SEPTEMBER 2023 MATERIAL MATTERS NEWSLETTER |
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Member Spotlight: GlassKing and City of Evanston |
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Members, GlassKing and the City of Evanston, teamed up after the June IRF Conference to improve business recycling. Brian Zimmerman, Evanston's Solid Waste Coordinator and Rose King met after the glass recycling presentation and soon began meeting with bars and restaurants in Evanston. With initial startup costs covered by the Glass Packaging Institute and some training, they have 12 participants and expect to keep growing. These include: Lush Food and Drink, Bat 17, Mt. Everest, Prairie Moon, La Principal, The Wine Goddess, Thomas & Dutch, The Barn Steakhouse, Hokkaido Ramen & Sushi, Stacked & Folded, DeSalvo’s Pizza and Firehouse Grill.
GlassKing's new approach to glass recycling opens the door that has been closed far too long to bars, restaurants, casinos, and hotels that generate this heavy, completely recyclable material (the recipe for glass includes broken glass). The idea began with Rose's son Blake and the family initiated successfully in Phoenix, Arizona before partnering with the Glass Recycling Institute to roll out their "Don't Trash Glass" campaign nationally. The IRF has worked with the Glass Recycling Institute to promote their summer Corona glass recycling programs and hopes to see them reach their goal of 50% recovery by 2030.
If you are a community or an organization interested in becoming involved in this program, GlassKing wants to hear from you.
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On Sept 13, the U.S. EPA announced its first round of funding awards through the Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling (SWIFR) Grant Program. Among the recipients, IEPA will receive $733,568 to conduct an updated comprehensive waste characterization study and waste infrastructure needs assessment. The IRF was proud to file a letter in support of the agency's application and looks forward to learning more about how the newly funded work will update the last state waste characterization coordinated and published by IRA in 2015. For more information on the SWIFR program and first year awardees, please click here.
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Members Partnering to Recover More Materials |
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On Sept. 9, for the 17th year in a row, Will County partnered with other organizations to provide a wide array of reuse and recycling options at their Recyclepalooza event. IRF Members involved in Recyclepalooza included A-Team Recyclers, Helping Hands, Dart, LRS, and All American Recycling. The event served nearly 900 households, taking in HHW, Electronics, polystyrene foam, scrap metal, wood, worn/damaged American flags, and donations of clothing, food, books, toys, items for the troops and the local animal shelter,.
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Coming up on Nov. 4 (and a few other dates besides), members and other organizations will be hosting Pumpkin Collections, Pumpkin Smashes, Pumpkin Catapults and Pumpkin Pitches throughout Illinois. These events promote composting and keep organic materials out of landfills. Pumpkin composting in the region was inspired by member organization SCARCE 19 years ago, and it still plays an important roll in coordinating and promoting these events today. SCARCE is an acronym for School & Community Assistance for Recycling and Composting Education, and the non-profit offers a variety of reuse and recycling events, along with demonstrating a deep devotion to both backyard and commercial composting.
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Now is the time to promote Composting and other low-impact ways to address leaves scattered on lawns and in streets. Maybe your community allows leaves to be raked to the curb for pick up. If they do, be sure to include information alerting people not to block or clog storm drains. It may seem obvious but many don't think about it.
Perhaps your community or service area takes bagged leaves at reduced cost or free of charge. Be sure to remind people of the collection timeframe and proper set out instructions. Some areas require special tags or stickers on the bags for service.
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Will County, DuPage County, and many others are busy helping police departments and pharmacies that have been participating in the Illinois EPA Pharmaceutical Take-Back Program or the U.S. DEA twice a year take-back, to switch over to the Inmar program. The Inmar Group is a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) under the Illinois Medication Take-Back Law passed in 2022 that requires pharmaceutical manufacturers to fund collection and safe disposal of unwanted medications. The Illinois EPA expects to save a million dollars annually as it winds down its tax-payer funded collection program by the end of this calendar year.
Inmar was the only pharmaceutical PRO to present at IRF's annual conference this year, and it has a robust approach. The company has a long history as an industry leader in handling prescription and over-the-counter drug returns safely, securely, and discreetly for major and regional chain drug stores and independent pharmacies, hospitals, and law enforcement agencies across the country. Inmar is providing collection kiosks and boxes, along with collection and disposal services on behalf of the manufacturers at no charge to participating law enforcement and pharmacy locations. To learn more, please contact Inmar's representative, Michael Wardrop at michael.wardrop@inmar.com. Will County lists all of its collection sites on the Will County Green website.
