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OUTREACH DIRECTOR OF PRODUCT POLICY INSTITUTE TO OPEN SWANA’S RECYCLING CONFERENCE

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 08:37:07 GMT

October 21, 2009 – The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is pleased to announce that Heidi Sanborn, National Outreach Director for the Product Policy Institute (PPI), has been named as the keynote speaker for SWANA’s 2010 Thinking Outside the Blue Box Conference.

At PPI, Ms. Sanborn works towards the Institute’s mission to prevent waste and promote sustainable production and consumption practices by organizing local governments and communities to press for state-by-state Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework policies. As the national outreach director, her responsibilities include increasing awareness and implementation of producer responsibility policy.

Ms. Sanborn will focus her keynote presentation on the necessity of taking action to reduce the lifecycle impacts of products and packaging to reduce public costs and impacts on public health and the environment. She will also discuss the nexus between managing waste to become feedstock for new products and the development of infrastructure in the United States to manage materials wisely and create green jobs.

Ms. Sanborn’s presentation will open SWANA’s 2010 Thinking Outside the Blue Box Conference on Monday, February 8, 2010. The two-day conference, dedicated solely to recycling and special waste issues, will be held at the Embassy Suites in Charlotte-Concord, North Carolina, February 8-9, 2010, in conjunction with SWANA’s Winter Training Center. For more information about either of these events, please visit www.thinkingoutsidethebluebox.org.

SWANA OFFERS FIRST SPANISH LANGUAGE TRAINING COURSE

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:36:04 GMT

Silver Spring, MD - SWANA has recently completed the translation of its first Spanish language training course, Waste Screening at MSW Management Facilities. The growing Spanish-speaking workforce and the requests of several Chapters of SWANA for Spanish language materials, along with the creation of the Caribbean-Puerto Rico Chapter of SWANA, prompted the Association’s decision to begin translating current training courses into Spanish.

SWANA has been in the process of updating its training courses over the past few years, and has recently began evaluating which courses would be most useful to Spanish speakers. Currently, the Association has deemed operational courses, such as Waste Screening at MSW Management Facilities, to be most important. Another operational course, Landfill Operations Basics, is expected to be completed in April 2010.

The Waste Screening at MSW Management Facilities course was updated in 2009, thanks to the services of Innovative Waste Consulting Services (IWCS), a consulting firm in Gainesville, Florida. Developed from a university research environment, IWCS has state-of-the-art expertise in areas such as landfills, waste treatment and recycling, and characterization of environmental risk from waste operations. SWANA would like to thank IWSC for a job well done, with a special thanks to Jon Powell, the primary author of the course.

The training course manual presents information and examples of methods and procedures to assist municipal solid waste facility owners and operators to achieve compliance with Federal regulations. The manual is the foundation of the training course, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of 40 CFR, Part 258. The manual and course are intended for use primarily by faclity owners/operators and their consultants and contractors to provide advice on demonstrating compliance with the 258 standards.
The Spanish translation was completed by Strictly Spanish, a consultant firm based in Milford, Ohio, but the project could not have been completed without the assistance of a dedicated team of SWANA members who committed their time, technical expertise and knowledge of the Spanish language to assist in the translation of this course. SWANA would like to extend a very special thanks to:

Josephine Valencia, City of Durham
Eduardo D. Choquis, Raba-Kistner Consultants, Inc
Miguel Delgado, SCS Engineers
Rafael Ordonez, Promotora Ambiental
Mickey Ray, The Earth Group, Inc.
Rafael Salazar, Keppel Seghers Inc.
Marissa Segundo, City of Largo

The English and Spanish versions of Waste Screening at MSW Management Facilities course is available for purchase at www.SWANAstore.com as a home study course and an on-site training package. For more information about the English or Spanish versions of the course, please contact learn@swana.org or visit www.SWANA.org.

T. BOONE PICKENS PRESENTS THE PICKENS PLAN AT WASTECON 2009

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 18:43:04 GMT

LONG BEACH, Calif., Sept. 23 – Presidential Keynote Speaker T. Boone Pickens, chairman and CEO of BP Capital Management, spoke to WASTECON attendees today about the Pickens Plan, a collection of coordinated steps that together form a comprehensive approach to America's energy needs.

