The Austria-based technology company moves to a larger office and support facility in the Atlanta area.

Next Generation Recycling Maschinen GmbH (NGR), headquartered in Austria, said it has relocated its Next Generation Recycling Machines Inc. business unit from its original location in northern Atlanta to a larger space in southern Atlanta near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Peter Schneider, President of NGR Inc. said: "Starting from our new location, we will provide a greatly improved product portfolio. The strategic location is very close to the international terminal of the famous Atlanta Airport, from where we can showcase our added service products. , Our capabilities and greatly increased technology centers in a very improved way."

NGR, a provider of equipment and technology for the plastic recycling industry, said it has approximately 140 employees in Austria and has offices in three sales and service organizations in the United States, China, and Malaysia. The company's annual sales are approximately 50 million euros (59 million U.S. dollars).

"We are running recycling machines on production scale for post-industrial and post-consumer applications and markets," said Schneider of the new Atlanta plant. "Customers can recycle their materials in scheduled test runs of various extruder, filter, and pelletizer configurations. From there they can reintroduce the recycled pellets into their production process and evaluate the success. We pick up customers at the airport, They will be able to see their material running on our machine in a few minutes. It can’t be easier than this.”

NGR said that the new customer center will also support current and future customers through the availability of on-site spare parts and a service team that increases capacity and capabilities. Schneider commented, “The competition for talent makes it necessary to provide an attractive working environment—especially during COVID-19. With the new location, the footprint of our office and technical center has tripled, and we provide Flexible work arrangements."

As a further expansion of capacity, an additional tool-compactor-combined recovery line (C:GRAN) will be added to the test center in May next year, "specially aimed at typical post-consumer applications, especially in the U.S. market has recently become more Important," the company said.

According to NGR, by June next year, customers will be able to process and test their post-consumer materials on additional laboratory machines.

Equipment suppliers said that domestic rare earth infrastructure is vital to magnet manufacturers.

Bunting, headquartered in Newton, Kansas, has expressed support for the Rare Earth Magnet Manufacturing Tax Credit Act (HR 5033), which is said to help provide U.S. suppliers with tax incentives for domestic production of rare earth magnets.

Bunting said the bill was introduced by Congressmen Eric Svalwell (D-CA) and Guy Resenthaler (R-PA) in the House of Representatives on August 10.

The alliance of companies (including Bunting) and the Trade Association stated in a letter to the four congressional leaders that “this legislation will address market imbalances and help prevent non-market activities from disrupting the U.S. recovery of the rare earth industry. In addition, this legislation will enable our industry to obtain the necessary investment from the private sector and accelerate production."

Bunting added, "At present, China supplies 90% of the world's demand for rare earth magnets. It is vital to support domestic rare earth infrastructure so that the United States will not be affected by foreign government actions."

Bunting stated, “I am honored to be a member of the alliance and urge Congress to include the production tax credit for rare earth magnets proposed in HR 5033. As a leader in the design and manufacture of magnetic equipment, custom magnets and magnetic components, we support HR 5033 strives to support the manufacture of domestic rare earth magnets with domestic materials."

The company said that the domestic rare earth magnet supply chain will enable it to better provide magnet components for a variety of applications. In the recycling department, Bunting provides equipment for scrap metal, material recycling facilities and concrete crushing departments.

The company said: "This legislation will authorize Bunting and our industry peers to establish a domestic rare earth magnet supply chain that does not rely on foreign countries and supports the growth and innovation of the U.S. economy."

While Southside Recycling awaits the launch of its new state-of-the-art shredding facility in Chicago, the company is dealing with licensing issues related to environmental justice issues.

A few years ago, when the Reserve Management Group (RMG), headquartered in Stowe, Ohio, began building Southside Recycling in Chicago, the company planned to build the country's most advanced car shredding facility. To date, the company has invested US$80 million to build a crushing facility on the 175 acres of land on the east side of the Kalumet River. RMG also operates other long-term recycling businesses at this location, including Reserve Marine Terminals, Waupaca Napuck Salvage, South Shore Recycling and Regency Technologies, some of which have been in business for nearly 25 years.

"We want to build the best crushing facility imaginable," said Hal Tolin, chief operating officer of RMG. "We are very confident that we have done it."

