up state's general revenues. Lawmakers later allowed some recycling goals for the state to expire. Additionally, Republican supermajorities in both the Indiana House and Senate would seemingly dash any hope of legislation favorable to recycling. But, because time is running out for the General Assembly to introduce and act on recycling legislation before it adjourns April 29, many companies, organizations and other stakeholders are urging elected officials to act now.

A hearing held Monday by the General Assembly's joint environmental committees outlined the detrimental impact the state's low recycling rate has on both the environment and local businesses.

"There's not enough scrap plastic in Indiana to feed our plant, let alone grow it," said Perpetual Recycling Solutions CEO David Bender to the assembled lawmakers.

Perpetual Recycling Solutions, which recently completed a large PET recycling plant in the state, is one of the companies that is calling for the legislature to take steps to improve recycling, citing estimates of nearly $60 million worth of recyclable materials being dumped in Indiana landfills annually, due to lack of adequate recycling service. Improving recycling in the state, they argue, would create jobs and provide other economic benefits.

"In 2011, Perpetual Recycling Solutions leveraged a $50,000 recycling grant along with a $30 million investment in a new PET plastic processing facility in Richmond. We have already created 75 jobs and hope to expand. However, expansion requires Indiana to capture more of its PET plastic feedstock," Bender said in an accompanying statement to Governor Mike Pence.

The Indiana Recycling Coalition has requested Governor Pence reinstate the recycling fund at a level of $3.2 million per year, which according to IRC executive director Carey Hamilton, may soon be restored.

"We were thrilled with the positive comments we got from the Governor's Office," said Hamilton in an interview with Resource Recycling  "We found out [April 4th] that the budget that has just passed out of committee includes our funding request.  Now we just need to work to make sure it's included in the final budget."

In addition to Perpetual Recycling, IRC's call for a reinstatement of recycling funds was aided by some important supporters.

Aluminum giant Alcoa, which employs 3,200 in Indiana, showed up in support, with Beth Schmitt, director of recycling for the company saying, "Alcoa strongly supports this request to reinstate Indiana's recycling fund. Recycling is both an environmental and business priority for our company. We believe that new investments in recycling programs and infrastructure will result in higher aluminum recycling rates which in turn will save energy, save resources and create jobs."

In testifying before the committee, Stephen Segebarth, a vice president for the North American division of multinational glass container giant Verallia, went so far as to advocate for a bottle bill in the state, explaining that bottles manufactured at the company's Dunkirk, Indiana site use only 15-20 percent recycled glass cullet, and that most of that material is sourced from container deposit programs in Michigan and Canada. The entire glass industry in the state employs approximately 1,600 workers.

Other recycling supporters echoed the desire for container deposit legislation in the state. A representative from Ball State University's Bowen Center for Public Affairs cited new findings from the university that show more than 70 percent of Indiana residents support a potential bottle bill — with that support rising to over 90 percent for those residents between ages 18-24.

Support also came from the Indiana Farm Bureau, which urged a container deposit bill or other recycling action that would help keep bottle and container litter out of farm machinery.

However, others in attendance were opposed to any type of bottle bill. The American Beverage Association, along with representatives from the grocery and retail industry, testified that beverage containers only account for 7 percent of the waste stream, and that stores wouldn't tolerate such a program.

Other elected representatives in attendance hardly warmed to the idea of new recycling efforts by the state.

"I don't like mandates, bans and bottle bills. My goal is to find some way to make recycling happen without a bottle bill," said House Environmental Affairs chairman David Wolkins (R-Warsaw), although he added he's now gone "from adamantly opposed to just opposed."

While Indiana's recycling funding may soon be restored, further action to improve recycling in the state faces an uphill battle.  Sources tell Resource Recycling that the legislature will likely create a study committee to focus on new recycling ideas while the rest of the General Assembly is adjourned, and that all recycling options, including a container deposit program, could be considered.  The Indiana General Assembly adjourns April 29 and will reconvene next January.

"We're very pleased with the broad support for recycling we're seeing right now," says Hamilton.  "Our next step is to work with these stakeholders to find common ground on a recycling plan we can all be happy with."

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Recycling grant round up

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

Grants are being given out and offered to recycling programs and companies in three states.

The South Dakota Board of Water and Natural Resources has approved nearly $39 million in grants and loans for environmental projects, including those geared toward recycling.

Huron got the biggest grant for recycling, bringing in $227,950 for a commingled recycling system. Brookings received a $30,000 grant amendment for vehicles and recycling containers. Lincoln County obtained a $33,750 grant for a transfer station trailer. Watertown garnered $77,300 for a recycling vehicle and containers.

