Newsworthy

International Paper Announces Plan to Acquire Temple-Inland
Memphis, Tenn.-based International Paper (IP) and Austin, Texas-based Temple-Inland Inc. (TIN) have entered into a definitive merger agreement through which IP will acquire all of the outstanding common stock of Temple-Inland for $32 per share in cash, plus the assumption of $600 million in TIN's year-end debt. The total transaction is valued at nearly $4.3 billion.

According to IP, the merger has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies and will offer numerous benefits for the shareholders and customers of both companies and is consistent with IP's focus on achieving and sustaining cost of capital returns throughout the cycle. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2012.

"The strategic benefits of this combination are clear, and we are pleased to be able to move forward on terms that are financially attractive for both sets of shareholders," John Faraci, IP chairman and CEO, says. "Acquiring Temple-Inland enhances our ability to generate additional cash flow while maintaining our strong balance sheet. We look forward to working with the employees of Temple-Inland as we integrate our businesses and create an even stronger company with substantial benefits for our customers, employees and shareholders."

Doyle Simons, TIN chairman and CEO, adds, "This transaction creates value for both Temple-Inland and International Paper shareholders. The combined company will be positioned to be a leader in providing high quality products for its customers."

According to a Bloomberg report, combining the two companies would increase IP's share of the North American corrugated packaging market to 37 percent from its current 27 percent.

Conimet to Open Florida Scrap Metal Facility
The Pensacola Bay (Florida) Area Chamber of Commerce reports that Rochester, Pa.-based Cronimet Corp. has announced plans to open a scrap metal facility in Pensacola, Fla. According to the Chamber of Commerce, the new facility will add 15 jobs and Cronimet will invest approximately $5 million in the area during the first five years.

The Pensacola plant will be Cronimet's first in Florida. The company, founded in 1997, handles stainless steel scrap from eight locations throughout North America.

Collier Merrill, chairman of the board for the Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, says, "We're thrilled for Cronimet to join the Pensacola community. The creation of these specialized jobs will further enhance opportunities for Pensacola residents and potentially bring additional business to our area."

Frank Santoro, Cronimet president and CEO, says, "The Chamber showed its commitment to job creation through its initial discussion with us and the continued recruitment of Cronimet after our initial discussion. As a result of these discussions, we felt that the Pensacola area would be a great long-term strategic fit for the company."

Cronimet Corp. is a part of Germany-based Cronimet, a supplier of raw materials for the industrial production of stainless steel, ferroalloys and primary metals. The company operates 50 subsidiaries on four continents.

Greenstar to Build MRF in Akron, Ohio
Greenstar Recycling, headquartered in Houston, has announced plans to build a single-stream recycling facility in Akron, Ohio.

Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic says, "The facility will contribute to the growth and sustainability of Akron by returning an existing building to a manufacturing purpose with significant investment for equipment, building use and creation of new green jobs."

Matt Delnick, Greenstar CEO, adds, "We are committed to our partnership with the city of Akron to further develop its local recycling services. This facility will allow Akron to continue to offer its businesses and residents the convenience of single-stream recycling—eliminating the need to pre-sort recyclables—while growing its local economy with new investment and a minimum of 45 new green jobs."

The facility will include technology to convert recovered plastics into synthetic crude oil. Vadxx Energy LLC, an Akron-based company, will provide these services through a joint venture with Greenstar.

Other communities in the area will be able to participate in these expanded recycling services under the same terms and conditions as the city of Akron, according to Greenstar.

"We are proud to provide this innovative, domestic energy alternative right here in our home community of Akron," Jim Garrett, Vadxx CEO, says.

Plastipak Breaks Ground in Michigan
Plastipak Packaging, a manufacturer of rigid plastic containers, has broken ground on an expansion to its Clean Tech plastic recycling facility in Dundee, Mich.

The expansion will allow for the installation of additional plastic recycling processing technology at the site. The company says the new facility will increase the availability of ultra-clean recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate) pellets for Plastipak's consumer product industry customers, supporting the company's goal of recycling 10 billion plastic bottles within five years.

With recycling capacity installed in all of the global regions in which it operates, Plastipak says it expects to recycle about 5 billion plastic bottles this year.

Most of the plastics to be processed at the expanded Dundee facility will come to the plant through curbside collection programs.

