Though it is the most recycled package on earth, we are still losing more than 40 billion cans a year in U.S. landfills.  Help preserve our planet by recycling. Don't know where to recycle? Use our locator: http://www.alcoa.com/recycling/en/recycling.asp

Alcoa Foundation is partnering with New York City and the Times Square Alliance to debut BigBelly Solar waste and recycling stations, the largest recycling program in Times Square. BigBelly stations channel solar energy to compact garbage on-site and hold five times the capacity of traditional sidewalk receptacles. Not only will this partnership promote recycling and sanitation in one of the busiest neighborhoods in the world, it will also reduce transportation and labor costs for New York City, as the bins do not need to be emptied as frequently, curbing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent.

A grant of $250,000 from Alcoa Foundation paid for the installment of 30 high-tech BigBelly stations in Times Square for two years. During that time, the bins are expected to capture and recycle 650,000 pounds of aluminum and 2.6 million pounds of other recyclable material. Times Square has between 350,000 to 450,000 visitors pass through on foot every day.

This is the first large-scale, public-private on street recycling program in NYC. Alcoa Foundation hopes that cities around the world copy this initiative, leading to an increased rate of recycled aluminum cans.

On March 15, 2013, Mayor Bloomberg and Klaus Kleinfeld were joined by NYC’s Department of Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty, Times Square Alliance President Tim Tompkins, and BigBelly Solar CEO Jim Norrod to unveil the first of the BigBelly stations during a press conference and ribbon cutting ceremony in Times Square.

“The U.S. lags behind the rest of the world on recycling rates. We believe that once people know that aluminum is infinitely recyclable and that by recycling, they are saving massive amounts of energy and money, they recycle more,” says Paula Davis, President of Alcoa Foundation. “There is no better place to run an awareness campaign than Times Square, the heart of New York City, where millions of people come every year. Alcoa and Alcoa Foundation’s goal is encourage visitors to making recycling second nature.”

This program is part of Alcoa Foundation’s 2012 Clinton Global Initiative commitment to put $2 million towards innovative recycling programs in the U.S. to help reach the aluminum industry’s goal of 75% beverage can recycling rate from our current rate of 53%.
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Alcoa Foundation and Keep America Beautiful Help Students Recycle

Foundation Provides More Than 11,500 Recycling Bins for Campus Initiatives

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Alcoa Foundation is partnering with Keep America Beautiful and the College & University Recycling Coalition to provide more than 11,500 recycling bins to 35 colleges and universities throughout the United States. These recycling bins will help to expand on-campus recycling programs and raise awareness about the environmental impact of recycling.

The Alcoa Foundation Recycling Bin Grant Program was created to help schools boost their recycling results during the eight-week RecycleMania tournament, and strengthen their recycling efforts by reaching more than 300,000 students, staff, faculty, and campus visitors throughout the year. RecycleMania, which concludes on March 31, is a competition that aims to change behavior about recycling and raise awareness about waste reduction programs on college campuses.

“We’re proud to partner with Keep America Beautiful and the College & University Recycling Coalition to provide more than 11,500 recycling bins to college and university campuses,” said Paula Davis, President, Alcoa Foundation. “The recycling bin grant program reinforces Alcoa and Alcoa Foundation’s commitment to increasing recycling rates in the U.S. to 75 percent by 2015.”

“Alcoa Foundation has been a true leader in advancing recycling nationwide through its recycling bin grant and other programs,” said Matthew M. McKenna, President and CEO, Keep America Beautiful. “Its involvement with RecycleMania and the College and University Recycling Coalition’s webinar series has helped to increase recycling on campuses and instill a recycling ethic that college students will carry with them the rest of their lives.”

The grantees will each receive between 100 and 1,500 recycling bins in different on-campus settings – student housing and academic buildings, athletic facilities, administrative offices and in outdoor public spaces. This year’s variety of recycling bins has enabled selected schools to install additional recycling infrastructure where they need it most in an effort to divert recyclables from the waste stream.