Mr. Pickens has had a long career in the energy industry, beginning in 1951 with Phillips Petroleum Co. in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. After three and a half years, he struck out on his own and founded Mesa Petroleum in 1956. Pickens’ career at Mesa spanned four decades and saw Mesa grow to become one of the largest and most well known independent exploration and production companies in the United States. He left the company in 1996 and aimed his attention at lessening the United States’ dependence on foreign oil. In 1997 he formed the Pickens Fuel Corp., later reincorporated as Clean Energy, which now owns and operates natural gas fueling stations from British Columbia to the Mexican border.

The Pickens Plan was introduced in July 2008 and currently has 1.6 million supporters, including influential businessmen and members of Congress. The plan envisions a major shift from an energy system that is currently highly dependent on imported foreign oil to one that would rely mainly on domestic natural gas and renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and biomass. Mr. Pickens is supporting legislation H.R 1834 and S. 1408 that would require most long haul trucks to convert to natural gas and would also provide tax credits of $65,000 per truck to help defray some of the costs of that transition.

“The Pickens Plan could create a significant new market for landfill methane’s use as a vehicle fuel,” said John H. Skinner, SWANA’s Executive Director and CEO. “Waste-to-energy facilities could also play an important role in moving the energy system towards renewable energy supplies,” Skinner added.

Pickens encouraged WASTECON attendees to join the New Energy Army and show their support for reducing the United States’ dependence on foreign oil.

“You (SWANA) are looked on as a leader in your field,” said Pickens. “Any kind of leadership statement that you can make; it helps.”

Pickens’ presentation followed the WASTECON 2009 Lawrence Lecturer, Dr. Enzo Favoino, who shared with attendees the strategies and programs for managing organic wastes that have been successful in Europe. Favoino is the leader of the Department on Composting and Integrated Waste Management with Scuola Agraria del Parco di Monza, Italy, as well as a member of the Board of ECN-European Compost Network and the Chair of the Working Group on Biological Treatment for the International Solid Waste Association.

At the Annual Business Meeting, the 2010 International Board officers were announced. Carl Newby of Arlington County Department of Environmental Services, now the Past President, officially handed over the gavel to John Hadfield, SWANA’s 2010 President. Sara Bixby of South Central Iowa Solid Waste Agency became Vice President, James Warner of Lancaster County Solid Waste Authority became Treasurer and Anne Germain of the Delaware Solid Waste Authority became Secretary.

CEO OF TERRACYCLE, INC. OPENS WASTECON 2009

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 17:24:48 GMT

LONG BEACH, Calif., Sept. 22 – Keynote speaker, Tom Szaky, CEO and co-founder of TerraCycle, Inc., opened the Solid Waste Association of North America’s (SWANA) 47th Annual WASTECON conference and exhibition today at the Long Beach Convention Center.

TerraCycle, based in Trenton, New Jersey, is the first company to create products from and packaged entirely in solid waste. Mr. Szaky co-founded the company as a student at Princeton University and has grown the company over the past six years to become the leader in up-cycling with sponsored partnerships with America’s leading brands. TerraCycle also has offices in Brazil, Mexico and Canada and recently opened a branch in London to serve the European market.

Mr. Szaky has a unique perspective on the idea of waste. “Everything can be up-cycled and made into something else,” said Szaky. “Landfills are, essentially, incredibly poorly managed warehouses.”

Working with everyone from large corporations to small community organizations, Mr. Szaky’s business model focuses on the idea that the things we throw away are not garbage, but commodities that can be used to make new products, and ultimately, a profit. Mr. Szaky and TerraCycle have become more well-known within the past year with the release of Mr. Szaky’s book, Revolution in a Bottle, and the launch of TerraCycle’s reality television show, Garbage Moguls, on The National Geographic Channel.

Mr. Szaky spoke at an opening breakfast that also featured the amusing observations of comedian Tim Clue. Following the breakfast, the exhibit hall opening ceremonies began with the traditional Parade of Chapter Flags. SWANA International President Carl Newby and President-elect John Hadfield joined local representatives from Long Beach and members of the Southern California Founding Chapter of SWANA to welcome this year’s attendees. At 10:00 a.m., the exhibit hall officially opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony and a $1000 cash prize drawing.