Plastipak opened its Michigan Clean Tech site in 1988. The company also operates plastics recycling facilities in Luxembourg and Brazil.

Clean Tech and Plastipak Packaging are wholly owned subsidiaries of Plastipak Holdings, headquartered in Plymouth Mich.

SA Recycling Settles Air Pollution Case
SA Recycling, a scrap metal recycling firm based in Anaheim, Calif., has agreed to pay more than $2.93 million to settle an environmental protection lawsuit related to air pollution laws, according to Deputy District Attorney Daniel Wright of the Environmental Law Section of the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office. The civil lawsuit and settlement were filed in late August 2011.

The lawsuit alleged that SA Recycling violated air pollution laws when an explosion at the company's Terminal Island auto shredder in San Pedro, Calif., destroyed its air pollution control system in May 2007 and the company continued operating for weeks without the proper equipment. At the time of the violations, the company was operated by Sims Group Ltd. subsidiary Sims Hugo Neu West. Sims merged the operation with Adams Steel June 22, 2007, creating SA Recycling.

The injunction permanently enjoins SA Recycling from operating its San Pedro shredder without a fully functioning air pollution control system.

Under the terms of the settlement, SA Recycling has agreed to install air pollution control systems designed to minimize emissions at its San Pedro location and at two other sites in the California counties of Orange and Kern. The company also has agreed to work closely with state and local regulators to address compliance issues related to its operations.

According to the settlement, SA Recycling also must pay $260,000 in civil penalties and investigative costs to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office and $430,000 for investigative expenses and enforcement tools to the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC).

Hudson Baylor Re-opens New Jersey MRF
The Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) and Newburgh, N.Y.-based Hudson Baylor Corp. have re-opened ACUA's material recovery facility (MRF) in Egg Harbor Township, N.J., after a retrofit to enable the processing of commingled material. To commemorate the retrofit, the ACUA and Hudson Baylor held a grand opening of the MRF Aug. 25.

The $5.5 million retrofit of the facility began in December 2010. Hudson Baylor designed and retrofitted the facility, which it also will operate for ACUA.

Rick Dovey, ACUA president, says, "They have done a great job with the retrofit, and we're really looking forward to the facility coming online. This partnership has enabled ACUA to re-open our facility without having to purchase the equipment or to incur the cost of operating the facility."

Scott Tenney, president of Hudson Baylor, says, "Everyone at Hudson Baylor is thrilled to begin this partnership with the ACUA. There has been a lot of hard work from both the authority and Hudson Baylor in order to get to this point, and we are all looking forward to starting the operation and serving the residents and businesses of Atlantic County."

Hudson Baylor Corp. operates 13 locations in the U.S., including a dual-stream facility in Cape May County, N.J., and four other single-stream plants. More information can be found at www.hudsonbaylor.com.

Dallas Launches Carton Recycling Program
The city of Dallas has launched a new effort to add food and beverage cartons to its residential curbside recycling program. City officials say Dallas will be the first major city in Texas to have a carton recycling program. The effort is supported by the Carton Council, a collaborative of carton manufacturers seeking to expand carton recycling in the U.S.

Mary Nix, director of sanitation services for the city of Dallas, says, "Dallas is proud to be the first big city in Texas to make sure that liquid food and beverage cartons are recycled and kept out of landfills. Carton recycling is good for our customers and for the environment."

Under the new initiative, residents can place empty cartons, including milk and juice, soup and broth, soy milk and wine cartons, in their blue recycling bins or in community recycling drop-off containers.

In 2008, the Caron Council estimates 18 percent of U.S. households had access to carton recycling programs. This number has nearly doubled to almost 36 percent, with cities in more than 40 states representing approximately 40 million households now accepting cartons in their curbside collection programs, according to the council.

The city of Dallas claims to have recycled more than 50,000 tons of material in 2010 and says it is on track to recycle nearly 65,000 tons this year. More information is available at www.recyclecartons.com.

Perpetual Recycling Solutions Nears Construction Phase
The Richmond Common Council of Richmond, Ind., has approved additional funding for Chicago-based Perpetual Recycling Solutions (PRS) to build a recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) facility in Richmond.

The council previously approved $26 million in bonds for PRS, but the company has sought additional assistance as it nears the construction phase of the project.