The Alcoa Foundation Recycling Bin Grant Program recipients are:

• Arizona State University (AZ)
• Baylor College of Medicine (TX)
• Boston College (MA)
• Bridgewater College (VA)
• Carnegie Mellon University (PA)
• Clarkson University (NY)
• College of Charleston (SC)
• Cuyahoga Community College (OH)
• DePauw University (IN)
• East Tennessee State University (TN)
• Eastern Illinois University (IL)
• Fontbonne University (MO)
• Franklin College (IN)
• Glendale Community College (AZ)
• Indiana State University (IN)
• Ivy Tech Community College, Wabash Valley (IN)
• Kansas State University (KS)
• Kent State University (OH)
• Keystone College (PA)
• Lewis and Clark Community College (IL)
• Michigan State University (MI)
• Northern Illinois University (IL)
• Northwest Missouri State University (MO)
• Saint Louis University (MO)
• Southern Illinois University Carbondale (IL)
• Spelman College (GA)
• Stark State College (OH)
• The University of Akron (OH)
• The University of Toledo (OH)
• University of Georgia (GA)
• University of Illinois - Chicago (IL)
• University of Missouri - Kansas City (MO)
• University of Tennessee (TN)
• University of Texas - Austin (TX)
• Western Carolina University (NC)

Additionally, the College & University Recycling Coalition (CURC), in partnership with Keep America Beautiful (KAB) and the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), has announced the schedule for its 2013 series of educational webinars, sponsored by Alcoa Foundation. CURC webinars feature recognized collegiate and industry recycling experts covering a range of topics related to sustainable materials management. All webinars are free to registered participants. For a complete schedule of webinars, go to curc3r.org.

About Alcoa Foundation
Alcoa Foundation is one of the largest corporate foundations in the U.S., with assets of approximately US$460 million. Founded 60 years ago, Alcoa Foundation has invested more than US$570 million since 1952. In 2012, Alcoa Foundation contributed more than US$21 million to nonprofit organizations throughout the world, building innovative partnerships to improve the environment and educate tomorrow’s leaders for careers in manufacturing and engineering. The work of Alcoa Foundation is further enhanced by Alcoa’s thousands of employee volunteers who share their talents and time to make a difference in the communities where Alcoa operates. Through the Company’s signature Month of Service program, in 2012, a record 60 percent of Alcoa employees took part in more than 1,050 events across 24 countries, benefiting more than 450,000 people and 2,050 nonprofit organizations. For more information, visit www.alcoafoundation.com and follow @AlcoaFoundation on Twitter.

About Keep America Beautiful
Keep America Beautiful is the nation’s leading nonprofit that brings people together to build and sustain vibrant communities. With a network of more than 1,200 affiliate and participating organizations including state recycling organizations, we work with millions of volunteers to take action in their communities. Keep America Beautiful offers solutions that create clean, beautiful public places, reduce waste and increase recycling, generate positive impact on local economies and inspire generations of environmental stewards. Through our programs and public-private partnerships, we engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community’s environment. For more information, visit kab.org.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced this week that the city was expanding its residential recycling program to include 130,000 more households this March and April. The additional households served by the Windy City's recycling program are part of a greater expansion of 340,000 households, to be completed later this year.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors and Novelis, the giant aluminum producer, have decided to end the Cash for Cans City Recycling Challenge. The joint aluminum can collection project issued about $450,000 in contest prizes over nearly a decade. The two parties cited waning interest in the contest among local governments over the past three years, due in part to budget constraints at many cities.

The Beer Store, the primary alcohol retailer in Ontario that also collects the packaging for beer and spirits, has launched a plot project where consumers can drop off electronics, batteries and paint. Called "Recycling Plus," the program will debut in Ontario's west end and is being done in cooperation with Stewardship Ontario through its Orange Drop Program and Sims Recycling Solutions Canada will handle the recycling.

In Oregon, lawmakers are considering a measure that would allow winemakers to fill up reusable containers that customers bring in or buy, not unlike what the state currently allows with microbrews, reports The Oregonian. "It puts us at the leading edge of sustainability," Dan Jarman, a lobbyist for the Oregon Winegrowers Association, said of the idea, citing how it could cut down on the need to haul around glass.

PGA, Inc. , a processor of recycled plastics, will relocate its operations to an existing facility in White Haven, Pennsylvania, creating 28 jobs. The company will invest more than $600,000 in land and building acquisitions and development, building renovations, equipment purchases and employee training.

The U.S. Composting Council has launched a new website, Buy-compost.com, that's meant to help consumers purchase compost from members of the trade organization. It also will answer purchasing questions and serves as a portal for community gardens looking for compost donations.

