The Recycling Partnership Launches West Coast Contamination Initiative with First $1 Million Donation
Amazon and Keurig Dr Pepper among funders supporting critical work in key area of the country to drive circular economy
(Falls Church, VA). Contamination costs the U.S. recycling system more than $300 million every year and is especially costly to communities along the West Coast. To tackle this crucial challenge, The Recycling Partnership with support from Amazon, Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) and other funding partners, is launching the West Coast Contamination Initiative (WCCI).
WCCI’s goal is to increase the quality of recyclables collected at the curb in communities up and down the West Coast, which will help drive the circular economy, create a healthier environment and build stronger communities. To do this, the Partnership will work together with state and municipal leadership to develop tactics, best practices and tools available to communities from San Diego to Salem to Seattle, to recycle more and recycle better. Contamination happens when non-recyclable items are mixed in with recyclables or when recyclable items aren’t kept loose in the bin.
“California, Oregon and Washington have been hit hard by the current recycling market conditions,” says Keefe Harrison, CEO, The Recycling Partnership. “For the past five years, we have been developing, testing and refining best practices and tools to help states like Massachusetts and cities like Chicago and Atlanta not just weather, but rise above challenges in the recycling marketplace. Thanks to support from Amazon, Keurig Dr Pepper and other funding partners we are now going to invest $1 million to help the West Coast build a more sustainable recycling system that drives the circular economy.”
WCCI is one of several planned anti-contamination projects from The Recycling Partnership that will take place across the country.
“Today’s announcement marks another innovative collaboration between KDP and the Partnership. Our long-standing relationship has resulted in tremendous strides at improving recycling across the U.S. and we are proud to be supporting this important work on the West Coast,” said Monique Oxender, Chief Sustainability Officer, Keurig Dr Pepper. “We are excited to see more quality recyclables travel from the recycling bin back in to new products, creating a thriving economy coast to coast.”
While some residents put their recyclables in plastic bags in their recycling bins, others wish that certain things could be recycled—such as garden hoses, ropes, wires, plastic films and wraps, food, clothing, batteries or flammables—and mistakenly add those into their bins. Some of these items can damage equipment in recycling facilities and others can shut down a facility causing delays, both of which can be costly.
“Amazon is committed to being part of the circular economy,” said Terese Kietzer, Senior Manager, Amazon Sustainability. “The Recycling Partnership’s WCCI project provides better access to resources that help increase and expand local recycling programs in communities across the West Coast.”
“We’re excited to connect our knowledge, data, and on-the-ground expertise with the expertise of West Coast states and community programs to fight contamination and develop a roadmap for success,” says Cody Marshall, Chief Community Strategy Officer, The Recycling Partnership. “We’re ready to dig in.”
The Recycling Partnership also has a free online contamination toolkit at recyclingpartnership.org/fight-contaminationthat any community in the U.S. can use to assess their current contamination needs and take next steps to start cleaning up their recycling stream.
Learn more about the Partnership’s contamination work in Atlanta at recyclingpartnership.org/for-communities/.
About The Recycling Partnership
The Recycling Partnership (recyclingpartnership.org) is a national nonprofit organization that leverages corporate partner funding to transform recycling for good in states, cities and communities all across America. As the only organization in the country that engages the full recycling supply chain from the corporations that manufacture products and packaging to local governments charged with recycling to industry end markets, haulers, material recovery facilities, and converters; The Recycling Partnership positively impacts recycling at every step in the process. The Recycling Partnership has served more than 1,000 communities and counting with best-in-class tools, data, resources and technical support, placed 500,000 recycling carts, reached 50 million households, and helped companies and communities invest more than $37 million in recycling infrastructure.In doing so, The Recycling Partnership has created meaningful social, environmental, and economic change. By the end of 2019, the nonprofit change agent estimates it will have diverted 230 million pounds of new recyclables, saved 465 million gallons of water, avoided 250 thousand metric tons of GHG, and driven significant reductions in targeted contamination rates.
About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.
About Keurig Dr. Pepper
Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) is a leading coffee and beverage company in North America, with annual revenue in excess of $11 billion. KDP holds leadership positions in soft drinks, specialty coffee and tea, water, juice and juice drinks and mixers, and markets the #1 single serve coffee brewing system in the U.S. The Company maintains an unrivaled distribution system that enables its portfolio of more than 125 owned, licensed and partner brands to be available nearly everywhere people shop and consume beverages. With a wide range of hot and cold beverages that meet virtually any consumer need, KDP key brands include Keurig®, Dr Pepper®, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters®, Canada Dry®, Snapple®, Bai®, Mott’s® and The Original Donut Shop®. The Company employs more than 25,000 employees and operates more than 120 offices, manufacturing plants, warehouses and distribution centers across North America. For more information, visit www.keurigdrpepper.com.
###