When fully operational, PRS says the facility, scheduled to open in 2012, will be able to produce 110 million pounds of rPET flake.

The company says it has multiple non-objection letters from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in addition to having received all required permits and approvals for the building.

PRS presently operates a plastics recycling facility in East Farmingdale, N.Y.

A spokeswoman for the company says PRS already has sold 105 million pounds of the rPET, though the building renovations have yet to begin. Renovation is expected to start by October 2011, and PRS plans to hire 55 people when the Richmond plant is fully operational.

According to the spokeswoman, the equipment being installed at the facility will "create a unique process that allows PRS to produce high quality output that has the ability to come in contact with food and beverages. This process features advanced sorting, separating and cleaning that is only possible when this collection of equipment comes together under one roof."

She adds, "Given the growing demand for quality rPET, PRS is in a unique position to serve a growing market."

The bonds being used for the project come from federal disaster relief funds and are allocated by the Indiana Finance Authority. Under the Midwestern Disaster Recovery Act, which was introduced to encourage re-investment in certain areas destroyed by flooding in 2008, certain municipalities, counties and states have the ability to allow for-profit companies to access the municipal bond market via their jurisdiction.

According to one report, the Richmond Power & Light Board of Directors also approved transferring about 15 acres of land to the Economic Development Corp. of Wayne County (Indiana) for the project. The agency was then to transfer the land to Perpetual Recycling.

S.I.C. Recycling to Build Scrap Yard in Illinois
S.I.C Recycling, a subsidiary of the John Deere distributor Sloan Implement Co., headquartered in Assumption, Ill., has broken ground on a scrap metal recycling yard in Riverton, Ill. The company says it plans to process more than 13 million pounds of copper and aluminum per year when the yard is operational.

The scrap metal facility will be the first for the equipment distributor.

The nonferrous scrap metal recycling facility will be located on 15 acres in Riverton. Brady Bird, general manager of S.I.C. Recycling, says the facility will measure 40,000 square feet and should be operational by the first quarter of 2012. The company says it expects to hire from 12 to 15 people to run the new scrap yard.

Bird also says the company will take in copper and aluminum from industrial and commercial sources and plans to make No. 2 copper and aluminum briquettes for end consumers. S.I.C. Recycling will not offer retail trade.

To assist S.I.C. Recycling in the development of the project, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) awarded the village of Riverton a grant of $525,000 through its Community Development Assistance Program. The grant ultimately came from federal funds, Bird says.

According to the Warren Ribley, DCEO director, the grant will be used to extend electric and gas infrastructure to S.I.C. Recycling's facility.

Officials Share Differing Opinions on Achieving Zero Waste
There are many end markets to be established before zero waste can be anything more than an aspiration, but the aspiration alone is driving research and development. Panelists at a session on zero waste at Wastecon, the annual convention of SWANA (the Solid Waste Association of North America), had differing views on steps that need to be taken toward the goal.

Co-presenters Wilma Bureau of the county of Simcoe, Ontario, and Janine Ralph of Stantec Consulting, Burlington, Ontario, explained to the audience how the county has reached a 57 percent municipal solid waste (MSW) diversion rate.

Simcoe County, with 350,000 people in 16 municipalities, has a blue-box household recyclables collection program, a green bin program for organics (food waste) and a one-bag limit on household garbage collection. A drop-off center accepts tires, wood, backyard brush, shingles and other recyclable materials.

The most recent study conducted by Stantec for the county of Simcoe found that C&D materials "could be managed better" for increased recycling and that increased attention to recyclables collection in public spaces and at events also could improve the diversion rate.

Ralph said getting to a 71 percent diversion rate was feasible without dramatically increasing costs, but introducing a mixed waste processing step or a waste-to-energy step would be necessary to achieve a diversion rate much higher than that.

Mitch Kessler of Kessler Consulting Inc., Tampa, Fla., listed several barriers to boosting diversion rates in states such as Florida, where legislators have set a 75 percent diversion rate goal.

Among the barriers Kessler said he saw were changing people's behavior (i.e., throwing out plastic bottles); moving away from disposal-based funding methods (when landfill tip fees pay for county solid waste budgets); developing regional end markets for several materials; and a lack of "political will" in some regions to back recycling. (More on Kessler's viewpoints can be found in the April 2010 Recycling Today article "Two Shades of Green," )

Common denominators Kessler said he saw in states or solid waste districts with high diversion rates included adequate funding for recycling, disposal bans, bottle bills or market development grants; attention to C&D recycling; a political champion willing to back recycling; and technical assistance available to companies and solid waste districts.

