An official website of the United States government.

This is not the current EPA website. To navigate to the current EPA website, please go to www.epa.gov. This website is historical material reflecting the EPA website as it existed on January 19, 2021. This website is no longer updated and links to external websites and some internal pages may not work. More information »

News Releases

News Releases from Headquarters

EPA’s Virtual America Recycles Events Available Online Until Dec. 18

12/03/2020
Contact Information: 
EPA Press Office (press@epa.gov)

WASHINGTON (December 3, 2020) — In recognition of America Recycles Day, this past November, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) held its second annual Recycling Innovation Fair and Summit. Content from these events are now accessible online through December 18, 2020.

“EPA is proud to showcase top recycling innovators at the virtual Innovation Fair,” said EPA Office of Land and Emergency Management Assistant Administrator Peter Wright. “At the America Recycles Summit, we challenged the recycling stakeholders and all Americans with an ambitious National Recycling Goal to increase the national recycling rate to 50 percent by 2030, which we expect will prompt the recycling stakeholders to undertake a range of actions to improve our domestic recycling infrastructure.”

At the Recycling Summit, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler also unveiled a modern, ambitious National Recycling Goal to increase the national recycling rate to 50 percent by 2030 and a panel of experts discussed the draft National Recycling Strategy.

These engaging, free, virtual events focus on highly innovative technologies and strategies to create a more robust and sustainable recycling system in the U.S. and abroad. The America Recycles: Innovation Fair featured more than 40 innovators who are advancing the recycling system through strategies such as: deploying artificial intelligence robots to enhance operations at recycling facilities; using hard-to-recycle plastics in 3D printing materials; installing small system sorting units in stadiums and small communities; creating new construction materials from hard-to-recycle plastics; and using automated technology and recycled glass bottles to create new glassware. 

The America Recycles Summit includes conversations led by EPA regional offices about bolstering markets for recyclables, improving strategies for reducing contamination in recycling, and enhancing recycling strategies in Indian Country and territories, and the recently released Federal Strategy for Addressing the Global Issue of Marine Litter. EPA also discussed the draft National Recycling Strategy

The contents of both events are free and open to the public through Dec. 18. Register at: https://americarecycles.vfairs.com/.

Join the more than 300 organizations that are working toward a more resilient materials economy and sign the America Recycles pledge.

For more information about the National Recycling Goal, please visit: www.epa.gov/americarecycles/us-national-recycling-goals.

Background
Recycling is a key driver of the U.S. economy and a good way to save natural resources (such as timber and water) and protect the environment by reducing the need to create new materials. Recycling helps the economy by using materials from the U.S., supporting American manufacturing, and creating jobs in the recycling and manufacturing industries.

On November 15, 2018, Administrator Wheeler convened the first-ever America Recycles Summit, which brought a wide array of industry, government, and non-profit leaders to the table to advance ideas and solutions to enhance the nation’s recycling infrastructure, create new markets for recycled materials, and improve public education regarding recycling. Starting with 44 America Recycles pledge signers in 2018, the number of voluntary signers has grown to over 290 and continues to grow today.

In 2019, the first-ever Innovation Fair connected the public as well as potential investors with recycling innovators, thereby spurring market development and adoption of new technologies that increase recycling rates while creating new products comprised of post-recycled content.

For more information on EPA’s America Recycles efforts, please visit: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/americarecycles