An E-Newsletter Exclusively for Members of the National Recycling Coalition
November 15, 2004 ~ Volume 1, Issue 9

	This edition of Mobius is underwritten by the Recycle America Alliance.
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It All Comes
Back to You

America Recycles 2004 National Launch Held This Morning in Washington, D.C.

Today, November 15, is America Recycles Day and NRC and several national America Recycles 2004 sponsors kicked off the celebration this morning with an event at Lafayette Park with the White House as a backdrop. The Federal Environmental Executive, Ed Pinero, presented the Presidential Proclamation and officially launched the national day of celebration, in conjunction with local children, by placing recyclables into the America Recycles 2004 recycling bin.

Recycling experts from across the country representing the public and private sectors discussed the benefits of recycling and how those benefits come back to Americans. Examples of the benefits that revisit Americans were pulled from a recycling bin as speakers talked.

For more information on the event and other America Recycles Day celebrations across the nation, visit www.americarecyclesday.org..

NRC to Present Seventh Annual Recycling Works Recognition Award to Alcan Aluminum (Novelis).

NRC will honor Alcan Aluminum, whose name will change to Novelis on January 1, 2005, with its 7th Annual Recycling Works Awards Gala on Tuesday, February 1, 2005 at the University Club in Washington, DC.

NRC presents the Recycling Works Recognition Awards to honor organizations that have made significant commitments to recycling as national advocates and leaders. These organizations demonstrate every day that recycling really does work! These awards were first presented in 1998 and have been presented annually since then during a dinner and reception in Washington, D.C.

The Recycling Works Recognition Awards Gala is also a major fundraiser for the NRC and we are currently seeking Premier and Event Sponsors. Individual tickets are $400. You can download a PDF of the invitation and RSVP card. For more information, contact NRC's Gala Coordinator Janet Kincaid at (202) 347-0450, ext. 29 or JanetK@nrc-recycle.org.

New York City Launches Revamped Recycling Plan; NRC Supports Local Solutions to Save Program

As we have reported to our members over the last two years, NRC has worked both publicly and behind-the-scenes with New York City officials and recycling advocates to create a cost-effective recycling system for the city. The city's major turn-around to fully embrace recycling, announced in September, is featured on the cover of BioCycle's October issue. The magazine invited several prominent figures in the recycling field, including NRC's Kate Krebs, to comment on the new program. We are reprinting Kate's comments for our members here.

The View From The Capitol
A LANDMARK MOVE TO A COST-SAVINGS, ECONOMIC BOOM
Kate Krebs

Under the belief that cutting the residential recycling program in New York City would save money, Mayor Bloomberg announced in 2002 that recycling would end. That announcement had a dramatic effect across the country, as other mayors followed him. Recycling cuts were announced in Texas, Ohio and Colorado with residents rising up in protests in each and every city. I testified as an expert witness before the NYC Council Committee on Sanitation & Solid Waste in April 2002 that cutting the residential recycling collection system in New York would have a dramatic and chilling effect on the overall New York City economy.

The National Recycling Coalition published a "Recycling Economic Information Study" to supply decision-makers with direct economic information on the recycling and reuse industries. We quantified data on both a national level and also did some state-specific information — including the state of New York. The work we did highlighted the direct correlation between public and private investment in recycling collection/processing infrastructure and manufacturing investment.

Discarded, recyclable materials collected at the curb supplies critical needed raw materials for New York State’s large recycling manufacturers and spurs significant economic activity within the state.

New York State is home to 4,257 recycling and reuse establishments. These enterprises employ 43,624 people and have annual payrolls of over $1.3 billion, generating over $9 billion in annual revenues.

Ten percent of the people referenced above work in the collection infrastructure of the state, feeding the processing infrastructure. Processing enterprises account for 30 percent of the jobs in the state’s recycling industry. Once processed, materials are then shipped to manufacturers as feedstock for new materials, commodities and products. These downstream enterprises are dependent upon the first stage — collection — and second stage — processing for the materials to keep their mills, manufacturing lines and employees running at full power. Among its large manufacturing industry, New York State is home to over 30 paper mills employing about 5,000 people and more than 10 recycled steel mills employing over 2,500 people. In total, recycling manufacturers employ more than 20,000 people in New York State or 60 percent of the total employees in the recycling economy.

Clearly, public and private investment in New York’s recycling industry pays great dividends and makes excellent economic sense. For every job in New York State’s recycling collection systems, there are 6 New York jobs that add value to that collected material. In New York alone, these recycling jobs — collection, processing and manufacturing — have an annual payroll of $1.3 billion and generate over $9 billion in annual sales. This is not a small part of New York’s economy; it is a vibrant and diverse set of industries that contribute in a myriad of ways to the overall economic health of New York.