RMG stated that it took environmental protection and community into consideration when designing Southside Recycling. The facility uses a European-style shredder shell to better control noise and emissions. It combines a regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) and a wet scrubber to solve the problem of volatile organic compound (VOC) emission. The shredder is also equipped with a suction hood and a high-efficiency filter to capture metal and particulate matter. Southside Recycling's operation even has an on-site wastewater treatment plant and air monitor, once the business is running, emissions will be measured 24/7.

RMG has implemented various landscape improvements on the 5 acres that separate the facility from the neighboring community, including planting and maintaining approximately 200 native trees. For many years, RMG has operated in this area of ​​the city, and the company interacts with the community by supporting youth sports leagues, supporting local police departments, and providing material and financial assistance to the southeast side of the Chicago pantry where meals are distributed. More than 1,200 people come out of a building in RMG's property every week, which the company provides to the pantry for free.

By early 2021, all equipment has been installed and employees are ready to start business in Southside Recycling. The company is waiting for the Large Recycling Facility (LRF) license in the City of Chicago to begin operations. According to RMG, this new license is only applicable to a small number of companies that meet certain material handling thresholds, and the relevant rules were released in June 2020. Southside Recycling is the first company to apply for an LRF license under these new licenses. rule.

Southside Recycling submitted a permit application in November 2020. The company said that shortly before submitting the application, the company had received promises from city officials that its license would be issued before the end of the year. After a public hearing on the application and requests for more information from the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), the company submitted a revised application in mid-January 2021. Tolin said that after submitting the revised application, the city assured the company that its application was complete and sufficient.

However, as winter turns into spring, Southside Recycling has not yet obtained the expected permits needed to start operations. Torlin said the city again asked for more information about the facility and other RMG businesses operating on its property-he said that the license application requirements or any other part of the licensing process did not mention these details.

Environmental Justice (EJ) activists also protested against the Southside Recycling facility, expressing concerns about the facility’s proximity to schools and residential areas on the southeast side of Chicago. According to the company, although CDPH’s own LRF rules define “sensitive areas” as areas within 660 feet of the school, CDPH is aware of these concerns. The company said its shredder is more than 2,500 feet away from the nearest school.

After the Director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Michael Regan wrote a letter to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (Lori Lightfoot), the city finally closed down in the first week of May. Permit review process for Southside Recycling Facility. The letter cited previous conversations between the Lightfoot government and the Environmental Protection Agency, recommending that the city stop the permit review process in order to conduct an EJ analysis and health impact assessment of the facility. Reagan’s letter did not include the details of the proposed analysis to be conducted, nor did it cite any EPA authority regarding the city’s licensing procedures.

RMG CEO Steve Joseph said that as of early September, the company has not received any information about this analysis.

"No one defines what [evaluation] is, what they are doing and when they are doing it," he said. "Commissioner Reagan’s letter was sent on May 7th, and then [CDPH Commissioner] [Allison] Dr. Arwady sent me a letter on the 10th, saying,'In the next few weeks, we will let you know We’re doing it. We’ve contacted many, many times and asked: “What can we do to help? What are you doing? When are you doing it? I think it’s been 17 or 18 weeks since Reagan’s letter. I’m Don't want to count anymore. We found nothing," he said of the situation in early September.

As of press time, the company's situation has not changed. Southside Recycling is in trouble, waiting for the details of the additional evaluation and the issuance of the LRF license.

The story of Southside Recycling can be traced back to the agreement negotiated between RMG and Chicago-based General Iron a few years ago.

General Iron, owned by the Labkon family, has been operating a car shredder near Lincoln Park on the north side of Chicago since the 1970s. Although the Lincoln Park community was originally zoned as a planned manufacturing area (PMD), the community has been gentrified over the years and manufacturing companies have begun to leave the area.

A few years ago, the city cancelled the PMD name for the Lincoln Park site. General Iron is still one of the only remaining manufacturing companies. This scrap recycler is facing scrutiny from neighbors and the city, requiring relocation or suspension of operations.

Since the 1990s, RMG has been operating a recycling business on its southeast side property. Joseph said he has been concerned about General Iron's situation for some time. Although RMG has not been involved in the shredding business, he said that as General Iron continues to face pressure to close its long-term business in Lincoln Park, the company sees an opportunity to build a new business.

"We have a relationship with Labkons. We did some business with them and met them," Joseph said. "One day we picked up the phone and said,'We know you have brought this business to the market, and we know you have been looking for properties everywhere.'"

