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On April 16 and 17, NRRA teamed up with the NH Department of Environmental Services and the Maine Compost School to host two full days of food waste diversion and composting workshops. With over 70 registrants, each workshop hosted between 30 and 40 attendees from municipalities and businesses across New Hampshire, captured on a map of the state.
The workshop series was supported by an NRRA grant through the USDA Rural Utilities Service. The goal of the grant is to reduce or eliminate pollution of water resources by providing funding for organizations that provide training to improve the planning and management of solid waste sites, such as composting and food waste diversion away from landfills or incinerators.
Presenters included NRRA Executive Director, Reagan Bissonnette; NRRA Communications Manager, Andrea Folsom; NHDES Solid Waste Operator Training Coordinator, Tara Albert; NHDES Materials Management, Education, and Planning Supervisor,...Read more
Did you know that public schools in the United States produce over 14,500 tons of waste every day ? My school addressed this issue head on. Three years ago we were using styrofoam lunch trays and plastic utensils, and didn’t compost at all . That has all changed. Now we have reusable trays and metal silverware, and a composting program that creates nutrient-rich soil for our gardens.
It wasn’t an easy transition. We had to educate both the staff and...Read more
and there are horizontal balers for compacting recyclables:
But did you know that once upon a time, the Wilton NH Solid Waste District transfer station had a Pit Baler!
If you look closely at the floor in the picture, you can see the outline where the archaic baler was!
How did it work? The baler sat on the floor like a vertical baler, but the recyclables were pushed into a 8- to 10-foot-deep hole in the floor. The baler ram would push UP (like an elevator rising...Read more
A message from NRRA Executive Director, Reagan Bissonnette:
It was a delight having Juli Heath and Jeremy Gregoire volunteer at the Northeast Resource Recovery Association (NRRA) office yesterday, March 28. We are grateful that they chose to volunteer their time with NRRA, and we thank Grappone Automotive Group for its generous donation of $500 to NRRA. We appreciate Grappone’s support of our mission to partner with communities to make recycling strong through economic and environmentally sound solutions.
Thanks to generous support like Grappone’s gift of staff time and money, NRRA has been able to support our municipal members—which includes 90% of New Hampshire communities—to continue their essential recycling and waste reduction work for over forty years. In 2023, our members recycled enough material through NRRA to avoid carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to removing nearly 20,399 passenger cars from the road for an entire year.
...Read more
NRRA held the second of three Summits in Lancaster, NH as part of our EPA grant-funded North Country C&D Diversion 2.0 project, which focuses on bulky waste diversion and reuse; asphalt, brick, and concrete (ABC) recycling; and the idea of deconstruction.
The Summit included 34 attendees representing 15 North Country communities, as well as the EPA, NHDES, and Representative Annie Kuster's office. Senior Member Services Representative, Bonnie Bethune, opened with a presentation on two feasibility studies NRRA completed between the first and second C&D Summit.
Feasibility Study #1: Asphalt, Brick, and Concrete Recycling in the NH North CountryThe goal of this study was to identify cost-effective and environmentally responsible options for the crushing and reuse of asphalt, brick, and concrete (ABC) for NH North Country towns. Three potential solutions were explored:
ABC Pick Up (feasible): Hire a company that can pick...Read more
On Friday, March 22 nd , NRRA hosted another NH Solid Waste Working Group (SWWG) meeting while NHDES offices continue to be unavailable due to an HVAC renovation.
SWWG attendees heard an informative Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) 101 Presentation from Resa Dimino of Signalfire Group . NHDES also shared that it is applying for an implementation grant for the EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program that may lead to future grants for municipalities to improve their waste management.
Extended Producer ResponsibilityOne of the SWWG's responsibilities is to "review and make recommendations for changes to the state's existing solid waste reduction, recycling, and management policies, programs, goals, and initiatives."
The NHDES Solid Waste Management Plan includes two actions related to evaluating EPR programs:
Action 3.13 begins with "evaluate and identify waste disposal bans, mandatory recycling laws, and/or EPR programs that...Read more
Some people see signs of spring in the return of robins or the tubing and buckets gathering rising maple sap. Others, like us at NRRA, look for the telltale signs that pop up on roads across New Hampshire as the weather warms: Load Limits!
But did you know, if your facility is on a road that has a spring road ban - imposed weight limitations to reduce wear and tear on roadways as the ground begins to thaw - you will need to have an exemption letter for waste haulers.
If a truck driver sees that a road is posted, they will not be able to service your location until it is unposted unless they have an exemption letter.
If you manage your recycling through NRRA, including things like tires or C&D, you can send your exemption letter(s) to NRRA and we will share it when...Read more
The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) recently submitted New Hampshire's Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP) to the EPA. NRRA was glad to see that solid waste considerations were included - specifically related to food waste, asphalt, and concrete - topics NRRA is currently focused on with grant-supported projects through the USDA and EPA.
From the PCAP :
The New Hampshire Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP) was developed by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) utilizing a planning grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The goal of the PCAP is to create a pathway that will support investment in policies, practices, and technologies that reduce pollutant emissions, create high-quality jobs, spur economic growth, and enhance the quality of life for all Granite Staters. The PCAP includes the following: a summary of New Hampshire’s past...Read more
The NRRA Member Services department is made up of our Member Services Manager, Brian Patnoe, and Senior Member Services Representative, Bonnie Bethune. Together, they have over 60+ years of recycling and solid waste management experience to pull from! Their department provides cooperative marketing and purchasing assistance, along with ongoing technical assistance to member communities through email, phone, and in-person site visits. They also put together member-only market updates, and answer common member inquiries such as recycling trends, proper processing techniques, and market specifications.
Recently, Brian visited with Recycling Coordinator, Eugene Lamoureux, at the Springfield, VT Transfer Station.
Springfield is an NRRA member town of just over 9,000 residents. NRRA helps them recycle several commodities including cardboard, mixed paper, plastics, steel cans, scrap metal, and tires.
Recycling these materials uses much less energy than making products from virgin resources, and using less energy...Read more