recycling means business, september 1995 | us epa … recycling means business ... rbacs and redas...

FRONT COVER (COVER 1)

United States EPA530-K-95-004Environmental Protection September 1995Agency

Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5305W)

1EPA Recycling MeansBusiness

2 Recycled/RecyclablePrinted on paper that contains at least 20% postconsumer fiber.

rmbfinal.qxd 9/28/95 1:53 PM Page 1

This booklet introduces RecyclingMeans Business, the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency’s(EPA’s) strategy for supporting thenational effort to expand marketsfor recycled materials. In additionto its environmental benefits,boosting recycling markets hasmany economic advantages.Some benefit local communitiesdirectly, while others are nationalin scope. For example, strongrecycling markets will:

• Increase the revenues paid tocommunities for their recyclablematerials.

• Create jobs in communitiesacross the country.

• Enable the recycling industry tobecome a major sector of thenational economy, fuelinggreater economic growth.

The Benefits of Recycling Market Development


1

Over the past decade, ambitious

collection programs instituted by

communities and organizations across

America have diverted millions of tons of

recyclable materials from the solid waste stream. The

number of community curbside collection programs alone

has increased by 500 percent over the past five years, with

more than 6,600 curbside collection programs in place.

Many government agencies, businesses, and organizations

also instituted in-house recycling collection programs,

successfully diverting everything from office paper to scrap

tires. The nation is collecting over 20 percent of its solid

waste for recycling—the highest rate since World War II.

EPA’s“Greenprint”for MarketDevelopment


Recycling what wouldotherwise be thrown awayhas obvious environmental

benefits. Using recovered materials asa substitute for virgin feedstocksconserves natural resources, reducesthe energy used for manufacturing,and lessens the environmental impactsassociated with theextraction and harvestingof raw materials. Inaddition, recycling makessense as a wastemanagement technique,diverting valuablematerials from thewaste stream andreducing the burden on landfills andincinerators.

Recycling also has inherent economicbenefits. Every step in the recyclingprocess, from collection toremanufacturing to purchasingrecycled products, adds value torecovered materials. In fact, “valueadded” (defined as the differencebetween the cost of materials and theselling price of the products madefrom these materials) is a measure

frequently used to gauge theeconomic contribution ofrecycling. The process ofturning collected materials intonew products creates a chain ofeconomic activity that can result

in business expansion, jobs, and othereconomic growth in communitiesacross the country—all from a resourcethat used to be thrown away.

Everyone benefits from this increase ineconomic activity. Recyclingbusinesses are able to earn profits thatin turn can be reinvested in new plantsand processes. In addition, thesebusinesses require supplies andservices from other industries, such asconstruction, equipment supply,transportation, and research anddevelopment, expanding theireconomic impact and creating morejobs for area residents. And the jobscreated by recycling businesses tendto draw from the full spectrum of thelabor market. The material collectionand sorting industries primarilycontribute low- and semi-skilled jobs,

2

collecting

remanufacturing

marketing


while the companies in themanufacturing sector, whichtypically create the lion’s share ofnew employment opportunities,offer more highly skilled jobs.

Communities and businesses lookingfor new routes to economic growthare recognizing that the waste theygenerate every day is a valuableeconomic resource. Instead ofpaying to have recyclable materialsdisposed of, or sending them to berecycled elsewhere, communities cankeep the added value by providingthe materials, labor, and markets thatfuel local growth.

The Balancing Act

For recycling to realize its fullenvironmental and economicpotential, however, the three

components of recycling—collecting, remanufacturing, andpurchasing recycled products—mustbe in balance. This balance isillustrated by the universal symbol ofrecycling, the “chasing arrows.”

The first arrowrepresents thecollection ofmaterials forrecycling, which

has grown dramatically since theearly 1980s. The other two sidesof the recycling equation,however—the remanufacturing ofnew products and the purchasing

of these products by consumers—are only beginning to match thestrength of the collection side ofrecycling. Since sustainablerecycling hinges on turningcollected materials into newproducts, and on selling theseproducts to consumers, expandingthe processing and remanufacturingcapacity of recycling businesses iscritical. This process is known asmarket development.

3

Recycling Versus WasteDisposalThe Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) projected theimpact of collecting andremanufacturing old newsprint(ONP) instead of paying to havethe waste landfilled. ILSR foundthat for a city of one millionresidents, a single millprocessing 100,000 tons of ONPper year could contribute up to$57 million in annual grossrevenues to the local tax base.By contrast, disposing of thesame material would cost thecity $4 million in disposal costsannually (assuming an averagetipping fee of $40 per ton).