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RecycleMania is back in action as college campuses compete to see who can reduce, reuse and recycle the most on-campus waste. For an eight-week period, beginning today and running alongside the NCAA basketball tournament, colleges and universities take part in an exciting competition that increases recycling participation by students and staff, while raising awareness about waste reduction programs on campuses.

RecycleMania will run through March 30, 2013, with the involvement of 523 schools, more than 4.4 million students, and nearly 1 million faculty and staff participating in 47 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. New York has the best representation with 38 colleges participating, followed by Texas and Pennsylvania. The list of institutions taking part is diverse, ranging from Tulane University to Washington State University to Harrisburg Area Community College in Pennsylvania.

Schools compete in 11 categories to see which can recycle the most paper, cardboard, cans and bottles, and food waste on a per capita basis; which can produce the least amount of waste; and which recycles the largest percentage of their overall waste stream. In one of two new categories – Game Day: Basketball – schools are challenged to increase their recycling and reduce waste generation at a single home basketball game. A second new category targeting film plastics will call attention to the recyclability of items such as dry cleaning bags, shrink wrap and shopping bags.

Colleges and universities choose which categories to participate in and have flexibility to compete in the formal rankings or go at their own pace in a less formal “Benchmark” division. Each week schools record how much was recycled or thrown out and the standings are regularly updated.

“RecycleMania’s power comes from the way it taps school spirit to motivate students who may not react to a traditional environmental message,” according to Bill Rudy, recycling manager at Brigham Young University and President of RecycleMania, Inc.

“Promoting recycling and waste reduction to college students is an important step to building and sustaining vibrant communities, both on campuses and beyond,” said Keep America Beautiful President & CEO Matt McKenna. “Our organization is thrilled to sponsor and administer the RecycleMania program as part of our effort to engage the future generation of environmental stewards.” CONTACT Alec Cooley Tel: 843.278.7686 Email: acooley@kab.org Web site: http://recyclemania.org The competition is made possible with the sponsorship support of the Alcoa Foundation, the American Forest & Paper Association, The Coca-Cola Company and SCA.

“Alcoa Foundation is proud to sponsor RecycleMania and partner with Keep America Beautiful to educate, empower and motivate Millennials to reduce and recycle waste,” said Paula Davis, president, Alcoa Foundation. “Alcoa is committed to increasing U.S. recycling rates to 75 percent by 2015, and colleges and universities present enormous opportunities to advance this goal.”

“Programs like RecycleMania teach and motivate people to recycle and to measure the results of their efforts,” said American Forest & Paper Association President and CEO Donna Harman. “The paper industry has achieved noteworthy recovery goals for years, but we cannot claim sole responsibility for these results; it is thanks to the millions of individuals who make the choice to recycle every day. Our industry has pledged to exceed 70 percent recovery of our products for recycling by 2020, and initiatives like RecycleMania will help us get there.”

“All of us can help reduce waste. Discovering ways that you can make recycling a habit is the best way for us to increase recycling rates,” said Bruce Karas, vice president of environment and sustainability at Coca-Cola Refreshments. “At Coca-Cola, we support recycling programs that drive awareness and participation. RecycleMania is a friendly competition that encourages college students to recycle more, which we hope will turn into habits that continue throughout their lives.”

“For SCA, our sustainability commitment encompasses everything we do. It drives the value added solutions we create for customers, our daily operations and the responsible management of our forest in Sweden. Here in North America we use recycled materials to make many of our products, with a focus on efficiency and using environmentally sound processes,” said Joseph Russo, vice president, sales & marketing, SCA’s Away From Home Professional Hygiene business in North America. “Our ongoing participation in RecycleMania is one of the many ways SCA inspires others to join us in our sustainability commitment and establish lifelong recycling habits. We’re looking forward to supporting another year of spirited competition between hundreds of universities and colleges across the country.”

In 2012, 92 million pounds of recyclables and organic materials were recovered, which prevented the release of nearly 150,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2E). This reduction in greenhouse gases is comparable to the annual emissions from more than 25,800 passenger cars; electricity use of more than nearly 16,400 homes; or the burning of nearly 705 railcars’ worth of coal.

A complete list of participants can be found at http://recyclemaniacs.org/. Contact information for specific campuses is available to news media by calling (843) 278-7686 or emailing helpline@recyclemania.org.