Kessler said solid waste management costs communities money, and recycling advocates should not be shy about noting that there are upfront costs to establishing a recycling infrastructure. Ultimately, recycling and recovery could yield better fiscal results, he added. "We need to recognize there is money to be made in recovery," Kessler commented.

Speaker Ruth Abbe of HDR Engineering, Omaha, Neb., presented everyone in attendance with an explanation of how solid waste franchising in California has figured into solid waste district planning when zero waste is a goal.

She said many communities were reconsidering local government ownership of recycling facilities and have had good recycling results when they issued separate contracts for collecting recyclables and solid waste vs. processing recyclables and disposing of materials.

Wastecon 2011 took place Aug. 23-25 at the Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, Tenn. Wastecon 2012 will be held in Washington, D.C., Aug. 14. More information is available at www.swana.org.

Mazda Introduces Technology to Recycle ELV Bumpers
Mazda Motor Corp., Hiroshima, Japan, has introduced a new technology to recycle scrapped bumpers from end-of-life vehicles (ELVs) into raw material to make new vehicle bumpers. Mazda says the new technology is initially being used to make rear bumpers for the company's Biante minivan.

Mazda says bumpers traditionally are processed into automobile shredder residue (ASR) and incinerated to recover heat energy. With the new technology, the company can recycle the ELV bumpers into material for new vehicle bumpers, improving the material recycling ratio of Mazda vehicles.

Mazda says it has already established a program to process damaged bumpers collected from in-use vehicles through the company's dealer network in Japan. The company adapted its damaged bumper recycling technology for ELV bumpers.

According to the automaker, one of the biggest challenges to bumper recycling is that many ELVs are more than 10 years old, so the composition of the bumpers' polypropylene plastic and the adhesive properties of the paint vary considerably among bumpers.

Currently, about 20 percent of ELVs by weight is incinerated as ASR. Bumpers comprise a large proportion of the plastic in automobiles, so collecting and recycling ELV bumpers is expected to make a significant contribution to reducing ASR and optimizing efficient use of resources.

ERI's Denver Plant Receives R2 Certification
Electronic Recyclers International (ERI), headquartered in Fresno, Calif., has announced its Denver electronics recycling facility has successfully achieved Responsible Recycling Practices for Electronics Recyclers (R2) certification.

R2 certification sets forth guidelines for electronics recyclers' environmental, worker health and safety and security practices that were developed by a group of stakeholders under the facilitation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The voluntary R2 practices include general principles and specific practices for recyclers disassembling or reclaiming used electronics.

John Shegerian, ERI chairman and CEO, says, "We are extremely proud to be the first electronics recycler in our industry and the world to receive both R2 and e-Stewards certification at multiple locations, including our Denver operation. Not only does it show that ERI has met the strictest standards of environmental and operational excellence, it also shows that we are dedicated to sustainable, environmentally friendly operations—in Colorado and in all of our other locations as well. We strongly support R2 certification as well as BAN's certified, third-party audited programs and encourage the other companies in our industry to follow our lead in getting certified with both."

Johnson Controls Invests $70 Million in Mexico Battery Recycling Plant
Johnson Controls Inc., headquartered in Milwaukee, has announced plans to invest more than $70 million in its automotive battery recycling center in Cienega de Flores, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. The company says the investment will fund the replacement of the facility's existing rotary furnaces with larger, more efficient rotary furnaces. The company also has invested in additional environmental control technologies at the Nuevo Leon facility.

Allen Martin, vice president and general manager, Americas, for Johnson Controls Power Solutions, says, "This investment is part of our overall strategy to grow recycling capacity in North America. Our continuing upgrades ensure this facility will be among the most environmentally advanced battery recycling operations in the world, reinforcing our commitment to both U.S. and Mexican air emission standards."

Mike Carr, vice president and general manager for Johnson Controls Power Solutions Americas Recycling Business, says, "Our recycling operations in Mexico are already well below the current U.S. standard for employee blood lead levels and substantially better than the average performance of competitive U.S. recycling facilities. With these enhancements to our Cienega facility, we continue to establish industry-leading benchmarks for the safety and health of our employees."

