Executive Session
Floor Speech
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Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I thank Senator Carper and his staff and my staff for the tremendous job that they have done in recent years in really trying to educate, through the caucus, the rest of the staff and Members as to the importance of recycling. As a result of their efforts, it really is making a big difference.
We hear a lot about Republicans and Democrats not getting along on this and that, not getting anything done, and I think this is a great example of something that is very, very important. It is not glamourous, but it is things like this that really can make a huge difference, as Senator Carper alluded to. We appreciate him and appreciate his friendship.
Well, tomorrow, November 15, is America Recycles Day. So we are asking Americans to join us as we come together and reaffirm the importance and the benefits of recycling on this occasion. We all know that recycling is a commonsense way for us to be responsible stewards of our environment. Recycling also strengthens our economy and creates hundreds of thousands of well-paying jobs throughout our country. This is something that I believe everyone can agree is truly a win-win situation.
Most Americans are familiar with traditional recycling efforts at their city and county levels, which encourage citizens to recycle household goods or business goods, such as paper, soda cans, and bottles. However, recycling is much broader than these common practices. Recycling is a $200 billion industry in our country, and it entails much, much more than just traditional municipal recycling programs.
My State of Arkansas is home to many examples of companies that are contributing to a robust and growing commercial recycling industry. I will give you an example.
Nucor, a leading steel producer located in Blytheville, AR, has the capacity to recycle 6 million tons of steel per year--6 million tons-- and over 27 million tons nationwide, making it North America's largest recycler. Nucor has also taken its efforts a step further by teaming with local recycling facilities to help tackle some of the biggest challenges associated with the practice in rural communities.
Nucor donated a recycled cardboard baler to Abilities Unlimited, a local nonprofit that runs a nearby recycling facility. This investment has proven mutually beneficial to Nucor and to the community. This facility now provides an outlet for the steel company and community members to recycle in a much more cost-effective manner.
In fact, Nucor plants in Arkansas have the capability to recycle about 60 tons of cardboard annually thanks to this baler. More than 195 tons of cardboard, 21 tons of paper, and 71 tons of mixed plastics have been recycled through this partnership.
Another industry leader leading the way is Walmart. As the world's largest retailer, Walmart has put recycling front and center by raising its packaging standards to include more recycled content and to eliminate specific nonrecyclable packaging materials by 2020. Earlier this year, Walmart announced its intention to achieve 100 percent recyclable, reusable, or industrially compostable packaging by 2025. Its leadership in this arena will help to create more demand for recycled content and open the door for other companies to follow suit.
Lastly, I want to highlight the recycling accomplishments of Bryce Corporation, a trailblazer in flexible packaging. This is the packaging commonly used for chips, juice pouches, pet food, lawn and garden materials, cleaning supplies, and many other products. Bryce employs about 750 people at its Searcy facility and has achieved an environmental footprint that the Central Arkansas community can be very proud of.
At this location alone, Bryce has maintained a 98-percent landfill- free status and has supported the circular economy by recycling over 15 million pounds of plastics each year. The material recycled from this facility is repurposed into other products, ranging from plastic pallets to automotive parts. Bryce Corporation's innovative efforts are a sterling example of recycling done right, and I am grateful for the example it has set for the rest of the country.
Our country has certainly faced its fair share of recycling woes and setbacks, but I have always maintained that in adversity lies opportunity. I believe there is much to be learned from the meaningful work that these companies are doing in Arkansas, and I commend them on leading on the issue.
The United States has the ability now to improve its waste management and recycling infrastructure and better leverage the economic and environmental benefits of recycling.
I look forward to continue my work with my cochair of the Recycling Caucus, Senator Carper. Again, I thank him and his staff and my staff, who are doing such a tremendous job, and the other members of the caucus who develop meaningful, long-term solutions that address the challenges facing the industry.
I encourage all Americans to use America Recycles Day as an opportunity to reflect on the critical importance of recycling and to consider what we can do to support our environment through our own individual efforts.
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Mr. BOOZMAN. Yes, sir.
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Mr. BOOZMAN. I think you make a great point in the sense that we do things for the right reasons. That is so important. Also, it is important, too, that not only can we do it for the right reasons and benefit our environment, but it also can be cost-effective to our businesses.
A good example of that is Walmart. Several years ago, they wanted to reduce their fuel cost and then also reduce the harm in the sense of the landfills and things like that. They looked and saw that on their trucks, the limiting factor was not weight. It was bulk. You know how you go to the store and you buy something and it has got this huge box or whatever and it has got the little bitty product in it. They said, you know, we don't need to be doing that.
So they told their vendors that they would like to go in that direction, and to their credit, the vendors cooperated. As a result, they were able to put more products on the truck, thus reducing fuel costs--again benefiting the economy--and having less bulk for consumers to deal with eventually. That was putting less pressure on the environment because, you know, some people don't do a good job of recycling.
These things can be so good for not only doing the right thing but also improving the bottom line and making sure that we really are putting less pressure on the environment.
We appreciate your leadership. You have been doing this for a long time, as Governor and now as Senator, helping to put these things together. We very much appreciate it.
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Mr. BOOZMAN. We look forward to having a robust bunch of programs.
It is so important to educate people on what is recyclable because not everyone knows. Different things are recyclable from one area to another area. So we need education on that, and that will make it much more efficient, with people putting in the correct things.
So we have some obstacles to overcome, but the good news is, there are people working together, and we are moving in the right direction.
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