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Joliet Junior College is offering a class on Sustainability for adults of all ages. On Tuesday, October 24, join Professor, and Campus Sustainability Coordinator, Maria Anna Rafac for a night of Beyond Green! The class is titled "Introduction to Sustainability" and is meant to give people the tools to answer some of the tough questions, such as: What is sustainability and how does it affect you? Sustainability means meeting our own needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It is about People, Planet, and Profit. Attendees will enjoy this discussion-based class with interactive activities to help explain sustainability and the role we all play in determining the future of our world. This three hour class is for those interested in making better choices in their home and work lives. There is a fee of $60. Click here to register. |
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HELP US CELEBRATE YOU
You can show off in a press release or simply show us your everyday operation. Either way, we can utilize your photos on social media and on our website. We are asking IRF Members to send photos of their recycling and collection operations. Pictures can be of office collection, residential drop-off, MRF sorting lines, curbside service, someone placing items in recycle bins, reuse events, compost operations, etc. Please send jpeg/jpg pictures to info@illinoisrecycles.org.
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Legislative Update from IRA
As we prepare for Veto session in Illinois, which begins Oct 24 and expected to end Nov 9; we should highlight some national legislation of interest:
Senator Durbin introduced The Plastic Pellet Free Waters Act to address plastic pellets in the Great Lakes and other waterways. If passed, it will require the US EPA to prohibit the discharge of plastic pellets and other pre-production plastic into waterways from facilities and sources that make, use, package, or transport pellets. Supporters contend the pellets are being consumed by fish and marine life (and in turn, humans), and create additional damage to ecosystems. The pellets, also known as nurdles, are the pre-production building blocks of many plastic products.
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A Note from the IRF President, Clair Ryan
Fall is coming! Pumpkin Spice Everything is in the stores and many of us are planning annual pumpkin composting events. While IRF has been a little quiet in terms of announcements and events, there has been a lot going on behind the scenes! We're weighing our location options to bring you a great conference in June of next year in the northern (or perhaps even far-northern) 'burbs. We're also brainstorming a useful and thought provoking fall Recycling Professionals Forum. Please stay tuned, and if you'd like to get in on the fun, please consider joining one of IRF's committees, open to all Board Directors and members.
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Thank You to Our 2023 Benefactors!
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Consider adding your logo here. Become a 2023 BENEFACTOR for $2000.
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IRF has streamlined the committees in hopes of encouraging members to be more involved and improving our services to all.
We welcome those versed in sales or simply able to promote the value of waste reduction, recycling and composting to join our Membership Committee. This committee meets several times in the Fall and Winter.
If you write or do social media, we need you! Please join the Communications & Education Committee. We are the busiest, with monthly assignments, but you know many hands make lighter work for all.
Planning is underway for the 2024 Conference and we want everyone's input. Those interested should join the Events & Conference Committee. Help us set up tours anytime and at least a couple at the Conference. Find speakers and create social networking opportunities for all. We event have an Awards subcommittee.
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"Recycling is Real" is a new campaign launched by the Plastics Industry Association to address public skepticism about plastic recycling. The campaign features stories about plastic recycling across the United States. See some of the stories on their new website or click on a map for plastic recycling locations in each state. There is also a link on the site to share your own story.
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During the concerts at State Farm Stadium this month, Metallica fans helped prevent pollution by using the Butts To Watts® program. The receptacles at the stadium collected 20 pounds of cigarette waste that contains up to 850 million plastic microfibers. The Cigarette butts provide high energy FUEL for waste to energy plants. 24 cigarette butts can charge your cell phone for an hour.
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Trade group and consulting firm seek comprehensive North American plastics recycling data in survey with Sept. 30 deadline.
The Washington-based Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) is seeking additional respondents to a plastics recycling survey it has organized along with California-based consulting firm Stina Inc.
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PaintCare, a national nonprofit organization that makes it easy to recycle leftover household paint, stain, and varnish, has announced that its New York program has now recovered more than one million gallons of architectural paint products. The paint was collected from households, schools, and businesses across the state through both community events and convenient drop-off locations. The organization has no plans of slowing down on collection efforts either, as it just opened its 300th recycling drop-off site to further expand its footprint across the state.
