Sustainability: an industry defining itself

The sustainable packaging industry leaders converged on Charlotte in early October for the SPC Advance Conference, a GreenBlue (GB) | Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) members only plus guests event. Sustainability professionals traveled from across the nation and around the globe for the profound program of stellar speakers, engaging panel discussions, hands-on workshops and tours of successful Charlotte programs | facilities.

After welcoming remarks by GB Executive Director Nina Goodrich, opening conference keynote speaker Domtar President & CEO John Williams set the event tone with his Embracing Sustainability As A Business Framework To Enhance Long-Term Shareholder Value presentation. Throughout his empowering talk, John emphasized the imperative role integrity plays in crafting a sustainable corporate sustainability platform.

SPC Advance attracted a full-house
from across nation & around the globe

For success, top management, Board of Director members and shareholders must commit to a long-term program that may include short-run sacrifices. It is important to quantify success and demand the supply chain complements the sustainability platform. John recommends using a corporate scorecard to clearly communicate expectations and audit results to ensure authenticity.

John emphasized the importance of truth when telling the corporate sustainability story. It is imperative the commitment infiltrates every aspect of operations and the employees are engaged at a core level. With social media's far reaching impact, false or undocumented claims may prove devastating.

One of John's points - sustainability is an industry - was substantiated in the Two Case Studies Of Materiality And Sustainable Packaging panel discussion moderated by Nina. In his presentation, Sealed Air Executive Director, Sustainability Dan Daggett introduced the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board and the International Integrated Reporting Council as examples of an industry defining itself.

Jay introducing Kathleen

WestRock Director, Global Sustainability Christopher Davidson mentioned sustainability programs must focus on what is important to the company stockholders. With business strategy the starting point, Christopher recommended a three-step approach to program development: Identification, Prioritization, Validation. In alignment with John's theme, Christopher made a simple, profound closing statement: must be what you do and who you are. Integrity reigns paramount to long-term success!

After the morning networking break, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4 Materials Management Chief Jay Bassett introduced Assistant Director of the EPA’s Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery Kathleen Salyer for her The EPA’s Strategic Outlook On Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) presentation. It was a treat to learn about the EPA SMM Strategic Plan FY 2017 - FY 2022 under development.

An evolution from a series of reports stemming from the 2002 EPA’s report, Beyond RCRA: Waste and Materials Management in 2020, which made the argument for focusing efforts on materials management, the FY 2017 - FY 2022 plan has three SMM Strategic Priorities:

• Built Environment 
• Sustainable Food Management 
• Sustainable Packaging 

Kathleen at podium

According to Kathleen's presentation 44% of the U.S. greenhouse gas emissions come from products and packaging in a systems-based analysis. A staggering $11,402,020,357 of valuable packaging is wasted in the U.S. Per the Weight of Nations: Material Outflows from Industrial Economies, WRI: 

One half to three quarters of annual resource inputs to industrial economies is returned to the environment as wastes within just one year.

Within the sustainable packaging priority, the EPA identifies three critical action areas:

1. Convene and foster partnerships around infrastructure development.  
2. Work with Federal Agencies as Strategic Partners.
3. Research, Data and Policies for Packaging.

Currently, in the U.S. over 30% of edible food goes to waste resulting in significant social, economic and environmental costs. It is estimated that Americans waste 141 trillion calories of food annually at a cost of over $161 billion dollars. Food production accounts for 50% of land use, 80% of freshwater consumption, and 10% of total energy use in the United States. Food, when disposed, is a large contributor to the 18% of total methane emissions that come from landfills each year.

Under the sustainable food management priority, the EPA identifies four critical action areas:

1. Convene and support partnerships around infrastructure development for alternatives to landfill disposal of wasted food. 
2. Promote opportunities across food life cycle to reduce wasted food from landfills, with preference for approaches higher on EPA food recovery hierarchy. 
3. Food Recovery Summit & Future Conferences
4. Improve and standardize measurement of wasted food. 

Jeff Wooster (Dow Chemical) w/
Cheryl & Kathleen (EPA)

In 2011 the EPA introduced the Food Recovery Challenge (FRC) as a response to the incredible volume of food waste and wasted food destined for landfills. The ZWA Blog article, Elemental Impact Joins EPA FRC, gives a program overview. Thanks to strong EPA support, the Southeast Recycling Development Council is hosting the November 16 -18 Food Recovery Summit in Charleston, SC. The strategic plan has a strong food recovery foundation to build upon within the sustainable food management priority

With sustainable compostable packaging inherent with Sustainable Food Management, the SPC Advance was a perfect venue for the EPA to preview their SMM Strategic Plan FY 2017 - FY 2022.

Walmart Senior Sustainability Manager Ashley Hall closed the morning sessions with her Sustainable Packaging 2.0 at Walmart presentation. With an emphasis on selling products in recyclable packaging, Walmart participates in the SPC How2Recycle program. Ashley questions why a company does not use recycling labels on their consumer packaging. In addition, packaging made with recycled content is a Walmart priority.

