September/October 2007
Board Decisions, Congressional Fly-In Define Summer Leadership Meeting
The ReMA board of directors passed the following measures during the association's summer leadership meeting June 24-27 in Washington, D.C.:
- Continue the Superfund Recycling Equity Act reasonable care compliance program and finance it by increasing dues for all domestic ReMA processor and broker members to cover the program's estimated $337,500 cost. The cost is equivalent to 2,500 environmental database reports at $135 per report. The dues increase will sunset in four years, at which time the board will reassess the program and funding.
- Accept the "Recommended Guidelines for State Legislators Regarding Scrap Tire Management."
- Approve an additional $30,000 for the printing and distribution of the Phoenix publication this year, bringing the total budget for this project to $60,000.
- Appoint Paul Brenner of Brenner Recycling Co. (Hazleton, Pa.) to the board of the Recycling Research Foundation to complete the term of outgoing board member Alasdair Gledhill of ELG Metals (McKeesport, Pa.), which ends in April 2008.
In addition to governance activities, the summer board meeting included ReMA's second annual congressional fly-in on June 26. Members visited more than 125 U.S. senators and representatives to introduce them to the scrap recycling industry and educate them on its contributions to the local, state, national, and international economies as well as to the environment. The fly-in also gave members the opportunity to initiate discussions with lawmakers on ReMA priority issues such as transportation, the RISE tax legislation, and industry efforts to achieve obtainable solutions to global climate change through energy conservation. The next ReMA leadership meeting will be Oct. 17-20 in Boston. ReMA governance meetings are open to all members, and there is no registration fee to attend. For more information or to register, visit www.isri.org. For details about the congressional fly-in, contact Billy Johnson, director of political affairs, at 202/662-8548.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) met with an ReMA delegation during the association's second annual congressional fly-in. Pictured are Jon Bedell, Chris Bedell of The David J. Joseph Co. (Cincinnati), Greg Dixon of Baker Iron & Metal Co. (Lexington, Ky.), Gabrielle Dixon, Sen. McConnell, ReMA's Billy Johnson, and Jeremy Foster of Mansbach Metal Co. (Ashland, Ky.).
Scrap Wins Three Editorial Awards
Scrap continued its winning ways this year by receiving three awards in two separate contests for articles published in 2006. The American Society of Business Publication Editors selected Scrap's two-part "Scrap in India" series for a gold award in the feature series category for publications in the Central-Southeast region with circulation of 80,000 or less. The series, written by award-winning journalist Adam Minter, described India's scrap metal and paper industries. It appeared in the November/December 2006 and January/February 2007 issues of Scrap. At the national level, ASBPE recognized Scrap's article "The Metal Hunters" with a bronze award in the feature article category for publications with circulation of 80,000 or less. The Society of National Association Publications also lauded "The Metal Hunters" by giving it a bronze Excel Award in the magazines--feature article category for publications with circulations from 10,001 to 20,000. "The Metal Hunters," written by Roger Arnold and published in January/February 2006, examined the poignant—and often dangerous—lives of recyclers in Laos who make a living by recovering Vietnam-era war scrap.
Congressional Recycling Caucus Doubles After Fly-In
The House and the Senate recycling caucuses have doubled in size, to 128 members, in the past year following ReMA's June member fly-in to Capitol Hill and other outreach efforts. Since its inception in 2006, the House Recycling Caucus, co-chaired by Reps. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Paul Gillmor (R-Ohio), has grown to 106 members. The Senate Recycling Caucus, co-chaired by Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), has grown to 22 members. Contact Billy Johnson at 202/662-8548 or billyjohnson@isri.org, or Mark Reiter, assistant vice president and chief lobbyist, at 202/662-8517 or markreiter@isri.org.
Program Recovers 180,000 Mercury Switches
As the National Voluntary Mercury Switch Removal Program hits its one-year mark, ReMA recently reminded members that it's not too late to participate. Under the NVMSRP, dismantlers and recyclers voluntarily remove accessible mercury-containing switches from end-of-life vehicles prior to flattening or shredding. Participants in eligible states receive one dollar for every convenience light switch and three dollars for every ABS brake sensor they remove. More than 15,000 companies currently participate in the program, including more than 100 scrap processing facilities. In 2007, participants have recovered roughly 180,000 switches, which translates to 400 pounds of mercury. In addition, End of Life Vehicle Solutions has paid approximately $100,000 in incentive payments to eligible recipients.