Communities across the country have been grappling with budget shortfalls; many faced a similar crossroads on which way they should turn on their commitment to recycling. In every city that has discussed slashing a recycling program, widespread public support raised the pressure on elected officials to maintain recycling. In New York City, the belief that ending the curbside recycling program would save the city money was proven untrue. Thanks to a coalition of recycling companies, community activists and environmental groups, the pressure on the city remained intense so careful consideration of the full spectrum of recycling possibilities were reviewed by the city staff. I believe the city has shown incredible enlightenment by crafting a long-term agreement with Hugo Neu, a well respected, experienced recycling company.

An agreement that pays the City to recycle, provides incentives to the company to increase the value of materials recycled and provides valuable feedstock to existing commodity markets is a landmark move, one that I hope will spread as fast as the city’s earlier decision to stop recycling. Because of this long-term commitment to recycling, investment will now funnel into and around the city in new enterprises and technologies to recycle the hundreds of tons of materials from New Yorkers’ homes. Economically for the city, recycling has gone from a perceived drain on vital resources to a cost-savings, economic boom.

As a nation, we have invested tremendously in public policy to conserve our precious natural resources. Clearly, recycling materials gives each and every American the opportunity to do their part for the environment. Over the past three decades, we have also invested in the education of multiple generations of Americans on the importance and value of reducing, reusing and recycling. How powerful this creative arrangement FOR recycling FOR New Yorkers will be for generations to come. Hats off to Mayor Bloomberg for his vision and commitment to the environment!

Read the full story in BioCycle

State of Ohio Honors NRC's Kate Krebs

NRC Executive Director Kate Krebs was honored to receive the Beacon Award from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Recycling & Litter Prevention (ODNR), last month.

The award is presented annually to an individual who is recognized by his or her peers as a tireless advocate and national leader in the fields of recycling, waste reduction and litter prevention. “Kate’s extensive knowledge of recycling and waste reduction, as well as her talent for working with a variety of organizations, has led to an increased awareness and need for recycling,” said Ron Kolbash, chief of the ODNR Division of Recycling & Litter Prevention. “As executive director of one of the nation’s largest recycling organizations, she continues to support and advance Ohio’s recycling infrastructure.”

Kate accepted the award at a conference co-sponsored by ODNR, the Association of Ohio Recyclers, the Buckeye Solid Waste Association of North America, the Ohio Association of Litter Prevention and Recycling Professionals, the Organization of Solid Waste Districts of Ohio and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

Reuse Advocates Mourn Passing of Pavitra Crimmel

NRC staff were saddened to learn that Northern California's Pavitra Crimmel passed away on October 15. Pavitra may have been small in stature, but she was full of big ideas about reuse and resource conservation, and she used her fiery spirit to turn those ideas into ground-breaking, visionary projects. She co-founded Recycletown, the comprehensive reuse and recycling center in Sonoma County operated by the community-based nonprofit Garbage Reincarnation. She also organized an extremely successful art-from-scrap competition at Recycletown called Scrapture, now in its 18th year. Pavitra was also a pioneer in the deconstruction community and co-owned a deconstruction and reuse consulting firm called Beyond Waste.

School Environmental Initiative Expands to Seven States

The Go Green Initiative is now in over 140 schools in 7 states. The environmental program unites parents, teachers and students to create a culture of conservation on campus. It provides schools with simple checklists and tools to examine everything from recycling to unsafe pesticides used on playgrounds. The program started two years ago at one elementary school in California and is now in K-12 schools in California, Georgia, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas. The National Recycling Coalition is a supporter of the Go Green Initiative.

Recycling Businesses Can Receive Free Assessment

The U.S. EPA is providing a free and confidential financial performance and operations assessment of recycling businesses, from haulers to end users, through a grant to the Minnesota Office of Environmental Assistance (OEA). You do not have to be a Minnesota business to be eligible; however, time is running out to participate. If you are interested, please contact Tina Patton at the OEA as soon as possible at 800-657-3843 or email her at tina.patton@moea.state.mn.us.

Conservatree Helps Recyclers Find Holiday Cards

Plenty of holiday cards are printed on environmental papers, including those from Hallmark, Brushdance, Sierra Club, UNICEF, Leanin' Tree, Amnesty International and many more, according to the list of environmental paper products published on Conservatree's website.

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