After an excellent lunch served by the Omni Charlotte Hotel, Mecklenburg County Director, Solid Waste Management Jeff Smithburger opened the afternoon sessions with his The Local Perspective on Packaging Recovery presentation. On the second day, Laurette Hall, Mecklenburg County environmental manager, waste reduction, augmented Jeff's broad perspective with details on Charlotte | Meckenburg County's SSM programs in-place.

The remaining afternoon sessions dove into controversial industry issues surrounding extended producer responsibility for packaging, government legislation on foodservice packaging, and finished with the Point-Counterpoint: Bag Bans session. 

Brad during panel introductions

Pepsico Director Advanced Research Brad Rodgers moderated the impactful panel discussion. Leading the discussion, Five Gyres Research Director Marcus Eriksen made a powerful visual statement when he exhibited a large plastic mass found with the remains of a decomposed camel. Beyond the "shock effect," Marcus' presentation was grounded in scientific research, his personal experiences exploring the ocean's plastic gyres and infiltrated with the dangers of microplastic pollution in our oceans, waterways, soils and air.

The ZWA Blog article, Plastic GYRE Symposium: Artists, Scientists and Activists Respond, gives an overview of the powerful Atlanta-hosted event where Marcus was one of the prominent presenters. In addition, the article educates on the ocean's plastic gyres along with their tremendous environmental impact.

For the counterpoint, Elemental Impact (Ei) Partner Phil Rozenski, Novolex director of marketing and sustainability, presented on the valuable role plastic bags play along with the "cost" of their alternatives. Phil emphasized plastic bags are NOT single-use products; 9 out of 10 Americans reuse their plastic bags. In addition, Phil shared the following plastic bag facts:

• less than 1% of litter by count, only .12% of litter volume.
• only 2.1% of U.S. beach litter (by count, much less by volume).
• .3% of municipal solid waste.

Bag Bans Panel
(names in FB album)

Novolex recycles 35 million pounds of plastic bags, film and wraps and consumes over 120 MM pounds of recycled content.

Thanks to Brad's artful moderation, the controversial topic was discussed with finesse and grounded in facts. Though a conclusion was not the point, the panel enlightened the audience on the many perspectives inherent within the plastic bag controversy.

For the evening, the SPC Advance hosted Dinner & Dialogues, small group dinners to discuss topics of interest for the packaging industry.  ... and then there was the popular Second Annual SPC Advance Pub Crawl!

The conference second day began with two breakout panels followed by plenary sessions. Advancing The Circular Economy: Technologies and Innovations panelists dove into the role SSM and packaging plays in creating a circular economy; advancing technologies open gateways in sustainable packaging evolution.

The EPA Grant Team
(names in FB album)

In a separate panel, Scaling Up Composting in North America: Presentation and Working Session, the EPA Grant to the SPC for Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte, NC was featured; a substantial discussion of food waste recovery options, challenges and successes followed.

The ZWA Blog article, Scaling up Composting in Charlotte, NC, details the grant goal, objectives and tasks along with listing partners | sub-grantees. "Scaling Up" was used in the grant name as Charlotte has a solid food waste composting program compliments of Earth Farms, a state-permitted facility. The grant served as a catalyst to increase food waste collection for compost throughout the metro Charlotte area. 

EPA Region 4 Environmental Scientist Kim Charick opened the panel with an overview of the EPA's food recovery commitment along with introducing the grant team. Throughout the panel presentations, the Earth Farms food waste composting facility was heralded as a strong reason Charlotte was chosen for the grant.

Laurette during her presentation

Next, Laurette shared details on Charlotte | Mecklenburg County's stellar waste reduction commitment, including food waste recovery. Beyond their financial, staff and other resources grant contributions, Laurette and her team were the door openers for a multitude of grant intro meetings. The Carolina Panthers and Mecklenburg County Jail joined the EPA Grant Program due to Laurette's introductions.

GB Associate Ryan Cooper and University of North Carolina Charlotte Research Intern Tyler Gilkerson presented on the grant logistics, metrics collections and lessons learned from the participant surveys. It was important to understand the "down and dirty" work accomplished by these two gentlemen.

Panel moderator Ei Founder Holly Elmore called Earth Farms Owner Jim Lanier and EPA Grant Participant Food Lion Sustainability Manager John Laughead for impromptu talks on their grant experience.

The ZWA Blog article, Charlotte opportunities segue into ACTION, chronicles the final EPA Grant Team Charlotte visit and summarizes many of the grant successes.

The pursuing formal food recovery strategy session flowed well into the morning break; informal conversations continued into the late morning program. City of Seattle Business Area Strategic Advisor for Waste Prevention and Product Stewardship Sego Jackson asked pertinent questions and added his valuable experience to the discussion. EPA Director, Resource Conservation and Sustainability Division Cheryl Coleman attended the panel and contributed important federal EPA perspective to dialogue.