In 2018, RMG reached a preliminary agreement with the Labkon family to acquire the assets of General Iron and build a new factory on RMG's existing assets. The two companies envision that this arrangement will lead to "a new and modern metal recycling facility."

At about the same time, RMG and General Iron met with community stakeholders and environmental groups in the southeast, including the Southeast Environmental Working Group (SETF), the Southeast Alliance that bans petroleum coke, and the Natural Resources Conservation Commission (NRDC) to answer questions about Proposed issues with recycling facilities and explain how the design of the new business will ensure the protection of the community and the environment.

However, when these companies tried to continue their dialogue with environmental organizations, they were firmly rejected. "SETF and local, regional and national organizations aligned with SETF unconditionally opposed General Iron's proposal to operate on the southeastern side of Chicago [sic]," SETF's attorney Keith Harley wrote via email, and RMG shared with Recycling Today. RMG stated that Harley incorrectly identified its business as General Iron in the letter. "These organizations are determined to oppose General Iron at every step of the approval process and, if necessary, every day after that."

During this period, the company also discussed the project with the City of Chicago. "Before we complete the transaction, we know this city will be a key part of it," Joseph said. "We need to know that while we are building the facility and getting permission to do so, we can continue to do business on the north side (Lincoln Park)."

In 2019, Chicago elected Lori Lightfoot as mayor. With the appointment of the new mayor, discussions between the city government and the company were suspended for several months. The negotiations finally restarted, and after many meetings, RMG, General Iron and the City of Chicago signed an agreement in September 2019. The contract allows Lincoln Park operations to continue until the end of 2020 and outlines how the city will operate "reasonably cooperate with RMG to achieve an efficient and rapid transition of the business to Southside Properties, including reasonable assistance in processing and reviewing permits and permit applications The agreement also includes provisions for holding meetings at least every 60 days at the request of either party, and the city’s commitment to “neutrally and consistently apply its laws, rules and regulations to General Iron, RMG, and other metal recycling in the city. facility."

"We completed the transaction with Labkons within a week or two after signing the agreement with the city government," Joseph said. "[Acquisition] has been preparing for about 10 months, but we did not complete the transaction before signing the agreement with the city. We know how much we will spend on [new facilities], and we know that we need cash flow from existing businesses. Help us tide over the difficulties."

Also in September 2019, RMG applied to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) for a construction permit to build and operate a shredder, which usually includes a 90-day public comment period. In view of the long-term EJ problem affecting southeastern Chicago, IEPA has taken additional measures to allow the public to review and comment on permit applications. In June 2020, after a 270-day public comment period including multiple public hearings, IEPA issued a construction permit and relevant conditions that Southside Recycling must comply with. These conditions were formed by the concerns expressed by members of the public and consultations between IEPA and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Division 5 scientists, who appreciated the thorough public participation and EJ process of national institutions.

In the same month that the IEPA permit was issued, the city announced new rules governing permits for large recycling facilities. The company reports that RMG and General Iron are aware that these rules-mainly for shredding operations like Southside Recycling-are under development, but figuring out how to design and build facilities that comply with the new regulations is another navigational obstacle. These rules include standards for monitoring pollution, noise, and traffic.

"They created a new large-scale recycling facility permit, and we knew this would happen before we started construction," Joseph added. "We and others, including environmental organizations, provided input and worked with the city to develop these rules. They held a public meeting to discuss the appearance of the LRF permit. This may be the most restrictive recycling facility permit anywhere in the United States. Especially considering the requirement of 24/7 air monitoring."

In response to the LRF rules, RMG ensured that Southside Recycling installed an air monitor on the perimeter of the property, which Joseph said was put into use today. When the business is running, emissions data will be provided to city and community stakeholders.

So far, Joseph said that in his more than 30 years of career, he has only seen another car shredder approaching the environmental management level installed by Southside Recycling to comply with LRF regulations.

Southside Recycling submitted its initial application for the LRF license in November 2020. After submitting a revised application in response to Chicago's request for more details and clarification, Joseph said that the company began receiving assurances from the city in January this year that the revised application meets all LRF license requirements.

According to an agreement with the city, General Iron will close its operations in Lincoln Park by the end of 2020. Joseph said that in the last few months of that year, RMG talked to city officials several times to discuss the timing of General Iron’s closure and the receipt of Southside Recycling’s permit.