Visit www.isri.org/switches to learn more about the program, which ReMA helped create. ReMA encourages eligible companies who have not registered to do so by going to www.elvsolutions.org and clicking on "Contact Us." For more information, contact Eric Harris, director of governmental and international affairs, at 202/662-8514 or ericharris@isri.org.
RecycleGuard Changes Carrier and Premium Basis
Effective Sept. 23, 2007, AIG is replacing ACE as the endorsed insurance company for the ISRI-sponsored RecycleGuard program. All renewals occurring on or after Sept. 23 will be nonrenewed under ACE and instead offered terms with RecycleGuard/AIG. In other RecycleGuard news, the company has changed how it calculates general liability coverage ratings. RecycleGuard will now base its ratings on payroll, not gross receipts. Contact Nicole Croteau at 603/334-3084 or nicole.croteau@willis.com.
EU Regulation May Hinder U.S.-EU Trade
ISRI is working closely with the Bureau of International Recycling (Brussels) and U.S. authorities to address a potential problem with the newly implemented European Union regulation 1013/2006. What concerns shippers is a new requirement that they file information specified in Annex VII with each shipment to the EU, including the name of the generator of the scrap. A processor shipping its own material could most likely insert its own name. For most brokers, an honest answer to put in Box 6 (original producers) would be "various" so long as the material does not originate from a single generator. The problem remains, however, for materials that a broker or trader may be buying directly from a generator because many brokers consider such information confidential. ReMA brought this matter to the attention of the EPA's international affairs office, the U.S. Trade Representative's office, and the State Department. For more information, contact Eric Harris at 202/662-8514 or ericharris@isri.org.
ISRI Submits Comments on Solid Waste Definition Revision
In late June, ReMA submitted comments on the U.S. EPA's Supplemental Proposed Rule on Revisions to the Definition of Solid Waste. In the comments, ReMA offered general support for the proposed exclusions and language on legitimate recycling, but it opposed certain conditions of the exclusions as inconsistent with the principle that "recycling is not disposal" and requested clarifications concerning legitimate recycling. ReMA also requested that the revisions add unprocessed obsolete scrap metal to the category of "excluded scrap metal." Contact David Wagger, director of environmental management, at 202/662-8533 or davidwagger@isri.org.
ISRI Testifies at Texas E-Scrap Hearing
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality held its first stakeholder meeting to get input before writing rules on the state's recently enacted electronics recycling bill. Participants included ISRI, Round 2 Technologies, Amandi Services, Dell, and HP. The bill, which references ReMA's electronics recycling operating practices as a nationally recognized set of practices for electronics recyclers, requires computer manufacturers selling into Texas to implement a convenient plan to take back their branded products. ReMA testified that its operating practices complement ReMA's Recycling Industry Operating Standard and cautioned rushing to codify the practices as regulations. ReMA also noted that some of the practices, such as enforcing the export provision, were beyond Texas' jurisdictional reach. ReMA suggested that the commission adopt its best practices as a voluntary option for recyclers. Contact Eric Harris at 202/662-8514 or ericharris@isri.org.
ISRI Teaches D.C.-Area Children About Recycling
ISRI educated area children about the many interesting aspects of recycling at the Washington, D.C., YMCA's THINGAMAJIG convention. ReMA communications assistant Tom Crane hosted the ReMA booth at the convention, showing kids how the scrap recycling industry completes the recycling loop by transforming materials at the end of their useful lives into raw material for manufacturing. Visitors to the booth received ReMA's Scrap Map, a poster that shows the recycling process in an easy-to-understand and colorful manner. They also viewed a video presentation explaining the history of recycling from ancient times to today's sophisticated and capital-intensive industry. Contact Tom Crane at 202/662-8536 or tomcrane@isri.org.
Bahrainian Ambassador Tours U.S. Recycling Facility
In early July, Ambassador Nasser M.Y. Al Belooshi toured Davis Industries (Lorton, Va.) to learn more about scrap recycling with the goal of establishing a recycling program in Bahrain, a country about three times the size of Washington, D.C., with approximately 700,000 people. The ambassador was particularly interested in minimizing the impact of end-of-life products in Bahrain, including cars, trucks, and household durable goods.