Sarah @ plenary podum

Conference closing plenary sessions began with Meet Your 2015 Executive Committee Nominees. Ei Partner Sarah Martinez, Eco-Products sustainability maven, was one of six nominees who presented on their qualifications to serve on the SPC Executive Committee. The final two formal program sessions were Setting the Agenda for Sustainable Packaging: A Special Panel of Leadership Companies followed by Advancing the Agenda for Sustainable Packaging: SPC Member Working Session. 

In the afternoon SPC Advance hosted a tour of Earth Farms, a 45 minute bus ride from downtown Charlotte. Thanks to Eco-Products' donation, the on-bus lunch was served in compostable packaging and left in windrows to begin their decomposition journey.

Jim educated on Earth Farms' history, evolution and future plans along with answering a plethora of pertinent questions during the impressive tour. The Ei FB album, Charlotte Ei Ptr Tours - Day 2, is an excellent pictorial recount of an Earth Farms tour several years ago.

The EPA's strong SSM, sustainable packaging and food recovery commitment was evident at the SPC Advance with two federal and two Region 4 associates active conference participants. With a strong EPA SSM commitment, state & local governments receive support via many avenues to pursue their specific waste reduction goals.

John Mulcahy of Georgia Pacific
with Scotto Seydel

Beyond Holly & Sarah at the podium, Ei was well-represented at the SPC Advance. The Seydel Companies (TSC) President Scotto Seydel traveled from Atlanta to represent GB Chairman Emeritus and Ei Chair Scott Seydel along with TSC interests. Steve Davies & Brian Glasbrenner from Ei Partner NatureWorks and Chris Mitchell with Ei Partner Innovia Films were active conference participants. Ei Advisory Council Member Lynn Dyer with the Foodservice Packaging Institute was a speaker on the Foodservice Packaging Bans and Legislation: Perspectives on the Changing Legislative Landscape panel. ... and GB | SPC is an Ei Strategic Ally!

A highlight of the conference was embracing GB's SPC Senior Manager Anne Bedarf's baby girl Summer. Prior to her June maternity leave, Anne was the EPA Grant Team manager. It was lovely to reconnect with Anne, meet her family and catch-up on the past months while she was nurturing Summer's arrival.

The Ei FB album, 10-15 GreenBlue's SPC Advance Conference, is an event pictorial recap through Holly's lens.

Keeping with the underlying integrity theme,the SPC Advance walked an impressive talk with sustainability best practices. A source-separated five-bin recycling system was used at the conference: 1> food waste for compost, 2> recycle | paper, 3> recycle | paper 4> recycle | cans only and 5> trash | landfill. The Omni contracts with Earth Farms for food waste collection so there was no extra carbon footprint for the compost destination.

Five-bin recycling | waste station

The Whova conference app was introduced to attendees weeks prior to the event. By using the app, SPC Advance reduced paper in two main areas: 1> minimal extra small conference agendas were provided since the app included a detailed agenda, and 2> reduced business card usage since the app scanned business cards, eliminating the need for a physical exchange. The app had 2,295 views during the conference.

Working in partnership with the Omni, compostable packaging was used for the opening reception and reusuable food & beverage serviceware was used wherever practical.

As documented in the ZWA Blog Beyond Easy Wins .. article, the Spring 2014 SPC Conference in Seattle explored future directions in zero waste initiatives, available recycling options along with the integral role packaging plays in successful recovery systems. 

Once again the GreenBlue's Sustainable Packaging Coalition takes a leadership role in establishing future industry directions. The SPC Advance program was designed to provoke discussion, clear confusion and establish truth | integrity within an industry defining itself.

Charlotte opportunities segue into ACTION

EPA Grant Team @ Knights Ballpark
during February visit

The week of July 13 the Elemental Impact (Ei) | EPA Grant Team converged on Charlotte for three powerful days filled with meetings, tours and dinners. With introductions substantiated in prior visits, the meetings were follow-up in nature with actions points integral within the respective agendas.

In February the team visited Charlotte for introductory meetings at the Charlotte Convention Center (CCC), Knights' BB&T Ballpark, Hornets Time Warner Cable Arena and Carolina Panthers Bank of America Stadium. The ZWA Blog article, Charlotte: A Land of Opportunities, chronicles the important visit.

Ei's strong Charlotte connections, along with a substantial history of successful work, are chronicled on the Ei Charlotte Visits website page.

Concord Mills, a Simon mall in metro Charlotte, serves as the Sustainable Food Court Initiative (SFCI) Shopping Mall Pilot and was the catalyst for Ei's work in the Charlotte area. Ei Partner HMSHost, then Concord Mills food court concessionaire and the Charlotte Douglas International Airport foodservice operator, was integral to Ei's solid sustainability foundation in Charlotte.

