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The Solid Waste Association of North America (“SWANA”) announced a technical policy citing the need for entities to measure recycling progress and encourage the development of a consistent methodology.
The document is cited as:
T-6.4 SWANA Technical Policy (“Policy”)
SWANA describes itself as:
. . . an organization of more than 10,000 public and private sector professionals committed to advancing solid waste management to resource management through their shared emphasis on education, advocacy, and research. . .
The Policy states by way of introduction that:
. . . SWANA policy supports the use of transparent and consistent methods to measure tons of materials recycled as a part of an integrated solid waste management system. From a historical and geographic perspective, SWANA recognizes that recycling has been measured using various approaches across North America. The objectives of this policy are to (1) encourage entities that measure recycling to disclose and provide transparency regarding the numbers and methods utilized to calculate recycled tons; and (2) recommend a consistent methodology be used for measuring recycling across organizations, program types and specific materials.
The organization states that its position on this issue includes:
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Development of a formalized approach to measuring and communicating recycling measurements as part of a sustainable materials management program
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Such approach undertaken within an integrated solid waste management system
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A focus on measuring the amount and type of materials recycled (e.g. tons)
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Once the material being recycled is quantified, recognition there are multiple methods that can be applied to evaluate recycling
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No specific approach for determining methods or benefits is assumed
A copy of the Policy can be found here.
