• iStock_000053483596_Full-1000x343 Ag to WRP | Waste Reduction Partners
    WRP engineers uncover 7-15% in energy cost savings through assessments.
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    Senior advisors share knowledge on zero waste to landfill strategies.
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    Benchmarking building energy performance helps optimize operations and drive investments.
  • food_waste_photo_edit2 Ag to WRP | Waste Reduction Partners
    No-cost food waste reduction assessments
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What's New

  • No-Cost Food Waste Reduction Assessments +

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  • NC Purchasing Toolkit (Draft) +

    A guide to help North Carolina public and private purchasing agents buy recycled content products. Read More
  • USDA Small Business Energy Assessments +

    Rural small businesses and farms can request an energy efficiency assessment. Read More
  • Triangle Water Assessments +

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Welcome to Waste Reduction Partners

Waste Reduction Partners helps organizations meet environmental, energy and carbon management goals through waste reduction, water and energy efficiency and renewable strategies that save money.  The WRP team conducts on-site assessments, providing specific improvement recommendations with cost/benefit analysis utilizing a team of highly-experienced engineers, scientists and staff,

Initiate an Assessment

 

WRP technical assistance and consulting services are provided at no cost to our clients, funded by government-sponsored grants, utility contracts, and private contributions. These services are non-regulatory, delivered with quick turn-around and provided to businesses and institutions located in North Carolina. Click to Initiate an Assessment    

 

 

  • Waste Reduction Partners has recommended more than $108 million annual savings in energy efficiency strategies to over 1,000 businesses in NC,
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  • Waste Reduction Partners has helped clients save over 1.5 billion gallons per year of water, which is an annual savings of over $15 million.
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  • Since 2000, WRP has helped clients find ways to reduce or recycle over 267,000 tons of solid waste headed to landfills and save over $16 million.
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  • WRP facilitates E3 services to enterprises in North Carolina with process intensive businesses or services. Funded by the EPA.
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Engage With WRP

Take advantage of the Waste Reduction Partners’ no-cost services to improve your operations and economic competitiveness.  Learn more about our dynamic team of retired and senior professionals .  Consider volunteering!

 Initiate an Assessment

WRP technical assistance is provided at no cost to our clients, funded by government-sponsored grants, contracts, and private contributions. North Carolina only. Click to Initiate an Assessment

 Our Team

Waste Reduction Partners is uniquely staffed with retired engineers, scientists, and staff who share their expertise with businesses and communities across North Carolina. More>

Volunteer

Waste Reduction Partners is actively searching for part-time, retired engineers and scientists with industrial or facilities management experience to staff our expanding program. More>

This is the Ag Plastics home page on WRP

Global Recycling

Recycling markets are experiencing historic lows in the values associated with their commodity pricing. This has to do with decreasing demand from overseas markets which claim that the recyclables coming from the US are too contaminated. Reduced global demand is affecting all recyclables: residential, industrial, commercial and agricultural. However, ag plastics have always been low in the ranks of desired materials for recyclers because of their dirt content, and now that there are new global market pressures for better quality, things are even harder.

The markets will improve, but we are not able to predict when that will happen.

If you have an established recycling program already, that means that your organization has worked hard to invest in recycling training, education and infrastructure in pursuing sustainability goals and resource efficiency objectives. When recycling commodity markets rebound and organizations with the vision to maintain a commitment to their recycling programs will fare better in the long run. We encourage you to continue your recycling efforts 

If you haven't begun your program yet, it may be best to wait until the market conditions change. WRP encourages you to contact us for assistance, so that we can keep you posted about the changing conditions.

When recycling opportunities do exist, be sure to follow the best practices we have developed to minimize contamination for your ag plastics and nurture your relationship with your recycler.

Recycling Pesticide Containers

 The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services manage a website that serves as a clearinghouse for information about pesticide container recycling.

