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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<span><span></span></span></b></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b>Contact</b>:<span> </span>Marjorie Griek, Executive Director,<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span> </span>National
Recycling Coalition (NRC)<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b>Phone</b>:<span> </span>720/745-0966<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;line-height:normal;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b>Email</b>:<span> </span><a href="mailto:marjie@nrcrecycles.org">marjie@nrcrecycles.org</a><span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><b><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:104%">The China Crisis – Whose Crisis is It?<span></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><i>WASHINGTON
DC, May 15, 2018 -- It is ours</i>.<span>
</span>Recycled materials and trash should look very different from each other,
but for years they have been converging in the U.S.<span> </span>China has not been the creator of today’s
crisis in the industry – U.S. mills have been complaining for years – but
China’s recent embargo of U.S. recycling imports is shining a mirror on our recycling
industry and providing a clear signal that we can no longer pretend diversion
of waste into a recycling bin is recycling.<span>
</span><span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">MRFs (Material Recovery Facilities)
can produce quality materials out of both single stream and dual stream inputs,
but not when 20+% of the input “recyclable” stream, in some cases, are not
recyclables.<span> </span>The plants are not built to
handle those specs, and slower, cleaner processing has not historically been
rewarded with higher market prices.<span> </span>Now
fast, dirty recycling is being punished with no markets.<span> </span>Rightly so.<span>
</span>Clean material is a resource; dirty is not.<span> </span>Clean recyclables have been the minority for
years.<span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The good news and bad news is that
customer enthusiasm for recycling is strong.<span>
</span>The public wants to recycle, but they express that enthusiasm by <u>recycling
materials that are not eligible</u>.<span> </span>A
combination of “wishful recycling” and insufficient enforcement of quality is
proving very damaging to the industry – abysmal and volatile markets, a dirty
product that is not a reliable “commodity”, closed plants, and programs that
are hurting economically. <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif">The National Recycling Coalition,
along with other major industry associations, is working aggressively in a new
nationwide collaborative, to develop strategies to resolve some of these
fundamental industry and market issues. <span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:black">In the meantime, the National Recycling Coalition notes
that it is important to </span><b><span style="color:black">remind your residential customers now
that they should <u>ONLY</u> recycle the items on their <u>LOCAL</u>
recyclables list. This is important for U.S. users of recycled materials, and
the current China embargo makes this an opportune time for this reminder</span></b><span style="color:black">.<span>
</span>When in Doubt – throw it in the <u>trash</u>!<span> </span></span><span style="color:black"><span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:104%;margin:0in 0in 8pt;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><span style="color:black">We cannot continue to act and behave as if business as
usual will offer a solution to today’s issues. We must fundamentally shift how
we speak to the public, how we collect and process our recyclables, and what
our end markets accept and utilize to truly recycle.<span> </span>The NRC is working through collaboratives,
its series of Market Development Workshops, and Quarterly Market Calls to </span>take
steps to turn recycling into an industry with a quality product, but we all
need to work together to meet the challenge.<span>
</span>It seems about time – or so the world is telling us.<span> </span><span style="color:black"><span></span></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;line-height:104%;font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif"><i>If you would like more information
about this topic, or NRC’s Series of Recycling Markets Development Workshops,
or NRC’s Quarterly Market Calls, please call Marjorie Griek at 720/745-0966 or
email </i><a href="mailto:marjie@nrcrecycles.org" style="color:rgb(5,99,193);text-decoration:underline"><i>marjie@nrcrecycles.org</i></a><i>. <span> </span><span></span></i></p>
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