Concord Mills food waste bin

Beginning in 2011, the SFCI Team worked closely with HMSHost and Simon on creating back-of-the-house (BOH) food waste collection for compost, food donation and plastic film recycling programs at Concord Mills. The ZWA Blog article, ACTION: Theme for the SFCI Shopping Mall Pilot, is an overview of the programs.

Charlotte successes were highlighted at the 2013 Charlotte Ei Partner Tours hosted by Simon | HMSHost. The IMPACT Blog article, Charlotte Ei Partner Tours, is a tours overview featuring the forerunner programs in-place.

In fall 2013 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 funded a Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte, NC Grant to GreenBlue's Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC). To maximize its impact, the grant was extended for an additional year along with funding. Ei is a grant sub-grantee. The ZWA Blog article, Scaling up Composting in Charlotte, NC, details the grant goal, objectives and tasks along with listing partners | sub-grantees.

"Scaling Up" was used in the grant name as Charlotte has a solid food waste composting program compliments of Earth Farms, a state-permitted facility. The grant serves as a catalyst to increase food waste collection for compost throughout the metro Charlotte area. The Ei FB album, Ei Partner Tours - Day 2, recounts an Earth Farms tour.

Rick, Kim & Ryan 

Although Ei orchestrated the February Charlotte visit, the EPA Grant was the focal point with Ei initiatives taking a back seat on meeting agendas. For the July visit, Ei initiatives were center stage at meetings with the EPA Grant playing a strong supporting role. Potential EPA Grant Participants appreciated Ei's Charlotte commitment beyond the grant's September 30 expiration.

The Ei SMAT - Sustainable Materials ACTION Team - provides in-depth industry expertise in materials management. SMAT members Rick Lombardo of NaturTec | NaturBag, Ken Fraser of EcoProducts, Sarah Martell of Innovia Films and Kim Charick with the EPA traveled to Charlotte and were instrumental to the visit success. Kim, Ei founder Holly Elmore, Earth Farms Owner Jim Lanier, GreenBlue Project Associate Ryan Cooper among others represented the EPA Grant at the meetings; Ryan took the leading grant role.

Mecklenburg County Environmental Manager, Waste Reduction Laurette Hall and her department were the local connectors to the prestigious facilities on the visit agenda. Laurette, thank you for your vision and commitment to move the Charlotte | Mecklenburg County waste reduction needle.

Mecklenburg County Jail

First on the itinerary was a fantastic meeting at the Mecklenburg County Sherriff's Office regarding food waste collection for compost at the county jails. The meeting was empowering as Chief Deputy Sheriff Felicia McAdoo, Captain Celeste Youngblood, and Officer Thomas Plummer were enthusiastic and asked pertinent questions. SUCCESS: the Mecklenburg County Jail joined the EPA Grant program!

Thank you Nick Crawford, Mecklenburg County senior environmental specialist, for arranging the Sheriff's Office meeting.

At the core of the Ei Charlotte visit was an Airborne Kitchen Grease (AKG), a proactive approach to a costly cooking byproduct, Initiative meeting at the Charlotte Airport. 

In February Laurette introduced the Ei Team to City of Charlotte Energy & Sustainability Manager Rob Phocus. An action point was a subsequent meeting with HMSHost at the airport to learn about the Grease Lock Filters (GLF) system, the AKG Initiative foundation within Ei's Water Use | Toxicity platform.

Rob & Kim during AKG session

GLF founder Joe Salpietra and HMSHost Senior Manager, Contracting Devon Ray flew to Charlotte for the empowering meeting. HMSHost Charlotte Airport Director of Operations Matt Wissman hosted the meeting along with a subsequent tour of GLF installations. Local GLF distributor Eric Dyer of Kescor, Green Solutions for Grease Management, joined the airport meeting, as well as most other meetings. 

The Airborne Kitchen Grease presentation can be downloaded on Ei's AKG page.

It was thrilling to witness local, state & federal government associates attend the AKG airport meeting. In addition to the federal (EPA | Kim) and local (county | Laurette & city | Rob) governments, NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources Organics Recycling Specialist Jorge Montezuma represented state government at the airport and most meetings during the visit.

As documented in the AKG website page, GLF improve fire safety | employee safety, reduce kitchen exhaust system cleaning (both baffle filters and entire system) and related labor, save on toxic cleaning chemical use, prevent roof damage caused by deposited AKG and result in cost-savings for the foodservice operator.

Ei launched the AKG Initiative due to the significant water-savings, water that would be filled with toxic cleaning agents.

Joe & Devon discussing national
expansion plans

Subsequent to the airport meeting, Joe, Devon and Holly met to craft a national GLF expansion plan throughout the HMSHost substantial foodservice network, mainly in airports and turnpike service plazas. Last year, GLF | HMSHost executed a national procurement contract.

