In Memoriam: Ma Hongchang

Ma Hongchang, co-founder of the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association – Recycling Metal Branch (CMRA), has died at age 84, according to an announcement from the Brussels-based Bureau of International Recycling (BIR).

BIR says Ma was a highly respected figure in the global recycling community and one of the most influential bridges between China’s recycling sector and the international industry. The association worked closely with Ma for more than two decades, first in his role as a leader of the Beijing-based CMRA and then, starting in 2014, in his role as a consultant and advisor to BIR.

BIR credits Ma with facilitating understanding and communication on policy, waste import regulations and global nonferrous market developments. Among his contributions were updates provided at BIR conventions and writeups for the periodic BIR "World Mirror on Non-Ferrous Metals."

Ma graduated with a degree in nuclear physics from Nanjing University in China in 1965 and spent more than two decades at the Beijing Institute of Atomic Energy. After a stint at the State Environmental Protection Administration, in 2002, he became one of the founders of the CMRA, later serving as its vice general secretary.

“He was instrumental in shaping China’s recycled metals industry, promoting research into recovery methods, import processing zones and market efficiency," the BIR says, adding that Ma helped organize large Chinese delegations each year to attend its own convention and the annual Recycled Materials Association convention in the United States.

“I very much appreciated Mr. Ma and his dedication to BIR,” BIR Director General Arnaud Brunet says. “I recall my very first visit to China after joining the organization; Mr. Ma was instrumental, welcoming me and introducing me to all the key contacts I needed to meet. His energy and full support for BIR were evident in everything he did."