We wish you the blessings of peace, the beauty of hope, and the spirit of love.  May these be your gifts this holiday season.   

We look forward to another wonderful year in 2016 and we hope you have a Happy New Year!

Diane, Jenn, and the CRA Board of Directors

Each year, the Carolina Recycling Association honors top performers that advance waste reduction and recycling in the Carolinas. Award recipients will be honored at the 26th Annual Conference. For the first time, the award categories have all been consolidated into a general pool and a panel of judges will select outstanding people, projects, and/or programs to recognize with our 26th Annual Awards.  The CRA will accept nominations that address all aspects of the industry as before, but we are focusing on recognizing the new and innovative projects that are changing the way recycling happens in the Carolinas.

The awards are open to companies, individuals, governments, schools, organizations, non-profits, and councils - Projects and programs large and small.  If you're recycling or reducing waste, you're eligible!

The CRA Board Development Committee is seeking recommendations for CRA Board nominees for the 2016-2019 board positions. The organization is seeking Board members that can provide leadership to fulfill the CRA's mission and goals.

If you are currently a CRA member in good standing, you have a good work ethic, industry experience, you have the time to conduct board business and the ability to travel North and South Carolina for meetings, you may be the perfect candidate. The meetings will take place on the 3rd Thursday of the scheduled month with the exception of December, which will be on the 2nd Thursday.  All Board members are expected to attend the annual planning retreat and Board meeting scheduled for May 4-6, 2016.  Click here to view the tentative dates for the 2016-2017 meetings.

Please use our electronic Candidate Submission form to nominate a candidate.  The deadline for submission is January 15, 2016.

If you are not interested in serving as a Board member, but would like to serve on one of the CRA committees, we would also like to hear from you. The CRA is a member organization and its value comes from members like you.

Rockingham County's brand new Single Stream Curbside Recycling Program kicked off with the first day of collections on Monday, Nov. 30th.   Recycling carts were distributed to recycling customers throughout November.  As part of the roll-out and partnership with Waste Management, Rockingham launched an educational program including specific info & FAQ's, a fridge magnet with recyclable items, and short videos to illustrate the program.  They also placed billboards around the county encouraging citizens to "DO YOUR PART, THROW IT IN THE CART!"

It took only 13 days last summer for Columbia, SC to deliver 40,000 recycling carts to its residents, as one of the first cities to receive grant funding from The Recycling Partnership (TRP).  Without the $300,000 grant from TRP to upgrade to 95-gallon carts, the city would still be collecting its recyclables in 18-gallon bins, the same way it had since its residential curbside program started in 1991, says Samantha Yager, recycling coordinator for the city of Columbia, which has a population of 120,000 people.

In its first three months of cart collection, the city has seen a 100-ton increase per month. "Last year's average, we were doing about 330ish tons a month and we're now doing about 450 tons," she says.

NC-Based Unifi, Inc.'s REPREVE®, a leading recycled fiber brand, launched a multi-stop, national recycling education tour as the next phase of the REPREVE #TurnItGreen™ movement. Together with partners such as Marvel Universe LIVE!, Detroit Lions and UNC-Chapel Hill, the REPREVE mobile tour showcases the high-quality REPREVE-based products that can be transformed from plastic bottles that consumers recycle.  

The national #TurnItGreen tour will make stops throughout the United States at schools, retail locations and major entertainment and sporting events.  "We are thrilled to kick off our multi-stop #TurnItGreen mobile experience, engaging with kids and adults as we educate them on how we transform recycled plastic bottles into products they can purchase from their favorite brands," said Roger Berrier, president and chief operating officer of Unifi, Inc. "Since we began making REPREVE, we have recycled more than 4 billion plastic bottles into quality products people wear and use every day, and we anticipate the #TurnItGreen tour will help us continue to grow that number."

We are sad to share the news of the passing of Dan Weisenbach, president of Weisenbach Recycled Projects, and long-time advocate for recycling and supporter of CRA. 

We will fondly remember Dan's infectious, fun-loving spirit, his willingness to give of his time to support recycling and environmental awareness, and his friendship.