SWANA Participates in America Recycles: Summit and Innovation Fair

EPA announces National Recycling Goals and discusses National Recycling Strategy with stakeholders at the Summit 

Silver Spring, MD – The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is participating in the America Recycles: Summit and Innovation Fair hosted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on November 16–17, 2020. SWANA is pleased to again be invited to speak at the America Recycles: Summit on November 17 and to exhibit during the Summit on November 16.

Two years ago, SWANA joined 45 other organizations and signed the America Recycles Pledge to work towards improving recycling in the United States. During the past 12 months, EPA has converted the National Framework for Advancing the U.S. Recycling System into a proposed National Recycling Strategy and the National Recycling Goals, which will be announced at the Summit. SWANA supports these efforts. SWANA has previously submitted written comments on the National Recycling Goals and will provide comments on the National Recycling Strategy in coordination with its Core Advocacy Group, Recycling Task Force, and Sustainable Materials Management Technical Division.

“SWANA is excited to assist EPA in implementing the National Recycling Strategy,” stated David Biderman, SWANA Executive Director and CEO. “Last week’s EPA report identified a decline in the percentage of municipal solid waste that is recycled in the United States and highlights the need for EPA’s leadership. SWANA is committed to working with EPA and other stakeholders to successfully implement the new strategy and achieve the new national recycling goals, through education, research and communication, to our more than 10,000 members throughout the United States.”

SWANA calls on Congress to provide funding to local governments and others in support of U.S. recycling programs. Local governments are dealing with the biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression. Very few of them have funds available to modernize their recycling facilities, or to increase or update their current recycling education initiatives. We hope this will be a top congressional priority in 2021.

SWANA believes the National Recycling Goals and the proposed National Recycling Strategy will support state and local government efforts, as well as those by the private sector, to improve the U.S. recycling system. SWANA looks forward to working closely with EPA and other stakeholders to implement the national strategy and develop measurement techniques for the goals.

Later this week, SWANA, along with the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, Inc. (ISRI), will be hosting the MRF Summit on November 18–19. Peter Wright, EPA Assistant Administrator, will be speaking at the virtual event to discuss EPA’s efforts through the America Recycles Network. During the session, “Where Policy Meets the Road: Federal Initiatives to Spur Recycling,” he will provide further information and insight regarding the National Recycling Strategy and National Recycling Goals.

To register and learn more about the MRF Summit, visit https://mrfsummit.org/.

To learn more about SWANA’s recycling initiatives visit https://swana.org/initiatives/recycling.