Thanks to Eric's local connections, the group enjoyed a lovely dinner at Aria Tuscan Grill's chef table. UNC Charlotte Research Intern Tyler Gilkerson joined the dinner. Tyler analyzes food waste samples collected at EPA Grant Participant sites, providing an added benefit for the grant and operators. It was fun to listen to Tyler and Ryan's tales of sample collection!

On the second day, the group convened at a Concord, NC Food Lion where Sustainability Manager John Laughead impressed the group with his infectious enthusiasm and thorough zero waste practices in-place. For front-of-the-house, Food Lion provides consumer recycling bins, clearly labeled for aluminum, plastic & glass containers,  plastic bags, film & wrap, and paper. The cashier checkout stations have recycling and trash bins under the counter.

Food Lion consumer recycling bins

Back-of-the-house practices include on-site OCC (old corrugated cardboard) baling, transport plastic film | wrap collection for baling at the distribution center and food waste collection for compost. Food waste is from products damaged upon delivery and unsalable prepared food & produce. For edible food beyond quality standards, Food Lion has an excellent donation program in-place that meets the Good Samaritan Food Donation Act.

While in Atlanta last month, John met at the EPA offices with Jay Bassett, chief, materials management, Jon Johnston, RCRA branch chief, and Kim. Applicable Food Lion stores were EPA Grant Participants prior to the visit!

During the back-of-the-house tour, Holly noticed waxed cardboard used for poultry packaging was separated for trash disposal. An action point is guiding Food Lion with their supply chain on shifting to an alternative coating that renders boxes recyclable and compostable. The ZWA Blog article, Waxed Cardboard Boxes =  Landfill Destiny = $$ Lost, gives an overview of the costly scenario.

Food Lion source-separates material

The afternoon was spent in follow-up meetings from the February visit with the Charlotte Convention Center and the Hornets Arena.

During the downtown event | sporting facilities meetings, the Ei focus was source-separated material (SSM) supported by the Total Materials Management Approach, the entire waste / recycling stream is evaluated within one revenue / cost center. Challenging materials are subsidized with rebates (revenue) from separated, clean bales of valuable items. For example, revenue from aluminum bales pays for compostable food & beverage packaging, a necessity for most post-consumer (front-of-the-house) food waste collection programs.

Inherent within a SSM program is understanding waste | recycling hauler contract provisions. Often contracts stipulate the hauler has rights to ALL material generated at the facility. Thus, SSM rebates belong to the hauler, not the facility generating the material. The ZWA Blog article, Contract provisions require team work necessary for zero waste success, documents the important role contract provisions play in creating an effective stage for food waste collection and source-separated material recycling.

Steve with the Earth Farms sign

CCC Assistant Director of Facilities & Engineering Doug Tober joined Food Services Operations Manager Steve Gorham, Procurement Manager Jeff Doerr and Assistant Director of Facility Services Roger Rochelle at the July meeting. After introductions and updates since the excellent February meeting, the group toured front and back-of-the-house operations. It was inspiring to witness the food waste collection practices in-place along with source-separated OCC baling.

The time together ended with a series of action points with Steve: 1> send AKG Initiative documentation, 2> request specific parameters related to protein | produce packaged in waxed OCC and 3> begin strategy process on how to expand food waste collection practices to front-of-the-house | post-consumer food waste.

Following the CCC visit, the group walked to the Hornets Arena where Director of Facility Operations Cathy Buchhofer and Hornets Arena Coordinator Alex Mackenzie hosted a superb meeting. With Alex's recent hire, the group gave a strong recap of the powerful February meeting.

Hornets meeting

Back-of-the-house food waste collection is slated to begin in the next weeks. Though focused on immediate action, Cathy was interested in the long-term support for solid arena zero waste practices. When the Ei Team returns to Charlotte in October, a longer-term strategy session is slated for the visit.

Once again relying on Eric's local expertise, the group enjoyed dinner on Ri-Ra Irish Pub's rooftop deck. After a hectic, amazing day, it was important to regroup in a casual, fun environment.

On the third and final day, Concord Mills General Manager Ray Soporowski welcomed the Ei | EPA Grant Team to the state's most visited tourist destination. In January, HMSHost left the mall as the food court concessionaire. Ray is working with the new tenants on re-establishing back-of-the-house food waste collection for compost practices. During the food court build out, the two-yard food waste dumpsters were removed due to contamination form the construction crews.

Ray with Ei | EPA Grant Team
in the plastic film recycling room

Ray and Holly gave an overview of Concord Mills past successes. Discussion focused on new endeavors with AKG, expanding the plastic film recycling practices, and opportunities via new single-standing restaurants in the lease negotiation phase. SUCCESS: Ray gave his YES to joining the EPA Grant Program during the meeting!

From Concord Mills, the team traveled the short distance to Northlake Mall and met with management on implementing a back-of-the-house food waste collection for composting program. Ei Partner Keter Environmental Services manages the mall's waste and recycling services; Keter Regional Manager Andrew Lantz traveled to Charlotte for the important meeting.