"We pointed out to the city government that we have been allowed to obtain a permit before the end of 2020," Joseph said. "Since we did not receive it, we also told them that we are considering the option of continuing operations on the north side.

He continued, "We were clearly told [December 31, 2020],'If you don't close tomorrow, then forget to do anything on the south side. But don't worry, you will get a permit.'"

Joseph said that at that time, RMG had few other options. "We said,'Okay. We will abide by the agreement and they will do what they say. We have to close it, so we will close it. At the end of the 31st, we finished the work and then began to dismantle."

But a few months after General Iron closed down, Southside Recycling is still waiting for the LRF license. Torlin said that the company maintained regular communication with CDPH, and finally sent a letter to Commissioner Arwady on April 26, outlining what happened at the time, and requesting a meeting with her in accordance with the terms of the agreement signed between the company and the city.

The company has never met with Arwady, and in May, the city announced that it would stop reviewing Southside Recycling's permit application indefinitely in response to Regan's letter.

Joseph said: "The mayor shut it down due to pressure and political scoring-she obviously had this idea for those who yelled about it. We were caught in the crosshairs."

In view of the fact that the contract signed by the city promises fair and timely review, but the lack of licenses, the closure of General Iron's north side business outlined in the same contract, and the assurance by Chicago officials that Southside Recycling's LRF license application is complete and sufficient, RMG decided to take Legal action. In mid-May, Southside Recycling and RMG filed a federal lawsuit seeking a court order to instruct Chicago to issue a final license to the company. The lawsuit alleges that the city erroneously failed to issue the last permit required for Southside Recycling to start operations, despite admitting for months that the company has met all requirements.

However, U.S. District Judge Robert M. Dow rejected Southside Recycling’s claim that its constitutional rights had been violated because the city had not yet rejected the license application, making the company’s claim not ready for a federal court decision. Dow dismissed the lawsuit on June 30, stating that Southside Recycling's claim was more suitable for state courts at the time.

In response, RMG and Southside Recycling filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, in early July. Like the federal lawsuit, the lawsuit alleges that the city erroneously failed to issue the final permit required for the company to start operations, even though the city acknowledged that the company had met all requirements.

In the second week of September, Circuit Judge Michael Mullen arranged for a preliminary trial on October 20, when Southside Recycling will have the opportunity to prove its claims in court.

Recycling Today contacted the Mayor’s Office of Lightfoot to learn about the city’s views on the recycler’s licensing process and operations, but the city declined to be interviewed and instead provided a statement via CDPH’s e-mail. 

"We are grateful to Recycling Today for wishing to submit a fair and balanced report on the issues involved in the Southside Recycling/RMG recycling business license in southeastern Chicago, but we are unable to discuss this issue at this time because it is recurring and a lawsuit is being filed," CDPH 8 Wrote in a statement issued to "Recycling Today" on March 3rd. "The Chicago Department of Public Health is involved in a thoughtful, data-driven, and robust process that takes into account applications, supplementary materials, expert reports and research, and the opinions of residents most directly affected by the new plan proposed by RMG. Use. Given the United States According to the recent directive of the Environmental Protection Agency, we must cooperate with them to further analyze potential adverse environmental impacts." 

Although Southside Recycling installed the latest technologies that are said to be used to reduce emissions and control pollution, including RTO and wet scrubbers to address the VOC emissions of paper shredders, EJ activists expressed concerns about the facility throughout the licensing process. Earlier this year, some militants also participated in several weeks of hunger strikes to attract the attention of Chicago officials.

One of the main concerns expressed by activists is that the facility is too close to schools and residential areas to operate safely.

"Although RMG has repeatedly claimed that its operations are safe, the company's actions have weakened any credibility it may have in terms of security," said Gina Ramirez, NRDC Midwest Outreach Manager, who opposed the facility's launch. "General Iron was kicked out of the north side because the community was very worried about fires, explosions, and emissions from the facility. Residents in the southeast district have been expressing concern about General Iron moving its large metal crushing plant next to our school, home, and park."

She added that she was also concerned about the abandoned buildings that collapsed on RMG's 175-acre park earlier this spring, which the company confirmed this summer. “RMG’s latest safety lapses and failure to comply with city regulations allow us to understand why another hazardous facility does not belong to the RMG site, and why residents on the southeast side cannot trust RMG’s empty promise of being a good neighbor.” The company pointed out that the collapsed building Located at the other end of the RMG property more than a quarter of a mile from the new shredder, it has been unused and uninhabited for more than 30 years.

