Aluminum Can Council Urges Communities to Take It to the Curb

The Aluminum Can Council (ACC), Arlington, Va., a coalition formed by The Aluminum Association and The Can Manufacturer's Institute, has unveiled the Curbside Value Partnership (CVP), a national education campaign designed to grow participation in local curbside programs and to increase the amount of aluminum captured.

"The aluminum industry is committed to working together to increase the recycling of used beverage cans," says Craig Covert, marketing manager for Alcoa's Rigid Packaging Division and a co-chair of the ACC. "Through this partnership, we are focusing on curbside programs because they provide the most opportunity,” he says, adding that curbside recycling is offered in more than half of the communities in the United States.

“Through this partnership, we hope to collect more cans in recycling bins but also help municipalities collect more money through their programs because of the increased recycling of the most valuable commodities." 

According to the ACC, the program has been in development for two years and brings together municipal recycling coordinators, materials recovery facility (MRF) operators, local officials and third parties to improve curbside recycling nationwide. Communities can opt-in to the partnership and in exchange for access to research data, best practices, "Take it to the Curb" communications templates, public relations council and, in some cases, direct funds, they agree to step-up their communications efforts, highlight valuable commodities and share data that measures the results achieved.

"Kansas City has already benefited greatly from the partnership in terms of focusing our efforts on promoting recycling and identifying our action steps to move forward," DeeAnn Gregory of Kansas City Recycles says. "Through the partnership, we've had access to professionals that have enabled us to strategize great ideas for an effective promotional campaign targeted to our city.  Now we're working together on implementation.  It has allowed us to focus more deeply on marketing, something we haven't had the resources to do before."

Through national consumer and municipal research; pilot programs in six communities including Kansas City, Orlando and Denver; analysis of successful programs nationwide and discussions with stakeholders, the ACC found that MRFs and municipalities can increase curbside participation and economic value in their curbside streams if they work together to emphasize sustained public communications to increase awareness and participation of their curbside programs; encourage and facilitate the diligent recycling of high value materials; and report collection data on a tonnage and value basis to better determine where missed opportunities exist and where the revenue could be generated.

 "We know the demand is there for this program," says Steve Thompson, director of recycling initiatives for the ACC. "Curbside participation rates are declining and community officials are wondering what they can do about it in a cost effective way."

The ACC will kick off the partnership at the NRC Congress Aug. 28-31 in Minneapolis and will launch a media and marketing campaign to reach decision-makers at the community and MRF levels. Additionally, a strategic partnership with Earth911, an online resource and environmental clearinghouse for communities across the county, will offer partners the opportunity to exchange ideas and to share best practices on-line. A national awards program will also launch later in the year. The group will also launch a national newsletter called “Bin Buzz,” showcasing best practices, coupled with an expanding Web site  at www.RecycleCurbside.org, which will serve as a complimentary education effort to reach interested communities.

"Early results have been very encouraging," adds Thompson, "and in our discussions with city officials and recycling managers, we are convinced that more fact-based results will lend momentum to the effort."

For example, in Brevard County, Florida, a three-month low-cost marketing and media push to residents resulted in a 6.8 percent increase in the amount of recyclables collected and an increase in value of $70,000. Additionally, a six-month marketing and media campaign in Orlando, yielded a 1,000 percent increase in bin requests, all with little financial investment by the city.

Additional information on the partnership is available online at www.RecycleCurbside.org, by e-mail at info@recyclecurbside.org or by calling (804) 798-5750.