2


4

Making MarketDevelopment Work

To further the developmentof recycling markets, EPAcreated a strategy called

Recycling Means Business. EPAinterviewed over 150 individualsfrom governments, businesses, andnonprofit organizations to identifyreal and potential marketdevelopment issues that affectsustainable recycling. Using thisinformation, Recycling MeansBusiness aims to:

The Importance of MarketDevelopmentMarket development is the key tounleashing the economic potential ofthe recycling industry. Marketdevelopment includes:

• Starting new recycling-basedbusinesses.

• Expanding existing businessesand increasing revenues.

• Creating new jobs and addingwages.

• Expanding the local tax base.

• Making additional capital available to firms for growth.

• Support and sustain the linkbetween increased marketcapacity and sustainableeconomic growth.

• Leverage federal resources andbuild federal partnerships formarket development.

• Develop infrastructures thatsupport markets for recyclablesand recycled products.

Together, these goals form a“greenprint” to help ensure marketsfor environmentally sound andeconomically sustainable recycling.

Market Development’sKey PlayersRecycling Means Businessfosters the development ofrecycling-based businesses. It provides a national forum tobuild markets by facilitating theefforts of:

• State, tribal, and localgovernments

• Private sector entities

• Other federal agencies

• Nonprofit groups

• Educational institutions

• Individuals


5

Linking Market Development andEconomic Growth

Recycling Means Business fostersinteraction and coordination among economic developmentprofessionals, financial institutions,and recycling businesses. It iscritical that these groups work inpartnership to ensure that recyclingfulfills its potential for job creationand economic revitalization.Recycling Means Businessaddresses the need to providemarketing, technical, and financialassistance to recycling businesses,and to promote the use ofrecovered materials.

State and local economicdevelopment programs can beinstrumental in championing andcoordinating recycling projectswithin their jurisdictions. Theseprograms serve as catalysts forrecycling businesses by encouragingbanks, investment groups, smallbusiness lenders, and others withinthe financial community to identifyand help fund recycling ventures.They also help new recyclingbusinesses seek out and acquire thecapital and other resources theyneed to be successful.

Through Recycling Means Business,EPA is building the capacity ofthose groups that provide capitaland information to buddingrecycling businesses.

Bringing TogetherEconomic Developmentand Recycling Goals EPA’s Jobs Through Recycling

initiative is one part of the

Recycling Means Business

strategy. Jobs Through Recycling

was launched to:

• Expand local and regional

markets for recycled materials.

• Stimulate economic

development.

• Create jobs in recycling-related

businesses and industry.

Recognizing that recycling can be

an important part of their

economic development strategy,

communities across the country

are looking for ways to support

their local recycling industry.

Jobs Through Recycling is helping

link groups and individuals who

know the business of recycling

with new companies and

established firms interested in

using recycled materials.


6

For example, EPA established fourRecycling and Reuse BusinessAssistance Centers (RBACs) and nineRecycling Economic DevelopmentAdvocate (REDA) positions to helprecycling businesses gain access toinformation and markets. TheseRBACs and REDAs inform manu-facturers about the economicbenefits of using recycled feedstocks,finding these materials, andswitching from virgin-based rawmaterials. These programs also helpindividual companies learn how toassess the equipment and processmodifications necessary to convertfrom virgin to recycled feedstocks.They also are helping companieslocate sources of high-qualityrecovered materials and performcost analyses to help determinewhen they might begin savingmoney from switching to thesematerials.

Industry also is taking action. Start-up recycling businesses, with hardwork and assistance from thegrowing number of economicdevelopment programs, are makingthe collection and remanufacture ofrecovered materials a reality. Othercompanies are reaching out withinthe business community forinformation and assistance oncollecting their recyclable materialsand finding ways to use recycledproducts in their service andmanufacturing processes.

Leveraging Federal Resources

Recycling Means Business recognizesand uses the federal government’sability to stimulate recycling marketdevelopment. With its significantpurchasing power, federal procure-ment alone represents about 8percent of the nation’s GrossDomestic Product. Aggressive buy-recycled policies by federal agencieshelp to generate critical markets forrecycled products.