Activists also pointed out that the shattering facility was moved from a wealthy, predominantly white neighborhood on the north side of Chicago to a predominantly black and Latino neighborhood on the southeast side of Chicago, which they said was a violation of EJ. At an online press conference hosted by SETF on August 4, Lauren Bianchi, a teacher at George Washington High School in Chicago, called the move an "environmental racist behavior."

She said: "We should work hard to clean up existing toxic areas, such as buildings that collapsed in April, instead of adding more air pollution."

The Reserve Management Group (RMG) in Stowe, Ohio, intends to turn its new car shredding station Southside Recycling in southeastern Chicago into a modern metal recycling facility using the latest environmental technology. The company has invested nearly US$80 million to build the facility on 23 acres of land among the 175 acres it already owns on the east side of the Kalumet River, which also operates other recycling businesses.

Although RMG moved the Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO) that had been operating at the now closed General Iron site on the north side of Chicago, everything else in the facility was new. General Iron is one of the first car shredder operators in the country to adopt RTO, which is designed to destroy volatile organic compounds or VOCs emitted by its car shredders.

In order to reduce the possibility of explosions in paper shredders and RTOs, Southside is using a Lower Explosion Limit (LEL) monitor, which is designed to automatically divert airflows with higher flammable gas content from areas where combustion may occur. According to the company, the LEL monitor will continuously measure and electronically record the flammable vapor concentration between the shredder and the RTO.

Jim Kallas of Southside Recycling stated that part of the company’s vision for the site will require closure of the shredder, but this is also a requirement for the new Large Recycling Facility (LRF) permit, which will be issued in 2020 It took effect in Chicago on June 5th. Karas is the company's environmental manager.

"However, in any case, we will close the shredder as we did at General Iron because it can effectively reduce noise and dust, and it also increases safety in the event that the material is ejected from the shredder," He said.

Kallas said that General Iron's paper shredder housing consists of overlapping layers of rubber bands, while the Southside housing provided by the German company ILG is more robust. "We don't think these panels will be used anywhere else in the country."

The shell of ILG is made of traditional steel structure and sound insulation elements, installed in vertical and horizontal modules in the steel beam structure.

Rolf Schaffrath of ILG told Recycling Today that the company will not take a “one size fits all” approach when providing shredder noise reduction products. "Noise reduction measures always depend on the specific conditions that affect the sound of the paper shredder at the scene, including the [sound wave] reflections from existing buildings and their arrangement relative to the paper shredder, and the height difference between the sound source and the emission point," He said.

The company’s website states, “When planning and implementing our projects, we always strive to meet regulatory standards and the location relationship issues and ideas of operators.”

To further reduce noise, Southside placed the shredder 2,500 feet from the nearest public right of way. The company also built a wall made of containers and planted local trees in a 5-acre buffer zone to block the view of the site and provide additional sound insulation.

Although the facility is not subject to rainwater pollution prevention requirements because rainwater will be discharged to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) of the Greater Chicago Wastewater Treatment System, the company added a rainwater system from Watertectonics in Everett, Washington.

Kallas said: "The installation of the wastewater treatment system is a decision made by the RMG owner, which exceeds the requirements of the Illinois EPA and MWRD, and is also a way to ensure that the standard of discharge to the MWRD system will not become a concern."

He said that Southside's water treatment system will collect process water and stormwater runoff, similar to the system installed by General Iron on the north side. It has two detention ponds covering more than 2.5 acres, which can hold nearly 4 million gallons of water and a sand-filtered clarifier. The system removes sediment and particulate matter and pre-treats the water before it enters the urban water treatment system.

In order to control the dust, the site uses sprinklers, street sweepers and large atomizers in strategic locations.

According to LRF, Southside must also monitor particulate matter (PM) in the air. The larger RMG site, not only the Southside plot, but also tailwind and headwind monitors, can continuously record PM 10 levels, which refer to particles with a diameter of 10 microns. "If there is what they call the'Reportable Action Level (RAL)', that is, the difference between tailwind monitoring and headwind monitoring exceeds 150 micrograms per cubic meter, basically we do not violate the regulations, but we are required to notify the city government of which RAL ," Kallas said.