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THERE IS STILL TIME
NRC Annual Awards – Nominations Time - Action!
It's time to nominate our peers and leaders in our industry to be recognized for their great work and achievements in the recycling industry. Awards presentations will be December 5th and 6th at the NRC’s National Recycling Congress.
Applications are accepted online from August 1 through October 1, 2023 (11:59pm Eastern time)
Instructions: To nominate a program or person for an award, do your best to describe the worthiness of the nominee clearly and succinctly. Prepare a word document with a 100-word short summary and 250 or fewer words with supporting evidence of why the winner is outstanding in field. Then copy these two write-ups into the survey monkey nomination form (link below). Fill out your contact info and the nominee’s contact info. That’s IT! No brochures or other attachments or material will be accepted. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NRCAwards2023
Categories: Here are the award categories. Composting, diversion, and reduction programs are included.
- Lifetime Achievement in Recycling
- Bill Heenan Emerging Leader Award
- Outstanding Recycling Innovation
- Outstanding Recycling Organization
- Outstanding Corporate Leadership
- Outstanding Not-for-profit Business Leadership
- Outstanding Community or Government Program
- Outstanding Elected Leader
- Outstanding Public Education / Outreach Program
- Outstanding Market Development
- Outstanding Minority Leadership (business or individual)
- Outstanding Higher Education Award (note the criteria for this award focus on tech development/transfer, student training, and workforce links, not campus collection programs)
Questions? Contact the NRC Awards Committee Chair, Lisa Skumatz 360-261-3069 or email at skumatz@serainc.com.
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Educational Opportunities |
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The Recycling Partnership
The right messaging, targeted to the appropriate audience(s), can make all the difference in helping people to recycle well every chance they get.
In this webinar, local, regional, and state recycling coordinators and leaders will learn from The Recycling Partnership about research-backed audience segmentation and tested recycling messaging.
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The SWANA Illinois Chapter and Illinois Counties Solid Waste Management Association (ILCSWMA) invite you to learn more about the Statewide Recycling Needs Assessment (SB1555 / PA 103-0383), Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging, and their role in improving recycling in Illinois. The plenary session will be held Thursday, October 26, 8:30 AM - 12:00 PM during the ILCSWMA Annual Conference at Starved Rock Lodge and Conference Center in Utica, Illinois. Presenters will discuss the purpose, scope, and requirements of the Statewide Recycling Needs Assessment Act (PA 103-0383) and its impact on stakeholders including local government, recycling haulers and processors, and packaging producers. Learn what data will be collected to support completion of the needs assessment and how you can be involved with this vital study that will inform future legislation and policy regarding packaging and recycling statewide.
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The National Zero Waste Conference is an annual two-day virtual educational and networking event organized by Zero Waste USA and their partners. Zero Waste Businesses & Institutions is the focus on Wednesday, October 25 and Zero Waste Communities on Thursday, October 26, 2023.
IRF members can register for the conference at the Affiliate rate ($100).
You can use this code to register.
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Possible Grant Opportunities |
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Since 2015, the FRC has awarded grants used to increase foam recycling. Additional grant recipients will be announced on an ongoing basis.
A recent grant helps to improve foam recycling for almost 1 million people in metro Albuquerque, NM. Foam densifier purchased to compact cups, plates, clamshells, egg cartons and block packaging into foam blocks for sale to end markets. Learn more: https://www.recyclefoam.org/the-foam-recycler-nm
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MEMBERS WITH EMPLOYMENT NEEDS
Illinois Sustainable Technology Center Prairie Research Institute SUSTAINABILITY TECHNICIAN – Academic Hourly - This is a remote position with some travel required. The ideal candidate will be located in the Chicagoland or Champaign-Urbana area.
We encourage all readers to visit the IRF Membership Directory and find member's websites to see their job listings. We post employment opportunities for members at no additional fee. SEND US YOUR JOB POSTINGS.
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"If you are planning for a year, sow rice; if you are planning for a decade, plant trees;
if you are planning for a lifetime, educate people.”
– Chinese proverb
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FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM
@illinoisrecycles
FOLLOW US ON LINKEDIN
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Illinois Recycling Foundation / Illinois Recycling Association, PO Box 411, Geneva IL 60134
708 358 0050
info@illinoisrecycles.org
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