May 2020
Stay informed about coronavirus (COVID-19): Governor Lamont is telling Connecticut residents to "Stay Safe, Stay Home." All nonessential workers are directed to work from home, and social and recreational gatherings of more than five are prohibited. All previously enacted executive orders on all closures, distancing, and safety measures have been extended through at least May 20.
For the latest information and guidance, visit ct.gov/coronavirus
E-newsletter highlighting grant deadlines, upcoming workshops and available resources for municipal recycling and solid waste leaders.
Doing Business with DEEP during the COVID-19 Pandemic

DEEP has  closed its offices to the public  and the majority of DEEP’s employees are working remotely. To minimize risks to the public and DEEP staff, DEEP employees working with the public, including inspectors, maintainers and environmental educators have been provided instructions to practice social distancing, wherever possible. The majority of DEEP staff have transitioned to telework, and the Department is working to maintain continuous operation of its programs and functions to the greatest extent possible during this public health emergency.

Wherever possible, DEEP programs are encouraging that submittals be sent digitally, rather than hard copy.  Services that were previously available to in-person visitors at 79 Elm Street, Hartford may be accessible online, including:

  • Select documents including Hazardous Waste Manifests are now electronically accessible on the DEEP Document Online Search Portal. Please use this portal to search for documents that you may need before submitting a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. If you still wish to submit a FOIA request, please submit your request electronically to DEEP.FOIA@ct.gov. DEEP's FOIA webpage provides information relating to submission requests. 
  • Please note that due to the coronavirus, FOIA compliance is being processed remotely and may result in longer than usual processing times. 
  • If you are looking to submit or pay for Marine Event Permits, Fishing Derby and Fish Importation/Liberation Permits, Radiation Registrations (DTX and RMI), Stormwater Registrations (Construction, Industrial and No Exposure) or Underground Storage Tank Notifications please visit our ezFile website.
  • Access to DEEP’s records center at 79 Elm Street, Hartford is not available to the public. Requests for records may be sent to DEEP.RecordsCenter@ct.gov and requests will be fulfilled in the order in which they are received, once the "Stay Safe, Stay Home" order is lifted.

Find more information on CT DEEP Response to COVID 19 webpage
Materials Management
COVID-19 Coronavirus Outbreak

DEEP is committed to ensuring the health and safety of Connecticut’s citizens. During the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, we have been working with many of the state’s business sectors to base our decisions on accurate, reliable information.

DEEP has worked with the waste management industry t o ensure the timely and safe disposal of solid waste materials and the continued collection and recycling  of the state’s mandatory recyclables.

DEEP has also worked closely with the grocery retailers regarding the collection of deposit bottles and cans  and the safe use of re-useable grocery bags.

Please keep in mind that continuing to safely recycle will support various industries that rely on these materials for their manufacturing processes and recycling helps to protect the environment.
Did you miss NRRA's BMP During COVID-19 webinar?

On April 15th, 2020, Reagan Bissonnette, NRRA Executive Director, and Bonnie Bethune, NRRA Member Services Manager, were joined by Dr. Ben Locwin to discuss COVID-19 best management practices for recycling facilities. The was a question and answer format, starting with the overarching questions about COVID-19 generally, to the specific questions and answers about how to best support transfer station staff and/or employees at sorting facilities. Check out the recording of COVID-19 Webinar, Best Management Practices for Recycling Facilities .

Additional resources from NRRA:
BMP’s for Recycling During COVID-19 Webinar Q & A Summary – This link will bring you to a Question & Answer document that provides a summary of the questions asked and briefly summarizes the answers provided during the webinar, including timestamps indicating when each question was asked. 
Webinar Hosted by CT DEEP

Learn the Basics: EPR 101

Monday, May 11, 2020
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm


Presenter:

Reid Lifset, Yale University

Facilitated by Sherill Baldwin, CT DEEP

Each stewardship program in CT feels different. DEEP manages the electronics program, PaintCare oversees the paint program, the Mattress Recycling Council oversees the mattress program and few have heard about the mercury thermostat program. The ideas of producer responsibility are shared as a solution to our "blue bin" recycling market challenges. What are stewardship programs best for? Why are the 'fees' sometimes hidden? Why are municipalities sometimes involved in the operation of the program and sometimes not? And what do EPR programs accomplish?
 
