In case you missed it: Thoughtful, newsworthy comments from industry professionals, consumers and legislators.
“There’s not a single major city in the nation that has successfully implemented a recycling program for used polystyrene food containers, and the reason is simple: It doesn’t make economic sense.”
— Eric A. Goldstein, a lawyer at the National Resources Defense Council, on a New York City judge's decision to overturn the city's ban on polystyrene food containers. Mayor de Blasio, Goldstein, and many others plan to "continue the fight" and appeal the ruling.
"There's no doubt that removing garbage cans from subway stations saved work and possibly some money for the MTA ... It's not clear that it met MTA's goals of improving straphangers' experience and making stations cleaner and there’s no evidence it reduced the number of rats in subway stations."
— New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli on an audit regarding the cleanliness of New York City's subway system. DiNapoli's audit suggests that removing trash containers in the stations last month did not reduce the amount of waste in the stations.
"We've spent months reviewing proposals from cities and recycling facilities that have the potential to transform recycling systems across the country ... We know that when done right, recycling is a profitable business that can save city and taxpayer money."
— Closed Loop Fund Co-Founder and Managing Director Rob Kaplan in a press release. The Closed Loop Fund announced that it plans to invest $100 million in U.S. recycling infrastructure by 2020.
"We are not the generators of the waste materials, but we are the collectors. We make these things disappear, as people think, off of our streets, take them to a safe disposal location."
— Ben Harvey, a national board member for NWRA and the owner of E.L. Harvey and Sons, on the need for trash haulers to provide round-the-clock service. This week, NWRA opposed a bill that would prevent Massachusetts waste haulers from operating late at night and early in the morning.
“If we do have chronically difficult customers who are not responding to all the other efforts we have here then we'll look at enforcement tools here.”
— San Jose City Spokesman David Vossbrink on the city's decision to begin handing out $50 fines to residents who throw recyclables in the trash.
"There’s value being left on the table for the MRF. There’s value being left on the table for the reclaimers. There’s an economic incentive to make some changes."
— Monique Oxender, Chief Sustainability Officer for Keurig Green Mountain, on the company's decision to produce fully recyclable K-Cups. Oxender explained that in a large-scale trial, 70% of K-Cups successfully were sorted by the MRF, despite their small size.