Procurement, however, is just onepart of market development. Manyfederal agencies—from theDepartment of Commerce to theSmall Business Administration—haveexperience in job creation, businessassistance, community economicdevelopment, and technologydevelopment. EPA and otheragencies together can facilitate thedissemination of this knowledgethroughout industry, thereby buildingand strengthening recycling markets.

Building a RecyclingInfrastructure

Just as building a house requires astrong infrastructure—a solidfoundation, a framework forsupporting the walls and roof, andconnections such as electricity andclean water—sustainable recycling


7

The Feds Weigh InThe effort to focus federal procurement policies onrecycled materials has been increased by Executive Order12873, requiring federal agencies to establish recyclingprograms and to buy recycled products wheneverpossible. As part of this process, EPA has developed theComprehensive Guideline for the Procurement of ProductsContaining Recovered Materials (CPG) (and theaccompanying Recycled Materials Advisory Notice[RMAN]). The CPG lists currently available items madefrom recovered materials. Other federal agencies canrefer to these resources for recycled products.

The federal contribution also includes entering intopartnerships with other organizations to help buildrecycling markets. For example, to help companiesacquire specific information about using recoveredfeedstocks, the National Institute of Standards andTechnology (NIST, a division of the U.S. Department ofCommerce), Washington State’s Clean WashingtonCenter, and the National Recycling Coalition (NRC)created the Recycling Technology Assistance Project(ReTAP). ReTAP has two distinct missions: (1) to providedirect technical assistance to companies interested inswitching to recycled materials in plant operations, and(2) to disseminate recycling technology informationacross the country. With funding support from EPA,ReTAP offers such services as identifying and resolvingrecycled product manufacturing difficulties andidentifying potential end uses for recycled products.


8

Structures for Sustainable RecyclingEPA’s Recycling Means Business strategy was designedto build on efforts already under way to develop thefoundation of recycling. One such project is theestablishment of an exchange for buying and sellingrecovered materials in the mecca of commoditymarkets—the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT). TheChicago Board of Trade Recycling Partnership wascreated by the New York State Office of RecyclingMarket Development, the National Recycling Coalition(NRC), Clean Washington Center, EPA, and CBOT itselfto provide a formal recovered materials marketexchange. This new recycling market is helping toremove uncertainties over recovered materials’ priceand availability. The exchange also is helping minimizeconcerns over the quality of recycled feedstocksthrough standardized inspection procedures and aneutral process for settling trade disputes.

To encourage businesses to adopt or expand buy-recycled programs, EPA also created its WasteWi$eprogram. In addition to implementing recyclingcollections and adopting waste prevention activities,corporations that join the program agree to increasetheir purchase and/or manufacture of recycled products.By increasing the demand for recovered materials, thehundreds of corporations that have joined WasteWi$eare poised to make a major contribution to thedevelopment of a recycling infrastructure.


MarketDevelopment: 2000 and Beyond

Recycling Means Businessprovides focus and guidancefor EPA’s growing market

development activities. At the sametime, it serves as a “greenprint” tohelp organize the market develop-ment efforts of governments,businesses, and nonprofitorganizations. As these efforts takeroot and our economy moves towarda greater use of recovered rawmaterials, EPA will monitor RecyclingMeans Business trends closely toensure its continuing effectiveness.

In particular, EPA willcontinue to study themarket developmentneeds of the recyclingbusiness community.Soliciting feedbackwill remain animportant part of theprocess. In this way,EPA can maintain thecollaborative spiritunder which thisstrategy was drafted,identify emergingmarket developmentissues, and designnew projects to meetthese challenges.

also depends on developing a basicinfrastructure. This infrastructureincludes elements such as:

• Networks of informationsupporting markets for recyclablematerials and recycled products.

• Links between buyers and sellers.

• Established consumer demand forrecycled products.

This nationwide base is critical forsustainable recycling. RecyclingMeans Business helps to support andexpand this foundation. RecyclingMeans Business is helping improveexisting market developmentprograms, provide opportunities forinformation exchange, and promoterecycled products procurement inboth the public and private sectors.

9

0

1

2

3

4

OCC Paper ONP Ferrous Plastic Glass Other (all types) metals (all types) (all types)

Cap

acity

(in

mill

ions

of to

ns)

Total 1987 capacity: 5.3 million tons Total 1993 capacity: 15 million tons

1987 1993

Recovered Materials Market Capacity Growth in Minnesota 1987 to 1993

Source: Assessment of Recycling Capacity for End Markets Serving Minnesota. Sure Green Inc., for the Minnesota Office of Waste Management. June 1994.


