In case you missed it: Thoughtful, newsworthy comments from industry professionals, consumers, and legislators.
"Sustainability and a company's growth strategy are not mutually exclusive."
— Nielsen's Director of Project Development Erica Parker at this week's Global Sustainability Summit, hosted by the Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturers Association. Parker presented on consumers' dependency on sustainable products and how companies can appeal to consumers through various marketing tactics and commitments.
"This will adversely impact some favorite streams of mine, where my father took me fishing many years ago ... I hope you will help prevent this ..."
— Former President Jimmy Carter in a letter to Republic Services shareholder Bill Gates regarding the company's plan to dispose of coal ash at the Broadhurst Environmental Landfill in Georgia. The coal ash would come from Duke Energy plants in North Carolina.
"So, having a hierarchy is a start but you really have to get people involved in the effort in order to get the whole system to work."
— SWANA Deputy Executive Director Sara Bixby to Aspen Public Radio regarding the EPA's waste reduction hierarchy. This week, Aspen Public Radio reported on Pitkin County, CO's "Talking Trash" educational campaign, aimed at getting residents to increase waste diversion.
"How we have developed in this country is that the American Dream has really turned into going to college, so that has really left a deficit on the technical side."
— Sharon Kneiss, president and CEO of NWRA, on the industrywide driver shortage that is affecting haulers across the nation. NWRA, SWANA and other associations have been exploring new ways to hire drivers — especially veterans, women, and young professionals.
"This is like the fox guarding the henhouse, with the county making money on the dump."
— Lynne Plambeck, president of Santa Clarita Organization for Protecting the Environment (SCOPE), to Los Angeles Daily News regarding a dump near the village of Val Verde, CA. While the landfill has reportedly exceeded its permitted 23 million-ton limit, Plambeck believes the county is keeping it open for the benefit of the tipping fees.
"Where I come from, $2 million worth of savings is a lot of money ... What do my cities receive from the state as a reward for acting responsibly? Nothing. And yet the state has always seemed willing to reward bad behavior elsewhere in the state or let it go unchecked. I’m tired of that and would like to see it stop."
— Michigan Rep. Aaron Miller in an open letter asking Attorney General Bill Schuette to investigate a trash contract dispute in the city of Flint. Miller believes that the city council's decision to vote against the lowest bid for trash collection constituted "financial mismanamgenent."