Bonnie Bethune of the Northeast Resource Recovery Association . | Photo courtesy of the Northeast Resource Recovery Association.
A warm welcome back to “Women in Circularity,” where we shine a light on women moving us toward a circular economy. This month, I was pleased to connect with a long-time recycling advocate: Bonnie Bethune. Bonnie is the Sr. Member Services Representative for the Northeast Resource Recovery Association (NRRA), the oldest and largest cooperative-model recycling nonprofit in the United States. She has over 40 years of experience in the recycling industry with a focus on municipal recycling. Continue Reading
A warm welcome back to “Women in Circularity,” where we shine a light on women moving us toward a circular economy. This month, I was pleased to connect with an expert in recycling: Judi Gregory. Continue Reading
A warm welcome back to “Women in Circularity,” where we shine a light on women moving us toward a circular economy. This month, I was pleased to connect with an expert in the delivery of community based recycling services: Katie Drews. Katie is the co-president and CEO of Eureka Recycling, a nonprofit zero-waste organization and social enterprise recycler based in Minneapolis. Katie has nearly two decades of experience in marketing and business strategy and has a track record of driving change and innovation in corporate, higher education and nonprofit sectors.
This article appeared in the February 2025 issue of Resource Recycling.Subscribe today for access to all print content.
Did you know that the U.S. produces 268 million tons of trash each year, most of which finds its way to landfills? But landfills are not just storage sites for waste, they are also the third-largest source of human-related methane emissions in the country, according to the U.S. EPA.
Waste naturally produces methane as it decomposes, and when released into the atmosphere, it contributes to global warming. Yet methane is also the primary component of natural gas. Today waste is being given a second life in the form of harnessing landfill gas for renewable energy production.
For an industry rooted in sustainability, adopting renewable natural gas aligns perfectly with the recycling industry’s mission. RNG is a cheaper, clean, proven U.S.-made energy source that also happens to be renewable. The recycling industry can lead by example through converting its fleets to run on RNG.
How RNG is Made
RNG is the result of a process that captures methane emissions at landfills and converts them into a renewable fuel. This waste-to-fuel process begins by capturing methane at landfills, purifying it and converting it to a clean-burning fuel. Once purified, RNG is interchangeable with traditional natural gas, making it easy to integrate into the existing natural gas pipeline infrastructure for use as compressed natural gas fuel for vehicles.
The RNG industry has seen significant growth in recent years, experiencing a 13% year-over-year increase in 2023. With the recycling truck market estimated to grow over 6% between 2024 and 2032, there is an even greater need for alternative fuel solutions like RNG.
The Benefits of Making the Switch
Converting your fleet to CNG can lead to significant cost savings, particularly as volatile diesel prices continue to fluctuate. The cost of natural gas remains relatively stable and a substantially cheaper option compared to diesel. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, between April 1 and April 15, 2023, the national average price of diesel fuel in the U.S. was $4.25 per gallon while the national average price of CNG in that same timeframe was $2.99 per diesel-gallon-equivalent.
Today all major original equipment manufacturers are manufacturing natural gas trucks on the assembly lines, which ensures that fleets can transition to RNG-sourced CNG vehicles without compromising performance. These trucks offer the same torque, horsepower and range as their diesel counterparts. In fact, Cummins’ X15N natural gas engine is already being tested by major fleets and has been praised for its durability and diesel-like performance.
By making the switch, heavy transportation, such as recycling trucks, and power generation greenhouse gas emissions can
also be reduced by 95%, according to Argonne National Laboratory. RNG also plays a key role in a circular economy model, turning waste into a usable product. For the recycling industry, this means using fuel produced from the city’s waste to power its fleets, creating a closed-loop system that benefits both the environment and the economy.
A Look Ahead
Powering your fleet with RNG or CNG derived from the city’s waste is a win-win scenario. The recycling industry benefits greatly from this transition, as it aligns perfectly with its principles of waste reduction and resource efficiency.
Now is the time to act. By choosing RNG, the recycling industry can make meaningful strides toward a cleaner planet while maintaining the operational efficiency necessary to meet our waste management needs.
Jorge Herrera is CEO of Nopetro Energy. Since its founding, he has led the company’s rapid growth into a vertically integrated clean energy leader focused on global decarbonization through production and distribution of compressed natural gas, renewable natural gas and liquefied natural gas.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not imply endorsement by Resource Recycling, Inc. If you have a subject you wish to cover in an op-ed, please send a short proposal to [email protected] for consideration.
Recovered material imports, like the 1 million tons of recovered fiber the U.S. brought in from Canada last year, appear to be tariff-exempt under a new executive order. | Pjhpix/Shutterstock
The U.S. tariff whirlwind continues this month: Many imports from Canada and Mexico, including those of recycled materials, had their tariffs suspended two days after they took effect last week, while previously announced tariffs on aluminum and steel from all countries are set to take effect Wednesday.Continue Reading
Having left South Korea without a treaty, delegates from around the world will reconvene in Switzerland in August to keep working to address global plastic pollution. | Nexus 7/Shutterstock
Several months after wrapping what was intended to be the final negotiations on a global plastic pollution management treaty, the United Nations Environment Programme has announced the dates for extended talks. Continue Reading
Partners Novolex and Nova Chemicals are proactively working to increase feedstock supply for the new Indiana facility, which can process 140 million pounds a year of LLDPE film. | Antoinette Smith/Resource Recycling
An anonymous complaint asked California’s Fair Political Practices Commission to investigate Rachel Wagoner for a violation of a ban that prevents former regulators from receiving compensation to work against the state on matters that were under their purview. | Zlikovec/Shutterstock
A formal ethics complaint has been lodged against Rachel Wagoner, formerly the director of the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery who is now with producer responsibility organization Circular Action Alliance. The complaint alleges that she is lobbying her former agency in violation of a state “switching sides” ban.Continue Reading
By statute, the full permanent rulemaking package needed to be submitted to the Office of Administrative Law by March 7, but it wasn’t. | Jonathan Lenz/Shutterstock
California state regulators will head back to the drawing board after the governor declined to accept their draft extended producer responsibility program language, delaying the implementation of EPR for packaging and requiring another round of rulemaking.Continue Reading
A warm welcome back to “Women in Circularity,” where we shine a light on women moving us toward a circular economy. This month, I was pleased to connect with an expert in recycling: Judi Gregory. 