Martin adds, "Johnson Controls has a long history of manufacturing and recycling batteries safely and responsibly. We are committed to acting responsibly to safely transport and recycle batteries. Furthermore, as a global leader we are committed to continuing to be an industry leader to minimize the impact our industry has on the environment."

Round2 Opens Atlanta Processing Facility
Round2 Inc., headquartered in Austin, Texas, has opened a new processing facility in Atlanta. The 258,000-square-foot electronics recycling facility will increase Round2's processing capacity by 52 percent and is expected to process more than 4 million pounds of material per month, the company says.

According to Round2, the new facility will allow the company to deliver services more efficiently to the Southeastern U.S. market.

"Our strategic expansion into Atlanta creates green jobs and aligns with our commitment to support the National Strategy for Electronics Stewardship developed by U.S. federal agencies, including the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and the GSA (General Services Administration)," Paul Adamson, Round2 vice president of corporate development, says. "The Metro Atlanta Chamber, Georgia Department of Economic Development and QuickStart Technical College System of Georgia were all very helpful in the site selection process. Over the next 12 months, we plan to hire 200 employees for this electronics redistribution center to divert electronics from landfills and support the U.S. based green economy."

Round2 has additional processing facilities in Austin and Coppell, Texas, as well as in Grove City, Ohio. The facilities total 496,000 square feet and include the company's corporate headquarters, a technical operations center and end-of-life processing services.

Round2 is R2 (Responsible Recycling Practices) certified and ISO 9001: 2008, ISO 14001: 2004 and OHSAS 18001: 2007 registered. Round2 is a national provider of integrated and customizable electronics recycling services.

More information about Round2 is available at www.round2.net or via e-mail at info@round2.net.

Hydro Aluminum Increases Scrap Consumption
Hydro Aluminum, Linthicum, Md., has reported that its Extrusion North America unit recycled more than 220 million pounds of aluminum scrap in 2010. Of the total, about 60 percent was post-industrial scrap, and the company describes the remaining 40 percent as post-consumer scrap.

The 220 million pound total represents an increase of nearly 20 percent from the previous year. The company attributes the increase to equipment investments made throughout the past two years that have allowed the company to recycle more painted scrap.

"Compared to 2009, our total 2010 recycling volume increased by 13 million pounds; this in a market that is still recovering from the recession," says Lynn Brown, senior vice president for sales and marketing for Extrusion North America. "But we are particularly pleased that our efforts to increase our post-consumer recycling have yielded such good results. This fits with our global corporate mission to provide our customers with environmentally compatible products," she adds.

The company says for the fourth consecutive year, its 6000 series aluminum alloy products contained 70 percent or more recycled content. "That's one of the exciting aspects of recycling aluminum," Brown says. "It can be recycled innumerable times without any performance degradation, and recycling only consumes 5 percent of the energy need to make new aluminum."

Hydro's Extrusion North America unit remelts scrap at its casting plants in Phoenix; St. Augustine, Fla.; and Monett, Mo., where it is combined with primary aluminum to produce aluminum billets. All of the facilities are ISO 9001 compliant, according to the company.

Extrusion North America is a unit of Norsk Hydro, a Norway-based supplier of aluminum products.

Kruger Installs Tissue Machine at Tennessee Mill
Kruger Products LP, a paper company headquartered in Montreal, has announced plans to invest $316 million to install manufacturing equipment at its Memphis, Tenn., paper mill. According to Kruger, the investment will increase tissue production at the mill by approximately 60,000 metric tons per year.

"The proximity of our Memphis mill to growing U.S. markets will further strengthen our competitive position in North America, which will benefit all our establishments in both Canada and the U.S.," Kruger COO Mario Gosselin, says.

Since acquiring its tissue mills in 1997, Kruger says it has invested more than $455 million in upgrades. The project, including a new tissue machine and a building to accommodate the new asset, is partly financed by a $211 million loan from the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, a Canadian institutional fund manager.

Kruger Products is a subsidiary of Kruger Inc., Montreal. More information about Kruger is available at www.krugerproducts.ca.

