Two leading recycling organizations, the National Recycling Coalition Inc.(NRC) and Recycling Organizations of North America Inc. (RONA), have joined together to form a new national recycling association.

 The new association will be called the NorthAmerican Recycling Coalition Inc., according to a news release from both organizations. The two groups are drawing up a letter of agreement that will outline the steps toward a merger. The boards of both groups will then vote on the letter.

The new name uses the familiar NRC acronym while expanding the groups’ breadth. The state and provincial affiliations of both organizations will gain strength as a result of this merger, the groups said.

The group will determine the inclusion of RONA board members when legal issues are resolved.

The new association’s formation working group will continue to share information with members and fine tune the organization structure until a final agreement is adopted. “I am thrilled that we will now be moving forward with a unified voice for recycling,” said Mark Lichtenstein, president of NRC.

The NRC was a leading national recycling organization until it filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and ceased operations in 2009. At that time, RONA emerged as a new national recycling organization.