HOST COMMITTEE LAUNCHES RECYCLING PROGRAM WITH WASTE MANAGEMENT AND COCA-COLA FOR 2008 REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION
MINNEAPOLIS SAINT PAUL, MINN. (August 6, 2008) - Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee officials joined representatives from Waste Management, Inc. and Coca-Cola Recycling LLC at the Xcel Energy Center today to announce a first-of-its-kind recycling program that will take place during the 2008 Republican National Convention, to be held Sept. 1-4. In addition, the Committee will officially name Waste Management and Coca-Cola Recycling as the Official Recycling Providers of the 2008 Republican National Convention.
The “closed-loop” recycling program will utilize a system where all of the recyclable material recovered at the Xcel Energy Center and St. Paul RiverCentre during the convention will be recycled in the Minneapolis Saint Paul Area. Recycling bins and signage will be located throughout the convention. Waste Management will collect all waste and recyclable material during the convention and take it to its facility in Minneapolis where all of the recyclable material will be sorted and baled. The polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles and aluminum cans will then be shipped back to the Coca-Cola bottling plant in Eagan, Minn., and ultimately processed by Coca-Cola into new bottles and cans. Both convention facilities sell the majority of beverages in plastic bottles. Waste Management will also be recycling all of the paper and cardboard recovered at the event.
“We are thrilled that this convention has prompted new and innovative programs among our Official Recycling Providers, Waste Management and Coca-Cola,” said Cynthia Lesher, president for the Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee. “As part of our efforts to make this convention as eco-friendly as possible, we are working with them to keep a large portion of the recycled material right here in the state.”
“The 2008 Republican National Convention has made it a priority to implement numerous conscientious environmentally friendly initiatives,” said 2008 Republican National Convention President and CEO Maria Cino. “We are pleased that Coca-Cola and Waste Management have joined our efforts to be as environmentally friendly a convention as possible.”
There will be nearly 300 stations with co-branded event recycling bins and waste containers throughout the Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre for convention attendees to dispose of their waste and recyclables. All recycling containers will be “single stream,” meaning any recyclable material – aluminum, paper, plastic, or glass – can be deposited in the container.
“Waste Management wanted to make it as easy as possible for people to recycle properly while attending the convention,” said Julie Ketchum, government affairs director for Waste Management, Inc. “By using co-branded containers Waste Management and Coca-Cola have made it simple for convention attendees to do their part for the environment.”
“By creating opportunities to easily recycle, Coca-Cola Recycling can help to ensure that we capture the packaging for all of the beverages consumed at the 2008 Republican National Convention,” said John Burgess, president and chief executive officer, Coca-Cola Recycling. “Our expertise will not only allow us to provide the infrastructure to divert most of the materials collected at the Xcel Energy Center and Saint Paul RiverCentre from local landfills, but the recycling bins, energy-efficient coolers and hybrid electric trucks that CCE will use throughout the venues will stay in Minnesota, providing a sustainable and long-term solution to help keep Minneapolis Saint Paul green long after the Convention is finished.”
Waste Management is the largest recycler in Minnesota, recycling nearly 250,000 tons of material at its Minneapolis facility, and is also the largest recycler in the nation, recycling nearly 8 million tons of recyclable commodities a year. By 2020, the company hopes to triple the amount of recyclable material it processes in a given year.
In addition to the recycling program with Waste Management and Coca-Cola, the Host Committee and the Committee on Arrangements have made great efforts to be eco-conscious in the planning and execution of the convention. Efforts include utilizing hybrid vehicles; providing information and applications online versus in print for volunteers, delegates and media; printing materials on recycled paper or other alternative types of material including producing the 45,000 GOParty Cards for delegates and media on a bio-plastic material derived entirely from plants; conducting volunteer training virtually; and creating an office environment for convention planners that is equipped with recycled furniture, carpet and office supplies. In addition, 80 percent of employees live within walking distance to the offices.
About The Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee
The Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee is a non-partisan, 501c3 nonprofit charged with promoting the commerce, image and prestige of Minneapolis, Saint Paul and the entire region in preparation for the 2008 Republican National Convention. The Host Committee is made up of community leaders who are committed to educating people and businesses to come to Minnesota to work, live, play, visit and invest. For more information, visit www.msp2008.com.
About Waste Management, Inc.
Waste Management is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management and environmental services in North America. Waste Management’s more than 50,000 employees company-wide serve 21 million municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers through a network of 413 collection operations, 370 transfer stations, 283 active landfill disposal sites, 17 waste-to-energy plants, 131 recycling plants and 100 beneficial-use landfill gas projects.
Combined with its wholly owned subsidiary WM Recycle America (WMRA), Waste Management is North America’s largest recycler handling nearly 8 million tons of commodities each year, saving more than 41 million trees and enough energy to power 1.6 million households.
About Coca-Cola Recycling LLC
Based in Atlanta, Coca-Cola Recycling is dedicated to recovering and recycling packaging materials used in North America – including polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, aluminum, cardboard and plastic film. Coca-Cola Recycling is working to recover and recycle the equivalent of 100 percent of the packaging produced by the Coca-Cola system in the United States. Founded in 2007, Coca-Cola Recycling is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CCE, the world's largest marketer, distributor, and producer of bottle and can liquid nonalcoholic refreshment. CCE sells approximately 80 percent of The Coca-Cola Company's bottle and can volume in North America and is the sole licensed bottler for products of The Coca-Cola Company in Belgium, continental France, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, and the Netherlands