He added that this is to remind Southside that if it is not resolved, it may lead to potential violations in the future.

However, according to Southside Recycling, claims of environmental racism have been decided. In October 2020, three residents of the Southeast District filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Chicago, accusing the city of discriminatory behavior in signing agreements with RMG and General Iron and issuing Southside Recycling the first of several required permits. Judge Mary Rowland of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled in April 2021 that residents had failed to prove that the city’s actions were based on discriminatory purposes based on the ethnic composition of the Southeast.

Joseph added that RMG "strongly denies that the location of the new business has anything to do with the demographics of the surrounding community."

He added: “The site was chosen because we already own the land. For nearly 30 years, RMG has operated various recycling businesses on the same land without any accidents or complaints from neighbors. The site also has an ideal crush Operational infrastructure-rivers leading to loading barges and ships, easy-to-transit rail services, high-voltage power lines-and an important buffer with surrounding communities."

He added that the city was seeking to clear the way for a $6 billion multi-use development project on the north side of Chicago called Lincoln Yards, which eventually led to the closure of General Iron. The company did not want to close that location. Joseph said it was profitable and had proper permission, but in this case, its hands were forced.

In addition to EJ activists, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a press release on May 27 discussing the need to promote EJ in Chicago and expressed concern that Southside Recycling may have “historically overcontaminated” areas in Chicago. Have an adverse effect.

Joseph agrees that EJ is an important issue, and the Southeast has historically been home to many polluting industries. "I have no objection to these," he said. "But the fact that we have to defend the recycling of them is crazy to me. You are environmentalists-see what we are doing. You all drive, use washing machines, have refrigerators, and are on reinforced roads. Go on. These metal products are there and we use them every day. What do you want to use it for after completion? I know you don’t want to do it here, but what is your alternative solution? Considering economy and carbon footprint , Where do you plan to recycle it? I know no one wants to see it in their front or backyard, of course, but our shredder was obviously removed and the cushioning is very good [from public access].. .... The distance from the feed inlet of the shredder to the nearest house is half a mile."

He said the company's shredders are more than 10 times closer to public roads and nearby homes than other shredders in Chicago, including the Lincoln Park plant that General Iron closed.

RMG has tried to get in touch with EJ activists concerned about the location and encouraged them to visit the facility to learn about the company’s efforts to solve the pollution problem, but Joseph said that since SETF lawyer Keith, they have not directly contacted the company Contact Harley's email after the 2018 community meeting held by RMG and General Iron officials.

Joseph added that the company has been trying to get as many stakeholders as possible to visit the facility to see what Southside Recycling has built. "In the past year and a half, we have made many different efforts to try to get as many people as possible to show them on the website," he said. "Everyone who has actually visited the facility was impressed by the building we built."  

He pointed out that RMG conducted a poll in May at the request of the city government on the views of community members on the facility. He said that based on these data, most of the community members around the facility were unaware of the project, but after learning about the importance of metal recycling and the new jobs that the company will create, they expressed a positive view.

"A lot of people don't know anything about it," he said. "We believe and believe that the data shows that [the opposition] is a relatively small group."

Joseph continued: "We have been operating multiple businesses on the same property for more than 20 years, and these environmental organizations have not known our name until now. Although there must be other companies that have caused harm to this community, we have Proving that we are environmentally responsible actors and good neighbors. The way we design and build Southside Recycling and the way we operate it will only further prove this commitment."

First but not last

It has been nearly a year since Southside Recycling applied for the final LRF permit required to start operations, and since there is no analysis required by the US Environmental Protection Agency and detailed information on ongoing litigation, it is not clear when this situation will be resolved.

At the same time, the facility is ready, and once that day comes, employees can start it up. Joseph said the company keeps all employees in the shredder factory on the payroll. Some employees have retired or left to seek other opportunities, but Joseph said that once the permit is obtained, the Southside Recycling team is ready to start operations.

"We have retained all the managers and others who are willing to stay. We have moved some people to work in other [RMG] operations, some work in retail, but we still have about 80 people [Southside Recycling payroll ],"He said. "In this labor market, first of all, we don’t want to lose the crew because they are very good and are an important factor in buying this business instead of starting from scratch. The institutional knowledge owned by the group of people owned by General Tie is trying to succeed. Smashing operations are priceless. We don’t want to lose them, especially considering the current labor market. We are doing everything we can to retain everyone."