Reid Lifset will walk us through a quick lesson on how EPR came to be a tool for managing wastes; how countries outside of the US structure their EPR programs, different components of stewardship programs, and how effective stewardship programs are at managing waste.
White Paper Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for Packaging & Paper Products, April 2020

The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC)
and Northeast Waste Management Officials’ Association (NEWMOA) published a White Paper on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for Packaging and Paper Products (PPP) . The goal of the White Paper is to provide state officials, policymakers, and affected industries with a baseline of shared knowledge on this topic. The Northeast Committee on the Environment (NECOE), a program of the Coalition of Northeastern Governors (CONEG), requested that NEWMOA and NERC provide information about EPR for packaging and paper products to help them, other state officials, and others consider options for EPR for PPP. The White Paper provides an overarching understanding of the EPR system structure and design, requirements, and benefits.
HHW Events Postponed?
Proper Disposal Options in Massachusetts for CT Residents

With many communities temporarily suspending or needing to reschedule upcoming Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) collection events, there are options for Connecticut residents in Massachusetts.

The New England Disposal Technologies (NEDT) company has two facilities, one in Sutton, MA the other in Westfield, MA. Both facilities are licensed by the Massachusetts DEP as commercial household hazardous waste collection facilities. Both are a short drive from the MA/CT line, and will accept household hazardous waste from Connecticut residents for a fee . 

NEDT's webpage includes more information on locations, hours of operation, the materials they can and cannot take, and the rates that they charge for the materials they accept.
Digital Organization Tool Kit

The Toxics Action Center has put together a Digital Organizing Toolbox. The Toolbox includes a set of resources, trainings, and tips designed to help you build power online. Whether you have years of experience or you’re just starting out, the tools you’ll find here will help you grow and deepen your digital organizing.

While intended to help win campaigns to clean up and prevent pollution in your community, lessons on how to tap into the power of digital organizing should easily translate for engaging residents in better recycling and sustainable materials management.
Domestic Recycled Paper Capacity Increases, March 2020 update

As a result of continuing announcements about new paper recycling investments, and updated information about capacity, input, and opening dates, NERC has published Domestic Recycled Paper Capacity Increases, updated March 2020 . 

The Northeast Recycling Council's (NERC) has been reporting on national investment in paper recycling infrastructure since November 2018. The report has been updated six times - April, June, August, and November 2019, and now March 2020.

The Urban Sustainability Directors Network (USDN) is currently hosting an updated  Sustainable Consumption Toolkit . The new content features the latest research and on-the-ground innovation to tackle the growing impacts of consumption of goods and materials.

The updated Toolkit includes the Smart Shift report .

Given the ubiquity of consumption in the culture and economy, communicating about sustainable consumption and gaining support for taking action on this issue can be challenging.The Smart Shift report provides municipal leaders with analysis and guidance on how to frame the issue and engage stakeholders in shifting consumption patterns.
EPA Updates Excess Food Opportunities Map

EPA’s Excess Food Opportunities Map, first released in 2018, identifies and displays facility-specific information for over one million potential generators and recipients of excess food in the industrial, commercial and institutional sectors and also provides estimates of excess food for each generator.

In April 2020, EPA released Version 2.1, which updates the anaerobic digestion facilities and communities with residential curbside food scrap collection (known as source separated organics programs). The map now contains over 1,600 anaerobic digestion facilities that are point mapped, and over 200 communities with residential curbside food scrap collection. Where available, EPA provides information on types of feedstock that are accepted by each facility or program. Minor corrections were made to the composting data set as well.

EPA will continue to update the map so that it is a useful resource allowing businesses, organizations, and governments to make connections and find opportunities to make the best use of their excess food. Find out more about the map and this recent update here .
FDA issues Fact Sheet on How to Safely Distribute Food for Animal Food Use During COVID-19

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on March 27 issued a  fact sheet  on how to safely distribute unused human food for use as animal food during the COVID-19 pandemic.

If unused food cannot be redistributed for human food use, FDA’s fact sheet, At a Glance: Safely distributing unused human food for use as animal food provides information on how to safely distribute it for animal food use during COVID-19. 
Let's Scrap Food Waste campaign launched in Vermont

As part of Vermont’s Universal Recycling law (Act 148), a statewide landfill ban on all food and food scraps will go into effect July 1, 2020.

To raise awareness of the landfill ban and help Vermonters take action to reduce and divert food waste, the State’s Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) launched the “Let’s Scrap Food Waste” campaign in February. The goal of “Let’s Scrap Food Waste” is to create a movement and make reducing food waste, separating food scraps from the trash, and composting actions that all Vermonters take part in. These actions will become daily habits, as automatic as putting on a seat belt.

