Recycling E-Newsletter - January 2006

E-Newsletter

January 2006

Happy 2006 to all WasteCap Nebraska members and friends!

Waste Reduction at WasteCapï¿½. In an effort to reduce office paper waste at your office and ours, WasteCap utilizes an electronic newsletter. Past e-newsletters can be found on our website under the ï¿½Archivesï¿½ tab. Check out our website at www.wastecapne.org for the latest events, publications, and new member listings for WasteCap Nebraska.

Whatï¿½s New for January 2006:

ï¿½ WasteCap Nebraska is Awarded Grant from NDEQ

ï¿½ Whatï¿½s Ahead for WasteCap Nebraska in 2006

ï¿½ Needs Assessment Survey Report Available

ï¿½ Request for Annual Volume Reports

ï¿½ Retrofit Recycling Pick-Up Days

ï¿½ Seventh Annual Clean Your Files Week Announced

ï¿½ Midwest Healthy Indoor Environment Symposium Coming in March

ï¿½ Newly Released Product Made From Plastic Film

ï¿½ New Survey Shows Americaï¿½s Views on Electronic Recycling

ï¿½ WasteCap Connections: Piqua Baler for Sale

ï¿½ WasteCap Nebraska Recycling Trivia

WasteCap Nebraska is Awarded Grant from NDEQ

WasteCap Nebraska was awarded a grant in the amount of $90,000 from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Qualityï¿½s Litter Reduction and Recycling Grant Program. Altogether, the state received 63 applications requesting more than $1.98 million for litter reduction and recycling projects. A total of more than $1.3 million was awarded to 55 projects throughout Nebraska.

The grant program provides funds annually to Nebraska projects in three areas: public education, cleanup, and recycling. The grant awarded to WasteCap Nebraska through recycling funds will be used to continue the on-site technical assistance, educational workshops and other business-recycling support WasteCap Nebraska provides to businesses throughout Nebraska. In addition, WasteCap Nebraska will conduct formal strategic planning activities to target services to specific communities and analyze business needs throughout the State.

ï¿½The grant funded projects provide innovative ways to educate the public about litter reduction and recycling and will reduce the amount of material sent to Nebraskaï¿½s landfills,ï¿½ said Mike Linder, Director of NDEQ.

Whatï¿½s Ahead for WasteCap Nebraska in 2006

WasteCap Nebraska has a number of exciting activities in store for 2006. We will hold 3 computer collections in the coming year to help businesses in Lincoln, Grand Island, and Columbus handle their electronic waste. Educational opportunities for 2006 will include Lunch and Learns on E-Waste Options and Universal Waste Requirements as well as a Talk and Tour to highlight a local businessï¿½s recycling success and to provide a chance for peer interaction. WasteCap will continue its expansion into new communities this year with a special focus on Grand Island and Columbus. We are also investigating the possibility of a statewide environmental conference to be held this fall that will incorporate a number of organizations and topics. Further information on WasteCap Nebraska activities, including specific dates for the events mentioned above, will be included in future e-newsletters or contact the WasteCap Nebraska office at 402-436-2383.

Needs Assessment Survey Report Available

Funding was received in 2005 from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality to conduct a business recycling needs assessment survey in the pilot communities of Grand Island and Columbus. The UNL Bureau of Business Research was hired in January to develop and conduct the formal survey, and input on survey design was provided by stakeholders. The surveys were mailed out in the summer and early fall of 2005. Response rates for large employers in Columbus were 65% while 54% of small companies responded. In Grand Island, 42% of large businesses and 38% of small firms returned their surveys.

Responses to the survey varied more by business size than by location with large organizations in both communities being more likely to develop recycling programs on a greater range of materials. Most businesses, regardless of size, expressed interest in recycling fluorescent bulbs and computer monitors at reduced cost. Many were also interested in methods to diminish the time involved in recycling. The survey findings illustrated businesses in the Grand Island and Columbus communities desire additional information on recycling specific materials, increased access to the costs and benefits of fluorescent bulb and monitor recycling as well as options for construction materials, and increased awareness of recycling drop off centers and the materials accepted at these sites. Strategic planning will be conducted based on these results to enable improved recycling opportunities for businesses in the pilot communities of Grand Island and Columbus as well as organizations throughout Nebraska. A copy of the final survey report, ï¿½Estimating Demand for Business Recycling Services in Two Nebraska Citiesï¿½, is available at the WasteCap Nebraska website simply by clicking on the title above.

Request for Annual Volume Reports

All WasteCap Nebraska members should have already received the 2005 Member Recycling Volume Report in the mail. Please complete and return the surveys by Wednesday, February 1^st as they are important in evaluating the effectiveness of the memoranda utilized by WasteCap members and measuring the amounts of material diverted from the landfill each year. These reports also allow for a more adequate description of your businessï¿½s complete recycling program (including some commonly missed items such as pallets, toner cartridges, refuse generation totals, and recycled content purchasing efforts.) The compiled annual recycling volume will allow us to compare recycling efforts to past years and gauge the recycling progress of the WasteCap members as a whole. Please contact our office at (402) 436-2383 or [email protected] with any questions. Thank you for your cooperation!