Joseph said that he believes Southside Recycling will not be the last waste site to face the dispute over emissions and EJ.

In July, the EPA issued an "Enforcement Alert" targeting automatic shredder operators' facilities in response to air quality issues. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency stated that it has “found that metal recycling facilities that operate cars and metal shredders violate the Clean Air Act, leading to excessive emissions of air pollution.” The law enforcement alert outlines best practices for mitigating environmental problems during shredding operations. According to RMG, the enforcement recommendations are consistent with the design and construction of Southside Recycling.

During the ISRI online conference and expo held from April 20 to 22 and April 27 to 29, Matthew Tejada, Director of the Office of Environmental Justice of the EPA, stated that EJ will treat waste in the next few years. Field operators are becoming more and more important. He pointed out that President Joe Biden issued two executive orders related to EJ in January alone, and added that these orders from various state and local governments will require scrap recyclers to consider issues such as site selection and whether to expand their business. So that it will not adversely affect disadvantaged communities.

Solving the emission problem and considering EJ are two things that may become the "new normal" for automatic crushing operations. In Chicago, any car shredder operator is required to comply with the city's LRF license like Southside Recycling.

Joseph concluded: "In terms of VOC emissions, many paper shredders have received multiple requests for information. Therefore, the world is changing and changing rapidly. Based on the knowledge we have about paper shredder emissions, I believe that in the near future In the future, most high-capacity shredders will need to start capturing and destroying emissions-just like we did at Southside Recycling."

The MRF Operation Forum and Paper and Plastic Recycling Conference will transition to a virtual format.

The Recycling Today Media Group, the publisher of Recycling Today, has notified attendees, exhibitors, sponsors and speakers of its decision to cancel the 2021 MRF Operation Forum and Paper Plastic Recycling Conference originally scheduled to be held on October 19th and October 20th- 21 Respectively at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Chicago. Instead, we will transition to online events, and more details will be announced soon. 

For more than 20 years, Recycling Today Media Group has been committed to hosting industry-leading conferences and events. We are proud to be able to provide quality education and networking for our industry.

Therefore, considering the integrity of our activities and the well-being of attendees, speakers, exhibitors, sponsors and employees, we have decided to cancel this year's on-site MRF operation forum and paper and plastic recycling conference.

Unfortunately, the company’s travel restrictions imposed since Labor Day and growing concerns about the spread of COVID delta variants have created a situation where we know that attendance will be significantly affected. Although this has not happened so far, we know it is coming and will significantly reduce the value of the event. We respect this and our customers, so we have to make this very difficult decision.

Although we are eager to connect with our industry again, and we know that many of you are the same, we look forward to doing so because we can safely provide the same standards of activities and social opportunities that you are already accustomed to.

Individuals who have registered for one or both of these activities have two options regarding their current registration:

In addition, we are planning to share the insights of our expert speakers and explore conference topics that we plan to address in person. We will announce these complete details soon.

Canadian beverage manufacturers claim that the straws are recyclable.

Sun-Rype Products, a division of A. Lassonde Inc. in Canada, announced that it has replaced plastic straws with paper straws in all SunRype 200 ml (ml) disposable beverage boxes in Canada. Beverage manufacturers claim that the straws are recyclable and flexible.

"We are on track to achieve our sustainable development goals by 2025," said Claire Barra, president of A. Lassonde. "We plan to use recyclable packaging for all of our products. The introduction of paper straws on our disposable juice products is another step in the right direction. We know that our customers value finding solutions that can meet today's environmental challenges. Products, these SunRype juice containers with new flexible paper straws are now available at Canadian grocery retailers — just in time for a back-to-school lunch box.”

SunRype said that with the new straws, its Tetra Pak product containers can be completely recycled. "We are happy to provide our customers with this eco-friendly paper straw in all 200 ml beverage containers of our iconic brand SunRype," Bara said.

Before launching paper straws, Lassonde recently launched a new bottle containing 25% post-consumer recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) in Canada for 300 ml (approximately 10 ounces) packaging for all its juice brands .

By 2023, SunRype, headquartered in British Columbia, aims to use 25% post-consumer recycled content in its PET bottles; use 100% recyclable packaging for all its products; and cooperate with governments, industry and associations, Promote the collection of recyclable materials.