General Manager Adam Kamlet shared recent food waste experiences during his tenure at a San Francisco mall while Director of Operations Michael Signorelli expressed his strong program support. A main action point is to provide Michael talking points for the food waste program introduction to mall restaurants.

Nortlake Mall lunch destination

The game plan is to implement the food waste practices in phases, beginning with the two seated dining restaurants. Food court restaurants will follow once new operational practices are in-place and any challenges are addressed.

After a formal meeting in the mall conference room, the group enjoyed a lovely lunch at Firebirds Wood Fired Grill. During the lunch, Michael appreciated how the AKG proactive approach prevented costly roof damage; Eric is staged to follow-up on GLF introductions at the seated dining restaurants. Farewells to new friends were intertwined with action points over the next weeks.

Prior to attending the evening Knights baseball game, the SMAT members met for a two-hour working session on educational documentation under development. In April, the SMAT presented the Compostable Food & Beverage Packaging Education Session to the Levy Restaurants downtown Atlanta campus. With the announcement of the SFCI - Les Dames d'Escoffier International | Atlanta Chapter, SMAT is updating the session for a new audience.

SMAT working session

The ZWA Blog article, Compostable F&B Packaging: integral to zero waste programs & rebuilding the soil, introduces the education session while the Afternoon in the Country embarks on zero food waste journey article introduces the SFCI - LDEI | ATL Pilot.

Charlotte Knights Director of Stadium Operations Mark McKinnon welcomed the Ei | EPA Grant Team to the 7:00 p.m. game and gave a thorough tour of game day practices. Ovations General Manager Erik Hassy took time during the game to show the team back-of-the-house kitchen operations.

Due to provisions within the waste | recycling sponsorship contract, there are challenges creating a cost-effective material source-separation, including food waste, program at the ballpark. In October, a small group will meet with Mark to strategize on a game plan to refine existing recycling practices.

A limited portion of the ballpark's
spectacular view

IMPRESSIVE: the BB&T Knights Ballpark was named Best Ballpark in the Minors. “There can’t be a better view of a downtown skyline anywhere . . . It looks almost fake,” a minor league radio announcer wrote to Baseball America.

Unfortunately, the Carolina's Panthers Stadium was incredibly busy during the Charlotte visit and not available for a follow-up to the productive February meeting.

The Ei FB album, July 2015 Ei Charlotte Visit, provides a pictorial recap of the visit.

In her February closing statement, Laurette summarized the scenario with perfection: Charlotte is a Land of Opportunities! During the July visit, Charlotte opportunities segued into action points, filled with promise to reduce Charlotte area waste along with fueling local economic vitality. 

.. and the Ei Team returns to Charlotte in early October - stay tuned!

Charlotte: A Land of Opportunities

A proactive city, Charlotte stands strong as a sustainability leader, especially in waste reduction. As Mecklenburg County Government (MCG) environmental manager, waste reduction, Laurette Hall is at the helm of Charlotte recycling successes; Laurette is a visionary who quietly, effectively implements her recycling plan for the county while forging lasting relationships.

CMS food waste collection for
compost effective system

The City of Charlotte is within Mecklenburg County; the city and county work closely together on community services, including materials management. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) - 164 schools and 145,000 enrolled students - is a prime example of the city and county working in unison for citizen benefit.

Dating back to 2011, Elemental Impact developed strong Charlotte relationships. Jake Wilson, MCG senior environmental manager, was named the February 2011 IMPACTOR of the month and honored in The IMPACT Blog article, A Man of Controversy, A Man of Action.

Concord Mills, a Simon mall in metro Charlotte, serves as the Sustainable Food Court Initiative (SFCI) Shopping Mall Pilot and was the catalyst for Elemental Impact's work in the Charlotte area. Ei Partner HMSHost, Concord Mills food court concessionaire and the Charlotte Douglas International Airport foodservice operator, was integral to Ei's solid sustainability foundation in Charlotte.

one of the first CM donation collections
photo courtesy of HMSHost

Beginning in 2011, the SFCI Team worked closely with HMSHost and Simon on creating back-of-the-house (BOH) food waste collection for compost, food donation and plastic film recycling programs at Concord Mills. The ZWA Blog article, ACTION: Theme for the SFCI Shopping Mall Pilot, is an overview of the programs.

When Charlotte hosted the 2012 Democratic National Convention, the city | county used the convention as an opportunity to expand existing recycling practices for the metro area. Facilities such as the Charlotte Convention Center (CCC) and the Carolina Panthers Stadium implemented food waste collection for compost as the city prepared for the convention. BOH food waste collection is now standard operating practice at the facilities.

In partnership with Charlotte-based ReCommunity Recycling, festive, well-designed recycling containers were strategically placed throughout the downtown corridor. Keeping with recycling best practices, each bin is paired with a trash container. ReCommunity operates the county-owned MRF - materials recovery facility for single-stream recycling.