The Newark Group to Close Two Plants
The Newark Group, headquartered in New Jersey, has announced plans to close its recycled boxboard mill in Franklin, Ohio, and its Newark Graphicboard-BCI plant in Newark, N.J.

Philip Jones, The Newark Group president and CEO, says, "It's no secret that market conditions have changed, and we, like every organization, need to evolve to not only serve but lead the industry."

The Newark Group is an integrated global producer of 100 percent recycled paperboard and paperboard products with manufacturing and marketing operations in North America and Europe.

Placon Opens Wisconsin Plant
The plastics manufacturer Placon Corp., Madison, Wis., has officially opened its EcoStar closed-loop plastics recycling facility in Fitchburg, Wis.

With the opening of the new plant, Placon says it has become one of the first thermoforming companies in the food and consumer packaging industry to implement in-house recycling to process post-consumer bottles and thermoforms.

The company says the 70,000-square-foot facility allows it to create a stand-alone manufacturing location under the EcoStar name.

"We are excited about our new EcoStar facility, as it enables us to produce consumer packaging from 100 percent post-consumer PET recyclate," Dan Mohs, Placon CEO, says.

Dart Opens Wash and Dry Center in California
Dart Container, Mason, Mich., has opened a new recycling facility in Corona, Calif., for processing food-contaminated foam food service containers.

"We are fortunate to have a company like Dart in our community," California Sen. Bill Emmerson, says. "Not only is Dart a major employer for our residents but, as a responsible manufacturer, the company is continually focused on reducing its carbon footprint and providing our community with options for recycling their foam products. We commend the many Dart employees that work tirelessly on these efforts."

Equipment at the center cleans, dries and compacts foam. The material is then shipped to an end consumer, where the product is used to make new products.

"Our investment in the wash and dry equipment is another example of our commitment to driving foam recycling infrastructure nationally," says Michael Westerfield, corporate director of Dart Container's recycling programs.

Illinois Company Opens Single-Stream MRF
Midwest Fiber Recycling celebrated the grand opening of what the company is calling central Illinois' first single-stream material recovery facility (MRF) Sept. 16-17.

Business partners and the public were invited to tour the plant in Normal, Ill., which features a 15-ton-per-hour processing system designed, manufactured and installed by Bulk Handling Systems (BHS), Eugene, Ore. The grand opening featured a ribbon-cutting ceremony, an open house and a community shred day, along with refreshments and giveaways.

The 86,400-square-foot facility began processing materials in late July. It serves more than 14 communities within a 100-mile radius.

Midwest Fiber says the MRF is a major expansion and investment for the family-owned company, which began processing recyclables 21 years ago with two employees at small plant in Decatur, Ill.

In addition to the Decatur and Normal locations, Midwest Fiber Recycling operates a MRF in Peoria, Ill.

Before choosing BHS to supply the system, company officials toured other facilities and considered design proposals from other manufacturers, says Todd Shumaker, an owner of Midwest Fiber.

"The design of the BHS system really met our needs," Shumaker says. "We especially liked that it had a smaller footprint than other designs."

Another factor in choosing BHS was its U.S. base. "And the equipment is manufactured in the U.S," Shumaker says. "That was important to us."

The building was configured to maximize space and to fit the layout of the custom-designed processing equipment. BHS and Midwest Fiber worked together on the design. "We spent a lot of time with BHS designing the system," Shumaker says.

The Normal MRF was built to accommodate growth. The company plans to add another shift to the one it is currently running. According to company projections, within five years, single-stream recycling will add an estimated 72 million pounds per year to the 201 million pounds of materials Midwest Fiber currently processes, an overall increase of 35 percent.

The BHS system featured at the MRF uses the latest in screening, air and optical technologies, according to the company. Recovered materials include cardboard, newsprint, mixed paper, plastics and metals.

BHS supplies processing systems for the solid waste, recycling, wood products/compost and waste-to-energy industries.

ECS Refining Achieves E-Stewards Certification at Texas Plant
ECS Refining, a Santa Clara, Calif.-based electronics recycling firm, has reported that its facility in Terrell, Texas, has been certified to the e-Stewards Standard for Responsible Recycling and Reuse of Electronic Equipment. The standard was developed by the Basel Action Network (BAN), Seattle.

