By Thomas Metzger

Here are updates about some noteworthy activities of the Environmental Industry Associations (EIA), the trade association that represents the private sector solid waste and recycling services industry.   

2013 NSWMA and WASTEC Membership

The National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSMWA) and the Waste Equipment Technology Association (WASTEC) have begun the 2013 membership drive. Any new member who joins either group today will get membership for the rest of 2012 as a bonus! If your company is a part of the solid waste services industry and not a member of one of these groups, you are missing out on valuable resources, special programs targeted toward industry insiders, networking opportunities and other benefits. Visit the NSWMA and WASTEC websites to learn about the benefits of membership and join today!

NSWMA-WASTEC Executive Roundtable

The Executive Roundtable (ERT), EIA’s fall annual meeting for NSWMA and WASTEC members, was scheduled in Laguna Niguel, Calif., from Oct. 15-17. In addition to meetings of the NSWMA and WASTEC boards of governors, the conference schedule includes interesting speakers, a golf tournament, and receptions and meals where you will network with industry leaders.

Awards and Scholarships

This autumn, applications for some of the most popular EIA-NSMWA-WASTEC programs will be available at: www.environmentalistseveryday.org/awards.

EIA honors some industry leaders with particularly notable lifetime achievements by inducting them into the EIA Hall of Fame. Since the program was created in 1985, 165 men and women have been inducted into this group. They represent all facets of the solid waste industry. If someone that you work with or that you know is worthy of being honored in this way, download the nomination form from the EIA website to see the nominating criteria.

Another very popular EIA program is the highly coveted Driver of the Year (DOY) award that recognizes and honors the waste industry’s best and safest drivers. The recent release of the 2013 application is notable for a couple of reasons.

First, the program has added two new award categories. In addition to recognizing the drivers of large and small companies and public sector entities, for the first time, medium-size (companies with a combined fleet between 51 and 250 vehicles) and regional (companies with a combined fleet between 251 and 2,000 vehicles) companies will have their own categories for consideration. As a result, nominated drivers will be competing more specifically against their peers at like companies.

Second, the nomination process for the DOY award now is online. EIA has created a web-based payment and nomination form that should make it easier for most companies to nominate their employees. You can see the nominating criteria for this program at the EIA website.

Finally, later this autumn (around mid-November), EIA plans to release the application for the next round of academic scholarships awarded annually by the EIA Women’s Council. This scholarship program assists qualified individuals in their pursuit of an education that will lead to productive careers in the environmental industry. All NSWMA and WASTEC member employees and their dependents are eligible to apply. The Women’s Council has awarded scholarships to about twenty students during the last six years. If you, a co-worker, or one of your dependents are enrolled in such a program or planning to go back to school, make sure to consider applying when it is released. Again, the program has a web-based application to make the process as easy as possible for applicants.

EIA represents the private sector solid waste and recycling services industry through its two sub-associations, the National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) and the Waste Equipment Technology Association (WASTEC).

For more information about these or other EIA/NSWMA/WASTEC activities, visit www.environmentalistseveryday
.org or contact Communications Director Thom Metzger at [email protected].