In This Issue:

1 | Port strike averted for time being

An economically-crippling strike at 15 ports on the East and Gulf Coasts has been averted for now, and paper exporters are breathing a sigh of relief.

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2 | Is your recycling idea worth $20,000?

Think you have a great idea to make recycling better? The Recycling Innovators Forum wants to hear from you!

Backed by some of the biggest companies and organizations in waste management and recycling, the Recycling Innovators Forum is a competition to find the next great idea to advance recycling. The top nominees will be asked to present their idea to an audience of 150 recycling professionals at the Recycling Innovators Forum on August 26 in Louisville, Kentucky. The winner will receive $20,000, a chance to pitch their idea to venture capitalists and an article covering their idea in Resource Recycling magazine.

Think you have what it takes? Contact Ali Briggs at [email protected] to get started on this unique opportunity.

3 | Potential candidates for EPA's top job have state experience

Lisa Jackson, the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will step down in mid-January, and a number of people have been mentioned as President Obama's possible recommendation to take her position. How will solid waste and recycling issues fare under a new EPA chief?

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4 | Chinese paper recycling standards likely

Speakers at a recent paper recycling conference in China sponsored by RISI and the Chinese Resources Recycling Association suggest that industry standardization is on the horizon.

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5 | AMERIPEN to launch recycling projects

An alliance of packaging firms is carefully assessing what works in municipal recycling systems. The group will then use the research findings to undertake a number of projects designed to boost the recycling of packaging.

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6 | Iowa to expand bottle bill?

In Iowa, recycling advocates are gearing up to push for an expansion of the state's bottle bill.

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7 | Houston targets air pollution from scrap metal processors

As a result of numerous citizen complaints, Houston environmental officials recently undertook an extensive assessment of air emissions from scrap yards. And they were startled by the results. As a consequence, a number of facilities are upgrading their operations.

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8 | Aleris to shutter aluminum recycling plant

Aleris International will close its Friendly, West Virginia aluminum recycling facility at the end of February. The facility is one of 13 recycling plants the company operates in North America.

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9 | Evergreen State hits 50 percent recycling rate

Washington State reached a new milestone by achieving a 50 percent recycling rate for the first time ever in 2011, according to the state's Department of Ecology.

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10 | Plastic recycling in Canada rises by a quarter

A recent study shows the recovery of post-consumer plastics packaging in Canada rose by 24 percent in 2011.

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11 | The wide world of recycling

In the U.K., a group representing recycling companies is raising concerns about the high cost of low-quality recyclables, and a computer company is stepping up its efforts to recycle used electronics in India.

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12 | Plastics Recycling 2013: Regulating recovered plastics in China

Li Shuanghua, chairman of the Renewable Resources Trade Coordination Committee for China National Resources Recycling Association (CRRA), offers an insider's perspective on Chinese import regulations. If you're in the business of exporting recycled plastic or you sell to a North American exporter, then you simply cannot afford to miss what this legal expert has to say. In this remarkably thorough presentation, Li will review the details of market access conditions and environmental inspection standards, including Chinese administration of foreign suppliers of recovered plastics, the comprehensive stages of the inspection process, risk management and much more.

Don't be left behind — get your facts straight from the source at the 2013 Plastics Recycling Conference, which will be held March 19-20 in New Orleans. For more information, visit www.plasticsrecycling.com.

And, after the conference, stick around for the Global Plastics Environmental Conference's (GPEC) "The Latest Need to Know: From Recycling to Sustainability of Plastics." GPEC's conference will be held right after the Plastics Recycling Conference, March 20-22 at the same great location, the Sheraton New Orleans, right next to the Crescent City's famed French Quarter. Don't miss out on these two terrific events.

13 | NewsBits

A bevy, a bounty, a veritable cornucopia of recycling news for the New Year — all in this week's NewsBits.

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14 | Upcoming conferences & webinars

Click here for a complete directory of upcoming conferences and webinars! If you have a conference or webinar that you would like listed, please send an email to [email protected] for consideration.

15 | Jobs Available & Sought

Business Development Associates, Lifespan Technology Recycling, Inc. (Metro New York; Denver; Atlanta; Tampa; or Northern Virginia/Maryland).
Details are available here.

Sales Executive, Electronic Scrap Company (Anywhere in U.S.).
Details are available here.

Plant Manager, Waste Material Recovery Facility, ECCO Waste Systems Group (Calgary, Alberta).
Details are available here.

Sales Personnel, American Reclamation, Inc. (Los Angeles, California).
Details are available here.

Manager, ComputerWorks, Goodwill Industries of Central Texas (Austin, Texas).
Details are available online (Job #2512).

Buyer, Winjet Trading Inc. (City of Industry, California).
Details are available here.

Director of Solid Waste Resource Stewardship/Solid Waste, Leon County Florida (Tallahassee, Florida).
Details are available online.

Solid Waste Director, Columbia County (Portage, Wisconsin).
Details are available online.

Senior Associate of Policy and Programs, Product Stewardship Institute (Boston, Massachusetts).
Details are available online.

Professional Sales Manager, HiTech Assets, Inc. (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma).
Details are available here.

Sales/Purchasing, Electronics Recycling Services (Santa Ana, California).
For more details, email [email protected].

Business Development Representative, IMS Electronics Recycling (Columbus, Ohio).
Details are available online.

Senior Consultant, Resource Recycling Systems (Telecommute).
Details are available here.

Plant Manager, American Recycling of Western North Carolina (Asheville, North Carolina).
Details are available here.

Operations Manager — Electronic Waste Recycling, Planet Green (Chatworth, California).
Details are available here.

Salesperson, Lakeside Metals (Oakland, California).
Details are available here.

Public Works Solid Waste Manager, City of Walla Walla (Walla Walla, Washington).
Details are available here.

Various Positions Highlighted by the Northern California Recycling Association (Northern California Area).
Details are available online.

Jobs Sought
Database of job seekers available here.

If you would like to submit a job available or job sought listing, send an email to managing editor Dylan de Thomas at [email protected].