Jim Taggart, CEO of ECS Refining, explains, "This is a significant milestone for our company. Many of our customers and partners have been looking for assurance from electronics recyclers such as ECS that we have the highest standards and processes available in the world."

Taggart continues, "We had been an e-Stewards Founder since the program's inception, but we weren't going to be satisfied until we secured the most relevant industry standard by becoming e-Stewards certified."

Companies pursuing e-Stewards certification are subject to yearly audits to ensure they comply with the e-Stewards Standard and have a registered ISO 14001:2004 environmental management system in place.

Mark Robards, ECS vice president of sales, says, "This designation is extremely meaningful to our customers and prospects. They can be assured that our recycled materials are processed correctly and safely—and not sent overseas. Some of our competitors can't make that claim."

Michigan Plastics Recycler Invests $3 Million at Indiana Facility
The plastics manufacturer Petoskey Plastics, Petoskey, Mich., has added $3 million in capital improvements to its Hartford City, Ind., plastics recycling facility. The company says the investment went toward the purchase and installation of new equipment that could add as much as 50 percent more capacity at the plant. The investment will help meet demand for blown plastic film and bag products manufactured at its plants in Petoskey and in Morristown, Tenn.

The company's investment includes the addition of a second recycling line and an upgrade of the facility's wash line, which is intended to boost the amount of plastic scrap generated, according to the company.

Steve Smith, Petoskey director of manufacturing, says the new equipment will greatly improve processing capabilities and allow the plant to increase its output of recycled plastic pellets by more than 1 million pounds per month. "We've seen robust growth of our GreenPE resin and products containing post-consumer recycled plastic, so this expansion will allow us to keep up with the demand," says Smith.

The company says the expansion will result in diverting an additional 1.5 million pounds of post-consumer recycled plastics per month from the waste stream. Smith estimates that about 80 percent of the company's raw material is post consmer. Approximately 75 percent of the post-industrial scrap the company uses is generated by Petoskey's own plants.

Paul Keiswetter, Petoskey president and co-founder, says, "For over 30 years, we've never stopped thinking green. This is another milestone in our continuing efforts to manufacture products that are good for our customers and good for the environment."

In addition to shipping GreenPE resin to its own manufacturing plants, Petoskey markets the resin to other manufacturers. Petoskey says its SCS-certified GreenPE resin contains 99 percent post-consumer recycled plastic.

Waste Management to Build MRF in Western Pennsylvania
The Redevelopment Authority of Allegheny County, Allegheny, Pa., has approved a plan to sell a brownfield site near Pittsburgh to Waste Management Inc. (WMI). WMI says it expects to convert the open land into a single-stream material recovery facility (MRF).

Patrick Early, the authority's development division manager, says WMI will convert the roughly 23 acres into a recycling facility that will be designed to process recyclables from western Pennsylvania as well as parts of Ohio and West Virginia.

The new facility is expected to measure 40,000 square feet, and the development costs will range from $10 to $15 million, Early adds.

He says construction on the MRF should begin by early 2012 and be complete by the end of the fourth quarter of 2012 or first quarter of 2013. When fully operational, the facility is expected to employ about 30 people.

Tire Recycler Opens South Carolina Facility
Tire International, a tire recycler and manufacturer of rubber products, has announced plans to open a recycling and manufacturing facility in Berkeley County, S.C. Construction of the new facility is expected to cost $25 million and to generate 150 new jobs.

According to a press release issued by the state of South Carolina, Tire International is in the process of upgrading its Moncks Corner, S.C., facility to prepare for full operation. The company, headquartered in Levittown, N.Y., previously conducted its operations in China.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley says, "Tire International's $25 million job-creating investment in the Low Country that is expected to generate as many as 1,000 jobs is something we're going to celebrate."

Bobby Hitt, South Carolina secretary of commerce, says, "South Carolina continues to have a strong reputation in the materials recycling sector. Tire International's decision to locate in Berkeley County will further bolster that reputation."

He continues, "The company's decision to locate its operations in South Carolina is another indication that our state's business-friendly climate, skilled workforce and exceptional market access are working to attract new investment and international companies."

Tire International says it expects to begin operating during the summer and fall of 2011, achieving full operation by the end of 2011.

Forest2Market Launches Market2Mill
Forest2Market, Charlotte, N.C., has launched Market2Mill, a suite of services for the recycled fiber industry. Initial offerings include monthly price reports and quarterly cost benchmarks.