The exhibit hall, featuring more than 190 vendors showcasing their products and services as well as educational sessions, is free and open to the public. The technical sessions, filled by presentations from leaders in the solid waste field, offer an insight into the growing and innovative field of solid waste management. SWANA encourages members of the local community to stop by the convention center and participate in the only international solid waste conference and trade show by solid waste professionals for solid waste professionals.

SWANA ANNOUNCES T. BOONE PICKENS AS THE 2009 WASTECON PRESIDENTIAL KEYNOTE

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 14:46:40 GMT

SILVER SPRING, Md. – The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is pleased to welcome T. Boone Pickens as the 2009 WASTECON Presidential Keynote speaker on Wednesday, September 23, 2009 at 10:00 a.m. at the Long Beach Convention Center. Mr. Pickens will share his vision for reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil with strategies that include renewable energy sources from solid waste. The Presidential Keynote Session will be moderated by SWANA's incoming International President John Hadfield.

"Mr. Pickens is an internationally acclaimed visionary in the quest for alternative renewable energy supplies," said John H. Skinner, Ph.D., SWANA Executive Director and CEO. "I am sure his presentation will inspire and motivate WASTECON attendees" Skinner added.

T. Boone Pickens is the architect of the Pickens Plan, a solution to America's increasing dependence on foreign oil that he believes is the greatest threat to America's national, economic and environmental security. His campaign, launched in July 2008, has developed a following of more than 1.6 million Americans who support an expanded use of domestic fuel alternatives --chiefly natural gas -- to replace foreign oil/diesel/gasoline. Pickens also has called for the increased use of clean, renewable energy -- solar and wind -- for power generation purposes, as well as an expanded use of nuclear.
The Presidential Keynote session is open to all registered WASTECON attendees. For more information, go to www.WASTECON.org.

SWANA would like to thank Clean Energy, this year's Presidential Keynote Sponsor.

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About SWANA:
For 40 years, SWANA, the Solid Waste Association of North America, has been the leading professional association in the solid waste management field. SWANA’s mission is “to advance the practice of environmentally and economically sound management of municipal solid waste.” SWANA serves over 8,000 members and thousands more industry professionals with technical conferences, certifications, publications and a large offering of technical training courses. For more information, visit www.SWANA.org.

SWANA ANNOUNCES 2009 PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD WINNERS

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 15:31:12 GMT

HONOREES TO BE RECOGNIZED AT WASTECON 2009

SILVER SPRING, Md. - The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2009 Professional Achievement Awards. The Awards Program was developed to recognize individuals who, through the course of their careers, have made significant contributions to the solid waste management profession.

Each of the winners was recommended by the International Awards Committee and each recommendation was approved by the Executive Committee during SWANA’s Mid-Year Meetings held in Savannah, Georgia in May.

Professional Achievement Award—Public Member

Russell Reiserer, Solid Waste Manager
City of Palo Alto, Palo Alto, California

Mr. Reiserer has worked for the City of Palo Alto since 1980 and has overseen various engineering and solid waste management programs. He is currently responsible for the City’s landfill and composting operations as well as many educational programs. Mr. Reiserer has been a member of SWANA for over 26 years.

Life Member Award:

Patrick Holland, Executive Director (Retired)
Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District, Cleveland, Ohio

Mr. Holland has been an active SWANA member for over 15 years, serving in many leadership positions and as SWANA faculty. His career in the solid waste industry has spanned nearly 30 years. Mr. Holland was a founding director of the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District, the largest district in Ohio, and served as the Executive Director for 19 years before retiring.

Life Member Award:

Robert P. Stearns, Chairman and Founding Principal
SCS Engineers, Long Beach, California

Mr. Stearns was a co-founder of SCS Engineers in 1970 and has provided the organization with more than 35 years of experience in engineering analysis and design of solid waste management systems. Mr. Stearns has been the recipient of the Outstanding Civil Engineer Achievement Award from the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Robert L. Lawrence Distinguished Service Award from SWANA, and was inducted into the Environmental Industries Associations Hall of Fame.

The winners will be recognized at WASTECON 2009 in Long Beach, California, during SWANA’s Annual Awards Luncheon on Thursday, September 24, 2009.