February's Member Spotlight Presentation: Foam Cycle & SustainAbility

With presenters Lou Troiano & Reenee Casapulla from Foam Cycle and Rachel from SustainAbility

Polystyrene (PS) food service and packaging foam are among the most plentiful, yet least recycled plastics in our current municipal waste streams. This presentation by Foam Cycle will explore the impact of including foam recycling programs at municipal recycling drop-off centers, across the country. In Colorado, Foam Cycle partnered with SustainAbility to install a foam recycling program at their drop-off center in the Denver Metro area, where SA was recycling foam at a great “cost” to both the agency, and the environment. With assistance from NextCycle Colorado and an RREO grant, SA’s diverse work force has collected and processed over 18,000 pounds (9 tons) of foam, avoiding trucking costs, and realized additional revenue by selling the valuable material to a local market.

The talk will explore how foam recycling can contribute to the circular economy of local communities, and public-private partnerships can make an impact in providing access to recycling a valuable and reusable material, all by recycling foam one-piece-at-a-time.