Market2Mill is a transaction-based market pricing service for recovered fiber. Reports and benchmarks are segmented by geography, fiber grade, consumption volume and source.

The report covers old corrugated containers (OCC) and double-lined kraft cuttings (DLK) and will soon expand to other grades.

Suzanne Hearn, manager of marketing and sales at Forest2Market, says, "Demand from China, seasonal supply restrictions and concerns over quality are all putting pressure on recycled paper buyers and suppliers."

"Market2Mill is a pressure valve of sorts," Hearn adds. "It will provide high quality market data on pricing and volume from which buyers and sellers of OCC and DLK can assess their performance against the market and develop forward-looking pricing strategies."

WM Recycle America Expands E-Scrap Recycling Operations through Acquisition
WM Recycle America LLC, a subsidiary of Waste Management Inc., Houston, has acquired Access Computer Products Inc., Loveland, Colo., a provider of cell phone, ink and toner cartridge and consumer electronics reverse logistics, remarketing and recycling services.

The company also has acquired Mordell LLC, also of Loveland. Mordell is a re-commerce company that refurbishes and sells used computer equipment obtained through Access Computer Products and other third-party suppliers.

Glezco Receives E-Stewards Certification
Glezco's electronics recycling plant based in Nuevo Leon, Mexico, has been certified to the e-Stewards Standard, a program developed by the Basel Action Network (BAN), Seattle. Glezco, headquartered in Tlaquepaque, Jalisco, Mexico, is Mexico's first certified e-Stewards recycler, according to BAN.

In addition to the Nuevo Leon plant, Glezco operates three other electronics recycling facilities in the Mexican cities of Guadalajara, Jalisco and Tijuana. The company also operates an electronics recycling facility in Laredo, Texas.

Glezco's other operations also are undergoing certification, as required under the e-Stewards Standard.

"We are thrilled to welcome the first Mexican e-Stewards recycler," Jim Puckett, executive director of BAN, says. "The global expansion of the e-Stewards program is essential for servicing the needs of the world's most responsible multi-national corporations."

In addition to the e-Stewards certification, Glezco's facilities are ISO 9001, 14001 and 18001 certified. (E-Stewards certification requires ISO 14001 certification.) The company's plants also have achieved the Clean Industry Certification by SEMARNAT, a voluntary program designed to ensure compliance with Mexico's federal environmental laws.

"Glezco has a long-standing commitment to best practices, but we felt that the e-Stewards certification was essential for ensuring our customers that their hazardous e-waste and sensitive data will be properly managed," Horacio Gonzalez, Glezco CEO, says.

"It was hard work, but we are very proud of holding the distinction of having passed the test of the industry's gold standard," he adds.

Glezco was founded in 1992 and operates five recycling plants throughout Mexico, Latin America and the U.S. More information about Glezco is available online at www.glezcocorp.com.

National Recycling to Open Second Scrap Yard in Minnesota
National Recycling Inc. (NRI), a scrap metal recycling firm headquartered in Hugo, Minn., is opening a second scrap yard in Cambridge, Minn. The city of Cambridge is selling the company slightly more than 10 acres of land on which to build the new scrap metal facility.

Rick Mark, the owner of NRI, says the greenfield facility will be designed with the environment in mind and will service industrial, commercial and retail business.

A majority of the nonferrous processing will be conducted indoors, with some ferrous processing taking place outside. The new facility will measure 50,000 square feet and will not process automobiles, according to Mark.

MPC's Philadelphia Facility Earns R2 Certification
The Mendota Heights, Minn., electronics recycling firm MPC, formerly known as Materials Processing Corp., has reported that its Philadelphia location has earned R2 (Responsible Recycling) certification. MPC says only a handful of Philadelphia-area electronics recyclers have achieved the certification.

R2 certification is a voluntary standard for the electronic scrap recycling industry established through a multi-stakeholder effort.

MPC's Philadelphia location already is ISO 9001 and 14001 registered. Theresa Bauer, MPC director of compliance, EHSS (environment, health and safety services), says the new certifications are encouraging. "It is a great pleasure to further validate the credibility of our environmental, quality, health and safety management system and the processes we have developed," she says.

MPC also has a facility in Mendota Heights, Minn.