That Can-Do Spirit 453

THE CURBSIDE VALUE Partnership (CVP), an effort by the aluminum industry to boost participation in curbside recycling programs, has released a report showing that 21 communities have joined the partnership since its inception last summer. The communities range in size from Indian River County, Fla., to Denver.

Founded in August 2005, the CVP was established by the Aluminum Can Council (ACC) to increase cooperation between industry players such as municipal recycling coordinators, materials recovery facility operators and private contractors in efforts to boost nationwide participation in local curbside recycling programs. ACC is a partnership between the Arlington, Va.-based Aluminum Association and the Washington-based Can Manufacturers Institute.

In Denver, CVP helped facilitate the launch of a single-stream recycling program that resulted in an 18 percent increase in materials collected over the previous dual-stream system, according to the partnership. New communication materials produced with the help of the CVP helped Indian River County net a 22 percent increase in co-mingled collections, CVP says.

CVP came about as a result of aluminum industry concerns about the decade-long decline in recycling rates around the country. CVP offers one-on-one consultation with member communities and best practices support published through its Web site (www.RecycleCurbside.org) and Bin Buzz newsletter.

“We can't wait for the problem to fix itself,” says Steve Thompson, director of recycling initiatives for ACC, in a CVP press release.