10 Things You Need to Know For the Waste & Recycling Industry Today (March 4, 2014)10 Things You Need to Know For the Waste & Recycling Industry Today (March 4, 2014)

New Orleans organization recycling thousands of discarded Mardi Gras beads “Since the plastic beads and "throws" such as plastic coins cannot be melted down and turned into something new because of their metallic coating, Arc of Greater New Orleans instead collects and resells them in bulk. Last year, the organization reportedly recycled 120,000 pounds of beads. Recycling coordinator Maggie Perez also tells NPR that at the height of their organizing efforts last summer, workers had about 60 boxes of beads weighing about 1,000 pounds each.” (Examiner.com)

Electronic Recycling Market (Copper, Steel, Plastic resins) is Expected to Reach USD 41.6 Billion in 2019 “The Electronic Recycling (Copper, Steel, Plastic resins) Market was valued at USD 9.84 billion in 2012, which is expected to reach USD 41.36 billion by 2019, growing at a CAGR of 23.06% from 2013 to 2019. In terms of volume, the market was 48.43 million tons in 2012 and is forecast to reach 141.05 million tons by 2019. In terms of volume, Europe was the largest recycler of e-waste and Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing market for electronic recycling during the forecast period, growing at a CAGR of 22.8% from 2013 to 2019. Lack of efficient government regulations made Asia Pacific a collection point for global e-waste. Availability of abundant volume of e-waste and cheap labor is expected to drive Asia Pacific electronic recycling market.” (EETimes.com)

Utah House OKs bill to move medical waste facility “A proposal to move a medical waste-burning facility from North Salt Lake to a remote location in Tooele has cleared another step. House lawmakers voted unanimously Monday to approve the measure. A recent state study indicated that towns surrounding the facility had higher cancer rates, but researchers said the results are not definitive. Stericycle has maintained that it's complied with regulations as it fights violations.” (Associated Press)

City applying for $2 million loan to fix landfill gas problem “The city of Bozeman, Mt., is applying for a $2.135 million loan to design and install a system to stop gases from seeping from the old landfill. Bozeman City Commissioners decided Monday to seek the money from the state’s revolving loan program. Installing the system is the next step the city is taking to address the problem of gases known as volatile organic compounds in homes near the old Story Mill landfill.” (Bozeman Daily Chronicle)

Mount Everest climbers to bring down waste “In a bid to clean Mt. Everest, the Nepal government has introduced a new provision according to which every climber will have to bring down at least eight kg of garbage to base camp while returning from the expedition.” (The Economic Times)

GPS Curbside Recycling launches single-stream collection “Greener Pastures Services is pleased to announce that their curbside recycling collection process is now Single-Stream! Instead of sorting into several categories, all glass, plastics 1-7, mixed paper, cardboard, aluminum and steel can all go into the same containers. “We decided to go with this collection process in hopes it would increase the participation rate and to make it even easier and convenient for the residents to recycle in the county,” said Raina Bantner, co-owner of GPS Curbside Recycling.” (The Roanoake Times)

Lexington County, S.C., tries to stop landfill change “Lexington County is trying to stop the expansion of a landfill that officials never wanted open. County leaders are waging a legal battle to stop a landfill that grinds trees and vegetation into mulch from becoming a dumping ground for construction debris. Their challenge in the Administrative Law Court is the latest tug-of-war with state environmental officials over the operation.” (The State)

Landfill, Lowell (In.) council consider annex terms “If the Lowell Town Council wants to formally begin negotiations for annexing a landfill and its adjacent land, it needs to formally say so, the attorney for Republic Services said Monday. Attorney Jim Wieser, of Schererville, told the council during a work session on the topic his client is not asking to come into the town boundaries. ‘Our position is: We are there. We exist. If the Town Council decides it's in the best interests of the town ... We're more than willing to work with the town,’ he said.” (NWITimes.com)

Landscope: A landfill is born “The South Kent Landfill is one of Michigan’s 48 active landfills for solid consumer waste. In 2013 almost 700,000 cubic yards of ash and trash have been added to the pile. More will come. The landfill won’t be full in at least another 15 years. The number of landfills for consumer waste have not changed dramatically over the years, but there has been a small decrease. When the Michigan Department for Environmental Quality started tracking them in 1996, there were 56, eight more than today.” (Great Lakes Echo)

What’s Appropriate Use For Former Landfill? Solar Panels, Manufacturing Plant, Luxury Condos? “The (Bridgeport, Ct.) Parks Commission tonight (Monday) at 6:30 is scheduled to take a second vote on Mayor Bill Finch’s proposal to construct solar panels on the old dump at Seaside Park. The board unanimously rejected the plan two weeks ago, but a second meeting and vote has been called to win approval. Black Rock City Councilman Rick Torres has led opposition for the proposed partnership with United Illuminating.” (OnlyinBridgeport.com)