Charlotte successes were highlighted at the 2012 Charlotte Ei Partner Tours hosted by Simon | HMSHost. Laurette and Jake attended the first day of presentations and tours of Concord Mills' impressive recycling programs. The IMPACT Blog article, Charlotte Ei Partner Tours, is a tours overview.

downtown recycling bin

In fall 2013 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 funded a Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte, NC Grant to GreenBlue's Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC). To maximize its impact, the grant was extended for an additional year along with funding. Ei is a grant sub-grantee. The ZWA Blog article, Scaling up Composting in Charlotte, NC, details the grant goal, objectives and tasks along with listing partners | sub-grantees.

"Scaling Up" was used in the grant name as Charlotte has a solid food waste composting program compliments of Earth Farms, a state-permitted facility. The grant intends to serve as a catalyst to increase food waste collection for compost throughout the metro Charlotte area. The Ei FB album, Ei Partner Tours - Day 2, recounts an Earth Farms tour.

Earth Week 2014 marked the first official EPA Grant Team visit to the Queen City for three action-packed days. With a plethora of back-to-back meetings and tours scheduled, the team recruited participants for the EPA Grant program. The ZWA Blog article, Charlotte Focuses on Food Waste with EPA Support, is an overview of the monumental visit.

Knights Stadium

The Ei Team returned to Charlotte in July and overlapped the grant with Ei initiatives. From Ei's perspective, the trip was exploratory in nature to determine if the tremendous Ei | Charlotte | MCG synergies warranted investment in formal programs, partnerships and | or other initiatives. The Charlotte Knights hosted a meeting at their stadium to introduce Ei initiatives and the EPA Grant.

During the visit, SMAT - Sustainable Materials ACTION Team - was formed to support the Grant and other Ei work. The ZWA Blog article, Ei Charlotte Visit: Busy, Productive & Fun!, is a recap of the powerful visit.

Validating the strong Ei | MCG relationship, Laurette attended the November 2014 Annual Ei Partner Meeting in Atlanta. Laurette presented on the extensive synergies & potentials and learned about Ei initiatives beyond Charlotte and materials management. The IMPACT Blog article, Ei 2014: A Year of Evolution, gives an overview of the meeting along with the history of events that built the substantial foundation in-place.

The Grant | Ei Team converged on Charlotte the week of February 2 for a series of meetings and tours at the major sports facilities, the convention center and local schools. SPC senior manager Anne Bedarf was supported in meetings with SMAT members: Sarah Martell of Innovia Films, Rick Lombardo of NaturBag, Tim Goodman of NatureWorks, and Sarah Martinez of Eco-Products.

Laurette, Eric & Kim after the
City of Charlotte meeting

For the February 2015 Charlotte visit, Ei founder Holly Elmore and Kim Charick of the EPA arrived a day early for Water Use | Toxicity and other Ei-specific meetings. Rob Phocas, City of Charlotte energy & sustainability manager, was first on the meeting itinerary. Though focused on Airborne Kitchen Grease, a proactive approach to a costly cooking by-product, the meeting was a perfect opportunity to update Rob on the EPA Grant status.

JR Stewart of Filtrexx treated Ei to a lovely lunch at McCormick & Schmick's downtown location to educate on the Garden Soxx, perfect for community & school gardens. With the strong food waste collection for composting at CMS, the Garden Soxx may prove useful as an educational tool to directly connect food waste to compost to garden produce.

A lovely dinner at Rooster's downtown location hosted by Eric & Betsy Dyer, local Grease Lock Filter distributors, was a perfect segue into the EPA Grant meetings the following morning.

The Knights were first on the meeting itinerary as a follow-up to the July meeting and subsequent conference calls. After an overview session including General Manager Erik Hassy and Executive Chef Joseph Marx of Ovations, the stadiums foodservice operator, Stadium Director of Operations Mark McKinnon led the group on a BOH tour to better understand the physical parameters for recycling logistics. Grant partners Sandra Clinton of UNC Charlotte and Jim Lanier with Earth Farms joined the Knights meeting. As the food waste hauler | destination, Jim attended most of the meetings.

Knights meeting group photo

The loading dock included ample space for food waste collection and source-separation of high value recyclable material. It was an inspiring visit and rewarding to witness the zero waste "team spirit" evident between stadium facilities and foodservice operations. With plenty of action points documented, the group said farewell to new friends.

Next on the day's itinerary was an introductory meeting with the CCC. As mentioned above, the CCC is a veteran to BOH food waste collection for composting and eager to take their program to next dimensions. CCC Food Services Operations Manager Steve Gorham hosted the meeting with CCC Assistant Director of Facility Services Roger Rochelle and Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA) Procurement Manager Jeff Doerr attending.

CCC meeting

A primary discussion point was the role legal provisions play in zero waste success, whether with foodservice subcontractors or waste | recycling haulers. The ZWA Blog article, Contract provisions require team work necessary for zero waste success, documents the important role contract provisions play in creating an effective stage for food waste collection and source-separated material recycling.