The following web site has details for each county.

            ncagr.gov/SPCAP/pesticides/recycle.htm

The following web site has a full list of pesticide recycling contacts.

            ncagr.gov/SPCAP/pesticides/documents/pesticidecontainerrecyclingcontacts.pdf

The Ag Container Recycling Council (ACRC) supports USAg Recycling - usagrecycling.com. They offer a FREE service specializing in recycling plastic agricultural containers. Details can be found on:

 

The NC State contact is Renee Woody -  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services
Structural Pest Control & Pesticides Division
2109 Blue Ridge Rd.
Raleigh, NC 27607
Tel: 919-733-3556

Plastic Waste

Great. You are concerned that you use too much plastic in an industry that would like a greener image that could help market your produce. Many growers try to reuse their plastic waste, but this is not always possible. The next option is to find a recycler who can shred it and sell it to a processor to make new plastic items such as nursery containers, drip tape, decking, trash bags and more. If you do recycle, not only will you help your own business by not having to pay tipping fees, clean up your yard to make it more efficient and have a greener business, but you will also help create jobs in North Carolina.

Key points for recycling your plastic:

1. Find a recycler on the list but talk to them first for advice. They want your business.

2. Decrease your haulage costs by using a local recycler.

3. Maximixe the weight on the truck - the recycler can advise you on this.

4. Nurture your relationship with the recycler.

 

 Maximize the weight on the truck 

  • Stack on pallets, stretch wrap and pack tightly.
  • Loose pots should be nested, if possible.
  • Think hard if it’s worth sorting by plastic type.

Decrease your haulage costs by using a local recycler or broker

  • Talk with the recycler first.
  • Email pictures of your material.
  • Work out how much material you have, how often and the time of year.
  • Offer to send samples.
  • Invite the recycler to come and visit your business.
  • Persevere – the markets for ag plastics are expanding.

Nurture your relationship with the recycler

  • If you do a good job preparing the material that is easiest for the recycler, then you might be able to negotiate payment for the material in some cases. It's just good business!

Once you have cleared out the backlog of material, then what?

  • Plan how to lay out the yard to collect the material for recycling.
  • Each time you touch the material you lose money!
  • When you have finished with the plastic, store it in a manner ready for the recycler. Then don't touch it again until it is loaded onto the recycler's truck.

 

Register For Updated Information

WRP News

  • icon Selee - WRP Effort -Lean & Green Training
  • icon WRP Recognized for Role in Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Program
  • icon WOI Improves Manufacturing Competitiveness through “Lean & Green”
  • Energy Audits Offer Competitive Edge
Ten Selee staff members participated in a Lean & Green Workshop led by Waste Reduction Partners. Read More
On May 14, 2015, the Waste Reduction Partners team was recognized for its “exemplary work and dedication assisting North Carolina facilities” as part of a Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Project conducted by the Air Quality Division of the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Read More
Through a tightly-focused and intensive program facilitated by Waste Reduction Partners, Watauga Opportunities, Incorporated, (WOI) improved productivity at a major medical production line by 25% and made changes to achieve an immediate reduction in energy costs. Read More
Small businesses, from convenience stores to machine shops, can discover ways to reduce their electric bills with a USDA - sponsored energy audit. Waste Reduction Partners’ team of energy professionals can help you achieve significant energy cost savings, often by implementing no-cost/low-cost energy saving recommendations. Read More

Latest WRP Resources

  • 15001 Ready! A Tool to Pursue an Energy Management System +

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  • Upgrading Linear Fluorescent Fixtures to LED +

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  • Sustainability for North Carolina Breweries +

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  • WRP Digital Brochure +

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  • EPA’s Portfolio Manager: Understanding Building Energy Use Benchmarks +

    Read More
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What Our Clients Say

  • Many thanks to you and your staff for the guidance we received through Waste Reduction Partners and specifically the Energy Audit your organization provided. We are most appreciative of the professionalism displayed and expert assistance provided by your team. Based upon my positive experience, I would wholeheartedly encourage other small businesses to strongly conisder utilizing this and other services offered by Waste Reduction Partners. | Roger Cargo | Global Textile Alliance | Reidsville, NC
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