More Studies Link Recycling and Jobs

A series of studies examining the emerging recyclingindustry has found that recycling is having a major impacton job creation in local and state economies. For example,in a recent report entitled California Recycling MeansCalifornia Jobs: A Library of Facts, the Californians AgainstWaste Foundation reported that recycling businesses in thestate employ about 18,000 residents. Small businessmanufacturers, who have entered the recycling market inresponse to the state laws encouraging recycling and thesteady growth in recycling collections, are accounting formuch of this growth. The report also predicts a continu-ation of this trend. About 45,000 recycling jobs areexpected by the year 2000, over 20,000 of which shouldcome from the manufacturing sector.

In Philadelphia, city planners decided to conduct a multi-year study to gauge recycling’s impact on the economy ofthe metropolitan Philadelphia area. The city gatheredbaseline data in 1991, finding that the potential existed for665 jobs from recycling (based on the city’s count of 35companies that had started up, were intending to start up,or had expanded since 1986). By 1992, the city found that

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Glass 10

Other 90

Plastic 100

Compost 140

Metal 410

Paper 1,300

Total jobs created

since 1989:

2,050

Recycling Employment in Washington State by Commodity:Jobs Created Since 1989

Source: 1992 Survey by Clean Washington Center.


25 of the 35 original companies were operating, providing a total of 599 jobs—over 90 percent of the potentialmaximum. Moreover, in 1992, businesses that had not been in operation or were missed in 1991 generated 134additional jobs for Philadelphia-area residents. All together,the city found that 733 jobs had been created inPhiladelphia’s recycling industry since 1986.

The North Carolina Office of Waste Reduction also foundthat recycling is a major source of employment, accordingto its report The Impact of Recycling on Jobs in NorthCarolina. Recycling industries have created over 8,700 jobsin North Carolina. And the study offers more importantevidence. Using its Recycling Jobs Model, the report foundthat these kinds of job gains can far outnumber those jobslost in other industries. For every 100 recycling jobscreated, according to the report, just 10 jobs were lost inthe solid waste industry, and three jobs were lost in thetimber harvesting industry.

11

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

1,739 �

4,261

1,282

8,112

2,583

12,549

21,792

40,893

378

CT DE ME MA NH NJ NY PA RI VT

9,824

Total number of recycling jobs in the region: 103,413

Number of Recycling Jobs in the Northeast, by State

Source: Roy F. Weston, 1994, for the Northeast Recycling Council.


12

Value Added by Recycling in Massachusetts*

Value Added Value Added by Processors by Manufacturers

Material (in dollars) (in dollars)

Paper 42,909,000 475,307,000

Plastic 2,891,000 58,000

Glass 2,429,000 20,010,000

Metals 44,022,000 3,000

Compost 0 400,000

Subtotal 92,251,000 495,778,000

TOTAL VALUE ADDED BY MANUFACTURING SECTORS: $588,029,000

*Estimates do not include semiprecious or precious metals, auto scrap, millscrap portion of tonnage from nonrecycled materials, or value added aftermanufacture (e.g., intellectual property, paperboard made into games, etc.).No avoided disposal costs have been figured into this analysis.

Estimates provided by Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Solid Waste Management, Willa S. Kuh, Director.Study by Robin Ingenthron, Recycling Director. July 1992.


The following clearinghouses, dockets,and hotlines stock up-to-date recyclinginformation.

Public Information Center (PIC)U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyPublic Information Center (3404)401 M Street, SW.Washington, DC 20460phone: 202 260-7751fax: 202 260-6257Serves as the primary point of contact betweenEPA and the public. Refers calls and letters tothe appropriate sources for technical information,and distributes a variety of general-interest items.

RCRA Information Center (RIC)RCRA Information Center (RIC)U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyOffice of Solid Waste (5305W)401 M Street, SW.Washington, DC 20460phone: 202 260-9327fax: 202 260-4937Holds and provides public access to allregulatory materials on solid waste anddistributes technical and nontechnicalinformation on solid waste.

RCRA/Superfund/OUST HotlineRCRA/SF/OUST Hotline1725 Jefferson Davis HighwayArlington, VA 22202phone: 800 424-9346 (outsideWashington, DC metropolitan area)within Washington, DC: 703 412-9810fax: 703 486-3333Answers questions on matters related to solidwaste, hazardous waste, or undergroundstorage tanks. Also can be used to find andorder EPA publications.

