In case you missed it: Thoughtful, newsworthy comments from industry professionals, consumers, and legislators.
"You can’t fall into the trap of saying, no, prices are going up, so let's go back to the old style of doing business in recycling. We absolutely will never do that as long as I’m breathing."
— Waste Management COO Jim Trevathan during the company's third quarter earnings call. Trevathan noted that, while Waste Management saw commodity prices of recyclables go up 13.6% this quarter, the company wants to be careful with recycling operations and not yet declare "victory."
"Goals are all very nice but you still have to ask yourself what work was done when they were set. Were they just set on pick a number out of the air or were they set on some analysis and the idea of where you could get?"
— National Waste & Recycling Association policy director Chaz Miller in an interview with Waste Dive about how waste-to-energy (WTE) plays into major cities' efforts to reach zero waste. While Miller, among others, believes WTE is a "very legitimate" way to reach these goals, many other industry professionals disagree.
"Why is our city still doing business with a company that is known as corrupt?"
— Vocal Flint, MI resident Arthur Woodson to MLive regarding the collections contract dispute between Republic Services and Rizzo Environmental Services. Although Republic ended up winning the one-year contract with the city after four months of debate, both companies will be paid for the collections that were done during the dispute.
“It’s a pet peeve. It does invoke some giggles. But we are spending too much money on replacing garbage carts because the squirrels continue to eat through ’em.”
— Chicago South Side Alderman Howard Brookins regarding the city's garbage bins being chewed through by "aggressive" squirrels, as reported by the Chicago Sun Times. The issue has cost the city $300,000 in repairs so far and it is estimated that the city will spend $1 million on carts in 2017.
"There’s always going to be folks that are against landfills ... I’m personally seeing a lot more acceptance with it because really there are no other options."
— Fitchburg, MA Health Director Stephen D. Curry, as reported by the Telegram & Gazette, regarding a statewide concern that space for waste disposal is decreasing. The state is looking to more reductions and mandates around waste as many residents and various officials remain opposed to landfill expansions.
"We are living in a hyperlinear economy right now."
— Mathy Stanislaus, EPA's assistant administrator of the Office of Land and Emergency Management (OLEM), during a recent event titled "The Future of RCRA." Stanislaus noted how much more can be done to promote a circular economy and it is crucial to move toward that economy in order to have a sustainable future.