The Coca-Cola Foundation awarded a $500,000 recycling infrastructure grant to the Southeast Recycling Development Council, South Carolina, (SERDC) Nov. 12 at the 2018 SERDC Summit.

According to a news release, the grant will allow SERDC to improve recycling services and invest in infrastructure, such as recycling carts, material recovery facility (MRF) upgrades and recycling trucks to support curbside recycling programs.

“With the Coca-Cola Foundation’s generous support, this grant will support efforts to expand comprehensive curbside recycling in the southeastern United States,” says SERDC executive director Will Sagar.

Southeastern communities--Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia—can apply for grant funding. Recycling carts, material recovery facility (MRF) upgrades, recycling trucks and construction for transfer stations are eligible under the grant program.

The release says the program will call for collaboration between The Recycling Partnership, state recycling officials, local government partners and other organizations.

Grant objectives include “fostering communication among these groups, promoting sustainable recycling programs and coordinating educational and public awareness activities" related to recycling.

Organizations can apply here. Grants will be awarded on a “rolling basis.”

Boeing, Seattle, and ELG Carbon Fibre (ELG), Coseley, United Kingdom, entered into a partnership to recycle excess aerospace-grade composite material, which will be used by other companies to make products such as electronic accessories and automotive equipment. According to an ELG Carbon Fibre news release, the agreement covers excess carbon fiber from 11 Boeing airplane manufacturing sites and will reduce solid waste by more than 1 million pounds per year.

Carbon-fiber reinforced material is strong and lightweight, making it attractive for a variety of uses, including in building the 787 Dreamliner and 777x airplane, ELG Carbon Fibre reports.

According to an ELG Carbon Fibre news release, Boeing has been working for several years to create an economically viable carbon fiber reuse industry. The company improved its production methods to minimize excess and develop a model for collecting scrap material. However, technical barriers remained in the way of repurposing material that had already been “cured” or prepped for use in the airplane manufacturing process. ELG reports that it developed a proprietary method to recycle these “cured” composites so they do not need to be thrown out.

“Recycling cured carbon fiber was not possible just a few years ago,” says Tia Benson Tolle, Boeing Materials & Fabrication director for product strategy and future airplane development, in a news release. “We are excited to collaborate with ELG and leverage innovative recycling methods to work toward a vision where no composite scrap will be sent to landfills.” 

Boeing and ELG conducted a pilot project where they recycled excess material from Boeing’s Composite Wing Center, Everett, Washington, where massive wings for the 777x airplane are made. In the pilot, ELG put the excess materials through treatment in a furnace, which vaporizes the resin that holds the carbon fiber layers together and leaves behind clean material. Over the course of 18 months, the companies saved 1.5 million pounds of carbon fiber, which was cleaned and sold to companies in the electronics and ground transportation industries. 

“Security of supply is extremely important when considering using these materials in long-term automotive and electronic projects,” says Frazer Barnes, managing director of ELG Carbon Fibre, in a news release. “This agreement gives us the ability to provide that assurance, which gives our customers the confidence to use recycled materials.”

With the success of the pilot project, Boeing says the new agreement is likely to save a majority of the excess composite material from its 11 sites, which will support the company’s goal to reduce solid waste from going to landfills by 20 percent by 2025. Boeing and ELG are considering expanding the agreement to include excess material from three additional Boeing sites in Canada, China and Malaysia.

As a result of the partnership, ELG estimates the number of its employees will nearly triple from 39 employees in 2016 to an expected 112 employees by the end of 2019 as the recycling market continues to expand.

The Paper Stock Industries (PSI) Chapter of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), Washington, has officially kicked off its 2019 academic scholarship program, with plans to give $2,000 scholarships to eight students next year, matching its 2018 record.

According to a press release, the PSI scholarship program provides funds to select students who are dependents of employees in the recycling divisions of PSI Chapter member companies.

Interested students can review the 2019 scholarship requirements and access the new application here. The deadline for applications is March 31, 2019, with winners announced June 1.

“For more than 20 years, PSI Chapter scholarships have helped qualified students pursue higher education and achieve their academic dreams,” says PSI scholarship committee chair Nini Krever of Wilmington Paper Corp. “These scholarships can change lives, and PSI is thrilled to be able to offer eight scholarships again next year.”

PSI supports its scholarship program through raffles, donations and an annual fundraising bowling tournament held in conjunction with Recycling Today's Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference North America.

Tomra Sorting Recycling, a supplier of sensor-based sorting equipment, appointed Nick Doyle as its sales manager for the West Coast North America. In this newly created position that expands sales and customer support of Tomra’s equipment to waste and plastics recycling operations, Doyle will consult directly with Tomra partners and customers to implement the right sorting solution to improve recycling recovery rates, increase product purity and boost profitability.

“Just like Tomra, Nick is a true champion of the circular economy, so he is a natural fit with the Tomra team and work philosophy,” says Carlos Manchado Atienza, regional director of Americas for Tomra Sorting Recycling. “With his extensive previous sales experience for one of our plant-building partners, Nick offers in-depth knowledge of Tomra sorting equipment. He is the right person for the western North American territory to support our customers and help them boost product purity and circuit productivity.”

“When I sold Tomra equipment with my previous employer, it was my favorite solution because of its versatility and impact on the sorting circuit,” Doyle adds. “I’m excited to work for a company that brings about a positive change for the environment and ushers in more sustainability to the market.” 

Doyle will work from his field-based office in Los Angeles. He can be reached at 916-215-9215 or nick.doyle@tomra.com.