Indiana will be making available $500,000 to the state Department of Environmental Management's Recycling Market Development Program. The money will be distributed through grants to aid private businesses to help them purchase equipment for recycling. Grants range from $25,000 up to $200,000, with a required 50-percent match. The deadline is June 3, 2013. More information can be found on the department's website.

Recently, the Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Solid Waste District gave out grants totaling $221,338. The grants went to 38 communities and 33 schools and nonprofit organizations. The money will be used to establish recycling programs in schools and workplaces, as well as provides for education programs and recycling containers in public places.

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Procter & Gamble goes for zero waste

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

Procter & Gamble, a maker of personal care products and containers, has announced that 45 of its manufacturing facilities worldwide send no waste to landfills.

The recent milestone is part of the company's long-term goal of sending no manufacturing or consumer waste to landfills. According to the company, its waste-reduction efforts, which include incineration for energy recovery along with recycling, have created over $1 billion in value for P&G. Less than one percent of all materials entering P&G sites globally are sent to landfill, with the company diverting nearly all plastic scrap and packaging waste generated during the manufacturing process. In 2011-12, 79 percent of all packaging waste generated by the company was recycled, compared to 69 percent recycled by Procter & Gamble in 2010-11.

"There are well-defined systems for recycling materials like paper, plastic and glass, but our product portfolio is incredibly broad, resulting in a diverse set of waste streams to find sustainable solutions for," said Dr. Forbes McDougall, who leads P&G's global zero manufacturing waste program, in a prepared statement. "We focused on finding solutions for our toughest waste streams at our largest sites, and while initially we saw progress in our overall corporate recycling, the increase in zero landfill sites was slow. Today, we have found ways to divert most of our major waste streams away from landfill, so we're now seeing new sites achieve zero manufacturing waste to landfill nearly every month."

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Bottle bills on the move this legislative session

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

In Texas, a handful of lawmakers are crossing their fingers that the Lone Star State will pass a bottle bill, in Hawaii, a measure seeks to roll back the state’s bottle bill and California looks to reform its beverage container redemption program.

A pair of bills in the Texas Legislature, one in the House and one in the Senate, would establish a container deposit system for beer, soda, water, energy drinks, juice, tea and other bottles and cans for common beverages.

A legislative staffer speaking to Resource Recycling on background said that the bill was written to have few government mandates and requirements. The entire system would be overseen by a consortium of stakeholders appointed by the governor, and retailers would not be required to redeem bottles and cans. Instead, the bill is written to allow the market to drive the collection infrastructure, said the staffer, and local governments and private entities would be allowed to apply to open redemption centers.

The bill had a hearing last week in the House Environmental Regulation Committee, and no vote has been taken on it yet.

"We realize that there is very strong opposition from the retailers association, which is always an obstacle," said Nate Walker, chief of staff for Rep. Eddie Rodriguez, an Austin Democrat sponsoring the measure. "But there’s also a lot of great support behind the bill from environmental and industry organizations."

Walker said that his boss is making the bill’s passage a priority and is trying to wrangle up the votes.

Meanwhile, in Hawaii, a resolution has been sponsored that calls for winding down the state’s bottle bill and replacing it with curbside recycling. The text of the resolution states that the program is not fiscally sustainable and points to past audits that have found chronic mismanagement.

No action has been taken on this legislation so far.

According to a report in American Metal Market (subscription only), one California lawmaker is expecting will be sponsoring a proposal to expand and reform the Golden State's successful beverage container redemption program. According to AMM, The proposal is expected to be heard by the California State Assembly's Natural Resources Committee on April 29 and includes such reforms as adding large (over 46 ounces) beverage containers to the program; updating reporting systems; and expanding market-based incentives for processing and manufacturing materials from the collected beverage containers.

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Industry groups issue CRT challenge

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, the Consumer Electronics Association and InnoCentive have announced a new competition to identify new, financially-viable ways to recycle CRT glass.

Proposals for the CRT Challenge will be accepted until June 30, with the winning proposal selected based on its economic and environmental benefits. A $10,000 prize, plus assistance in commercializing the proposal, will go to the winner.

Winners of last year's CRT Challenge (on which the CEA partnered with the Environmental Defense Fund and InnoCentive) were Spanish environmental engineer Mario Rosato, for a closed-loop leaded glass separation process; Manchester, England-based Nulife Glass, for an emissions-minimizing CRT glass furnace; and New Mexico-based mechanical engineer Robert Kirby, whose proposal involved combining CRT glass with cement to create a composite building material. The three winning proposals were selected from over 350 applicants, and organizers are expecting increased competition for this year's competition.

In related news, the CEA has also partnered with the Northeast Recycling Council to gather more data on the CRT management practices in the U.S. The two organizations have launched a survey, with relevant organizations urged to submit responses before April 5.

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