NWRA issues letter to Vice President Pence urging action against China’s ban

The National Waste and Recycling Association (NWRA) sent a letter to Vice President Pence May 22 urging the federal government to take action against China’s restrictions on recyclables. The letter explained the consequences of China’s restrictions on the waste and recycling industry and asked that the issue be raised with the Chinese government as part of talks with U.S. trade officials.

“Over the past year, China has banned some curbside recyclables from the United States and has imposed an extremely stringent standard for other recyclables. Those recyclables are required to be 99.5 percent free of contaminants as of March 1. The lack of other markets for some of these materials has depressed their costs and resulted in them being stockpiled, or, in some cases, landfilled. This has the potential to shake public confidence in recycling and create long-term consequences in material quality and segregation efforts,” NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith writes in the letter.

According to Smith, China’s ban on imports could have a lasting effect on the recycling industry that could reverberate for years.

“Should this continue, it could eventually lead to the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and the closure of many recycling businesses throughout North America since there currently is not enough global capacity to absorb the paper and plastics that had been going to China,” Smith writes. “The fallout from this ban could have a devastating effect on recycling that may set the industry back decades."

The complete letter—which is signed by Terry Guerin, chair of the NWRA Services Board of Governors, and Darrell Smith—is available online.