Retrofit Recycling Pick-Up Dates

WasteCap Nebraska members receive discounted fluorescent lamp, ballast, electronic and battery recycling services through Retrofit Recycling (800-274-1309) and Environmental Compliance Enterprises (466-2268). Please let us know if you need an updated price sheet. Pick up dates are subject to change, please call 7-10 business days ahead of time if you wish to schedule additional pick ups.

ï¿½ Week of the 6^th in February

ï¿½ Week of the 20^th in February

Seventh Annual ï¿½Clean Your Files Weekï¿½ Set for April 17^th ï¿½ 21^st

Mark your calendars for the 2006 edition of ï¿½Clean Your Files Weekï¿½ set for April 17^th-21^st. As many of you know, this is a fabulous opportunity for businesses to support Earth Day and increase recycling awareness while purging your workplace of old and outdated files. We want to increase WasteCap member competitiveness this year and encourage you to start early in planning your strategy to have the most recycled computer paper, letterhead, legal paper, phone books, and envelopes per capita of any business in Lincoln. Watch future editions of the WasteCap Nebraska e-newsletter for more information.

Midwest Healthy Indoor Environment Symposium Coming in March

Radon health effects, energy efficient equipment, and mitigation and new construction techniques are just some of the topics to be addressed at the Midwest Healthy Indoor Environment Symposium to be held March 7, 2006 at the Holiday Inn Central in Omaha. Speakers for the event entitled ï¿½Radon, Indoor Air Quality, and Energy Efficiencyï¿½ will include Dr. Joseph Lstiburek, Dr. Thomas Heine, and Doug Walters. A vendor show will be held in conjunction with the seminars. The fee for the symposium is $40.00 which includes lunch and break refreshments. The event is coordinated by Nebraska Health and Human Services, UN-L Extension, Douglas County Health Department, Sarpy/Cass Department of Health and Wellness, the Nebraska Energy Office, ALA of Nebraska, and cooperating business sponsors.

For more information, please contact Sara Morgan at 402-471-8320 or mailto:[email protected].

Newly Released Product Made From Plastic Film

Recycled plastic film and bags are being used to manufacture 100 percent recycled content pallets by NextLife Recycling. The Florida company has plans to release an entire line of 100 percent recycled products and will expand its plastic film recycling facilities into Texas, Nevada, and Ontario to increase post-consumer processing abilities. To learn more, please see http://www.wastenews.com/headlines2.html?id=1134668640.

Source: Waste News

New Survey Shows Americaï¿½s Views on Electronic Recycling

According to a September survey conducted by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the majority of Americans today are donating, recycling, or selling the computers, cell phones, and other electronic items they no longer need. Although electronic equipment is not entering landfills, the survey found many respondents were not as well informed on electronics recycling as they are on household waste recycling procedures. Consumers expressed a preference for increased convenience in electronics recycling and also believed the government should be involved in recycling program management. Many Americans were willing to recycle electronics in spite of potential personal expense, however. More information may be found at http://recyclingtoday.texterity.com/recyclingtoday/200512/?pg=23&pm=1.

Source: Recycling Today

WasteCap Connections: Piqua Baler for Sale

A WasteCap Nebraska member has a Piqua series 30/60 HD, Style 2200 Baler for sale. The product description is as follows:

ï¿½ Piqua Series 30/60 HD, Style 2200 Baler, L.H. hinge, right hand electric, Part No. 3060

ï¿½ 480 Volt/3 Phase 15 HP motor

ï¿½ Produces a corrugated bale weight from 700 to 1200 pounds, size 30" X 60" to 30" X 48"

ï¿½ 39 second average cycle time

ï¿½ Overall height 12' 8"

ï¿½ Shipping height ... 77"shipped on side/laying down

ï¿½ Weight... 5000 pounds

ï¿½ Size ï¿½ 77" width (requires 8' 9" width for servicing) X 44" depth X 12" 8" overall height (plus 24" recommended space behind baler for access to slip/tie wires)

Please contact Sue Ellen Pegg at 402-436-2383 or [email protected] if you are interested in the baler.

WasteCap Nebraska Recycling Trivia

In order to make the WasteCap e-newsletter more interactive, we have decided to implement a monthly trivia contest. Each edition of the e-newsletter will contain a trivia question on a recycling or environmental topic found in a former e-newsletter. WasteCap members are invited to send their answers via email, and all correct answers will be included in a drawing for the trivia prize. The drawing will be held on the 1st day of the following month.

January trivia sponsor: Telesis, Inc.

Prize: $20 gift certificate to Lazloï¿½s or Fireworks Restaurants

Question: How many e-waste bills were introduced in the U.S. last year? How many in Nebraska?

Send your answers to Sue Ellen at [email protected], and please note that only WasteCap Nebraska members are eligible to win the prize.