Continuing with the common theme of saying farewell to new friends, the group collected business cards with promises of follow-up within an array of action points and information requested.

The final meeting of the day was at the Metrolina Regional Scholars Academy, a NC charter school for the highly gifted scholar. Without a formal lunch program, the academy has unique challenges | opportunities not experienced by CMS-operated schools. With strong parental involvement, the school may excel in amazing recycling efforts with parent | student consciousness shifts.

Common within Ei travels, dinners serve as a relaxed venue to recap the powerful activities along with strategies on how to maximize potentials. The King's Kitchen was the perfect venue for dinner: 100% of proceeds are donated to the homeless and competent staff are those often considered "unemployable."

The final day began with a productive meeting and tour of the Charlotte Hornets Arena hosted by Andrew Chisholm, manager of arena & event services. With Mike Wann, Levy Restaurants (Levy) assistant director of operations,and Bill Becker, CRVA arena director of support services, in attendance, the necessary trilogy - stadium management, facilities management and foodservice operations - were present at the meeting.

After introductions and grant overview, the group toured the stadium front and BOH operations. It was exciting to witness the potential for refining the arena's current recycling practices, especially food waste collection for compost. Levy is the foodservice operator for Ei Supporter Georgia World Congress Center Authority, a founding Zero Waste Zones participant. A Levy manager recently transferred from the Georgia Dome to the arena; the Dome is the SFCI Event Venue Pilot with solid food waste donation and collection for compost practices.

Added bonus: a standard size baler is located near the waste | recycling loading dock area. It is nice to know equipment is in-place to source-separate cardboard, aluminum and other valuable material.

Kim w/ compost garden sign

During lunch, the team visited the Chantilly Montessori School as an example of the CMS impressive food waste collection for compost program. It was rewarding to witness the four and five year old children learn to sort their food and pour liquid from the beverage carton prior to recycling.The committed staff is integral to the school's success.

In addition, the school has a compost area complete with a tumbler, rain barrel collection, and raised bed gardens. Per the wooden sign, the NO to grass & weeds shows the school is careful to prevent weed seeds & pesticides | herbicides from contaminating the compost. The YES includes leaves, fruits & vegetables. 

The final EPA Grant Team meeting was with the Carolina Panthers hosted by Scott Paul, director of stadium operations, and attended by Delaware North Executive Chef John Morey and Operations Manager Jeff Kelly. In addition to an established BOH food waste collection program, the Panthers have solid recycling practices where cardboard is baled on-site. Over the past season, the Panthers recycled a total of 76.63 tons of materials, including 25.56 tons of source-separated aluminum. The food waste program diverted an additional 6.65 tons of material from the landfill. IMPRESSIVE!

Panther game-day tailgate recycling
photo courtesy of Jake

Jake oversees the Panther tailgate recycling program, a collaboration of many organizations | individuals: volunteers, City of Charlotte Solid Waste for game day collection, the Parking Lot Consortium for engaging the lot attendants, City Center Partners for their stewardship and media outreach, Bojangles sponsorship of bags & award gift cards, and ESPN 730 for sponsorship and support. The 2012 ZWA Blog article, Winning Panthers Recycling Season, recaps the collaboration necessary for a successful tailgate recycling program.

The 2014 | 2015 season broke records with 45.35 tons recycled at the home games, a 23% increase over last season's 36.76 tons recycled. Ditto on IMPRESSIVE!

At the Panthers' meeting, the focus was on Recycling Refinement, moving beyond landfill diversion, and how the Grant Team and SMAT may assist the stadium edge closer to zero waste. Front-of-the-house food waste collection, with first steps in the suites, was the meeting focal point. An action item is scheduling a call with industry leaders experienced in bringing a stadium to zero waste.

downtown Charlotte statue

SUCCESS: the Knights, Hornets, Panthers and the CCC gave a thumbs up on joining the grant program.  Anne will follow-up over the next weeks to complete the paperwork and discuss next steps. For a list of current Grant participants and to join the program, visit the SPC Scaling Up Composting in Charlotte website page.

The Ei Team intends to return to Charlotte midsummer for follow-up meetings on the city-wide Source-Separated Materials Recycling Template (S-SMRT). Atlanta serves as the pilot city and Charlotte is a potential template replication pilot city. The ZWA Blog article, Total Materials Management Approach, gives an update on the pilot and explains the approach.

As the S-SRMT took a side seat in the February meetings, the Grant will take the side seat in the summer meetings. The S-SRMT is an avenue for Ei to continue support to Grant participants beyond its expiration date.

The Ei FB album, Charlotte Visit: EPA Grant & Beyond, is a pictorial recap of the excellent visit.

After a team wrap-up, the group dispersed excited to segue the powerful discussions into action. Laurette summarized the scenario with perfection: Charlotte is a Land of Opportunities!