Pointing to the significant role that the federal government has played in facilitating recycling's growth, particularly by the use of its purchasing power to build market demand for recycled content products, the NRC has written to Mr Bush recommending he acts in support of recycling.
Founded in 1978, the National Recycling Coalition, Inc. (NRC) is a non-profit organisation which aims to represent “all the diverse interests committed to the common goal of maximizing recycling to achieve the benefits of resource conservation, solid waste reduction, environmental protection, energy conservation and social and economic development.”
The NRC has 4,500 members which include recycling and environmental organisations; businesses; federal, state and local governments; and individuals.
The full text of the letter, dated December 21 2000, is:
Dear President-elect Bush:
Congratulations on your election! On behalf of the Board of Directors and the 5,500 members of the National Recycling Coalition, I am writing to urge you to take early steps in your administration to strengthen the executive branch’s commitment to recycling that began with your father in 1991. Recycling not only contributes significantly to the conservation of energy and natural resources, but it is an engine of economic growth.
Over the years, the federal government has played an important role in facilitating recycling’s growth. Specifically, executive orders promulgated by the last two presidents were significant in leveraging the purchasing power of the federal government to establish that recycled content products can compete on performance, price and availability with virgin content products.
We are requesting that you act to strengthen the executive branch’s actions in support of recycling by building on the first Bush administration’s Executive Order 12780 and the Clinton Executive Orders 12873 and 13101. Specifically, we are requesting that you act to:
– direct all federal agencies to expand their purchasing of recycled content and environmentally preferable products as well as their efforts to reduce and recycle the waste they generate, and hold the agencies publicly accountable for their performance under such a directive;
– preserve the position of Federal Environmental Executive to provide guidance and co-ordination to the agencies and to report on their performance;
– expand the mission of the Federal Environmental Executive to bring much needed co-ordination to and strategic deployment of the broad array of federal programs aimed at business and technology development for the benefit of recycling enterprises;
– renew the Environmental Protection Agency’s support of recycling market development by restoring funding to its Jobs through Recycling Program;
– house the Federal Environmental Executive in the Office of Management and Budget to provide the position with the leverage needed to ensure federal agency compliance with this directive;
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