Pollution Prevention InformationClearinghouse (PPIC)PPIC (3404)401 M Street, SW.Washington, DC 20460phone: 202 260-1023fax: 202 260-0178Provides a library and an electronic bulletinboard (accessible by any PC equipped with amodem) dedicated to information on pollutionprevention.

Environmental FinancingInformation Network (EFIN)U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyEFIN (3304)401 M Street, SW.Washington, DC 20460phone: 202 260-0420fax: 202 260-0710Provides an on-line computer databasecontaining abstracts of publications and anetwork of public financing and environmentalprogram experts. Help using the database isavailable.

Small Business OmbudsmanClearinghouse/HotlineU.S. Environmental Protection AgencySmall Business Ombudsman (1230C)401 M Street, SW.Washington, DC 20460phone: 800 368-5888fax: 703 305-6462Helps private citizens, small businesses, andsmaller communities with questions on allprogram aspects within EPA.

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EPA Resource Centers


EPA’s ten regional offices can offerfurther information on recycling.

Region 1 Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont

JFK BuildingOne Congress StreetBoston, MA 02203Library: 617 565-3298

Waste Management DivisionMail Code: HAA-CAN2617 573-5700

Region 2 New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands

Javitz Building290 BroadwayNew York, NY 10007Library: 212 637-3010

Hazardous Waste and Solid WastePrograms BranchMail Code: 2AWMD212 637-4100

Region 3Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland,Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia

841 Chestnut StreetPhiladelphia, PA 19107Library: 215 597-6633

Hazardous Waste ManagementDivisionMail Code: 3HW53215 597-8181

Region 4 Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina,Tennessee

345 Courtland Street, NEAtlanta, GA 30365Library: 404 347-4216

Waste Management DivisionMail Code: 4WD-RCRA404 347-3454

Solid Waste Assistance Program(SWAP)SWANASolid Waste Assistance ProgramPost Office Box 7219Silver Spring, MD 20907800 677-9424Collects and distributes current municipal solidwaste information.

EPA Main LibraryU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyHeadquarters Library (3404)401 M Street, SW. Room 2904Washington, DC 20460202 260-5921 or 5922Maintains environmental reference materials forEPA staff and the general public, includingbooks, journals, abstracts, newsletters,newspapers, and audiovisual materialsgenerated by government agencies and theprivate sector. Also provides access to on-linecomputer services, bulletin boards, and CD-ROM systems.

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EPA Regional Offices


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Region 5Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio,Wisconsin

77 West Jackson Blvd.Chicago, IL 60604-3507Library: 312 886-9906

Waste Management DivisionMail Code: HS-6J312 886-7579

Region 6 Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma,Texas

First Interstate Bank Tower1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200Dallas, TX 75202-2733Library: 214 665-6424

Hazardous Waste ManagementDivisionMail Code: 6HHW214 665-6701

Region 7Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska

726 Minnesota AvenueKansas City, KS 66101Library: 913 551-7358

Waste Management DivisionMail Code: SUPR913 551-7050

Region 8Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming

999 18th Street, Suite 500Denver, CO 80202-2405

Hazardous Waste ManagementDivisionMail Code: HWM-HW303 293-1720

Region 9Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, American Samoa, Guam

75 Hawthorne StreetSan Francisco, CA 94105Library: 415 744-1510

Hazardous Waste ManagementDivisionMail Code: H-1415 744-1730

Region 10 Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington

1200 Sixth AvenueSeattle, WA 98101Library: 206 553-1289

Hazardous Waste DivisionMail Code: HW111206 553-1296

This document can be accessed on lineusing one of several Internet pathways:

Through the World Wide Web: Access the home pageat http//www.epa.gov. Select EPA Offices andRegions. Recycling Means Business is under theOffice of Solid Waste directory.

Through Gopher: Access the EPA Public AccessGopher at gopher.epa.gov. Select EPA Offices andRegions. Recycling Means Business is under theOffice of Solid Waste directory.

Through FTP: Go to the ftp.epa.gov server. Login as”anonymous” using your Internet address as thepassword. Recycling Means Business is located in/pub. All OSW files are in directories beginning with”OSW.”

This document is available at these sites as an AdobeAcrobat file (an electronic version containing bothtext and graphics).

Accessing This Document on the Internet


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recycling means business, september 1995 | us epa … recycling means business ... rbacs and redas...

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