Currently, the campaign consists of a 30-second video featuring real Vermonters that grow, cook, serve, and eat food and compost the scraps. The ad demonstrates all the effort that goes into growing and cooking food and discusses the money saved if food is not wasted. The ad is being shown on broadcast and cable TV, digital and social media channels. It sends people to a new website with tips on how to reduce food waste and what to do with inevitable food scraps.
Oregon DEQ’s Sustainability Frameworks Review

Sustainability actions are organized in different frameworks, often with limited agendas focused on specific actions or slices of the environment. Common sustainability frameworks include Pollution Prevention, Zero Waste, Circular Economy, and Sustainable Materials Management.Oregon DEQ reviewed these frameworks,comparing the stated principles of each framework with current actions and overlaying them with life cycle environmental burdens of material consumption.This view shows where efforts are directed and where gaps in environmental stewardship and social well-being exist.

For the full frameworks review, visit here .
You can also view a webinar on this topic here .
EPA Updates the Recycled Content (ReCon) Tool

EPA created the Recycled Content (ReCon) Tool to help companies and individuals estimate environmental impacts from purchasing and/or manufacturing materials with varying degrees of post-consumer recycled content.

Estimates provided by the ReCon Tool are intended to support voluntary reporting initiatives, as well as such initiatives as EPA's Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines Program. ReCon and the Waste Reduction Model (WARM) were developed for purchasers and waste managers, respectively. ReCon calculates the benefits of alternative recycled content purchasing decisions. WARM, on the other hand, calculates the benefits of alternative end-of-life waste management decisions.

Both tools calculate the benefits of an alternative scenario versus a baseline (business-as-usual) scenario. The ReCon Too l has been updated with data from WARM, version 15, and is now available as a web-based calculator (in addition to an Excel version).
EPA releases Construction and Demolition Debris Management in the United States Report

EPA continues to update their Facts and Figures about Waste Materials and Recycling webpage, with new Studies, Summary Tables, and Data Related to the Advancing Sustainable Materials .

Archived Municipal Recycling Coordinators E-News and Webinars

Missed the last newsletter on product stewardship or a recent webinar? Look for archived webinars and e-newsletters on the CT DEEP webpage.
What's IN? What's OUT?
Recent Questions from CT residents & Added to RecycleCT Wizard
TUESDAY TRASH TALK at TEN

Since all in-person What's IN, What's OUT and other recycling workshops and presentations provided by DEEP/RecycleCT have been postponed indefinitely, Sherill Baldwin has started Tuesday Trash Talk at Ten, a Facebook Live event every Tuesday morning at 10:00am. The event is short, ranging 2-5 minutes long, focusing on a topic or product of the day.

Topics cover What's IN, What's OUT issues, but this event also provides a great platform to expand to topics on waste reduction, reuse and understanding of complex issues. If your community is on Facebook, consider sharing the live event or the recorded video after the fact on www.FaceBook.com/CTRecycles/videos . If you have a particular topic you want to be discussed, please reach out to Sherill Baldwin .





CT In the News
APRIL
Thompson residents targeting nip litter (Norwich Bulletin, April 27)
CT police seek person who dumped 50 used tires (New Haven Register, April 22)
Windsor Locks Finance Board sets $51M budget (Journal Inquirer, April 16)
 Upcoming Events: 

Thursday, May 7, 2020 - 1:00pm - 2:30pm - Composting at Home: An Introduction to the Basics webinar. For more information . Hosted by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.

Monday, May 11, 2020 - 2:00pm - 3:00pm - EPR 101 with Reid Lifset webinar. For more information . Hosted by CT DEEP.

Thursday, May 21, 2020 - 1:00pm - 2:30pm - Food Waste Reduction & Food Waste Recovery webinar. For more information . Hosted by the Northeast Recycling Council.

June 18, 2020 - 1:30pm - 3:00pm - Should Municipalities Get Back in the MRF Game? webinar. For more information . Hosted by the Northeast Recycling Council. 
Have an idea or topic for future municipal recycling webinar? Let us know what you and your colleagues would like to learn more about. Contact Sherill Baldwin.

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer that is committed to complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request an accommodation contact us at (860) 418-5910 or deep.accommodations@ct.gov.
CT DEEP | Source Reduction & Recycling Group | 860-424-4193 | www.ct.gov/deep/recycle