Rhode Island becomes first state to adopt Recycle Across America® standardized labels, honored at Hollywood event

RI Resource Recovery kicks off initiative with free standardized labels for
recycling bins for all RI public schools

Contact:
Krystal Noiseux | Education and Outreach Manager
401-339-4046
knoiseux@rirrc.org

JOHNSTON, RI (April 21, 2016)– Just in time for Earth Day 2016, Rhode Island
Resource Recovery Corporation (RIRRC) announced that Rhode Island will be the first
state in the nation to adopt standardized recycling bin labels from Recycle Across
America (RAA). RAA is a non-profit
organization that has created the first-ever standardized society wide labels for
recycling bins in the U.S. RIRRC partnered with RAA to develop a society-wide
standardized label specifically for RI. The Ocean State joins major U.S. brands that
have already adopted the labels such as NBC Universal, Bank of America, and Whole
Foods.

“We are thrilled to have Rhode Island as our first state, and we commend RIRRC for
its leadership,” said Mitch Hedlund, Executive Director of Recycle Across America.
“Recycling is the number one thing society can do to help the environment, the
economy, sustainable manufacturing and to help protect the oceans, but only when
people recycle right.” RAA is hoping to solve the problem of consumer confusion at
the recycling bin by helping to make recycling signage look the same across the U.S.
“We know how important it is to make all stop signs octagonal and red. We need to
apply this same principle to the standardization of recycling bins,” remarked
Hedlund.

To date, more than one million RAA standardized labels are displayed on bins
throughout the U.S. They have been proven to increase recycling levels between
50-100%, while significantly reducing contamination with trash—a challenge RI has
been facing in recent years. The RI
labels mimic the look of RAA’s standard mixed recycling
labels, but feature those
items recyclable in RI’s program. RAA revealed the standardized labels today and
celebrated Rhode Island as the first state at a Hollywood
launch of their
national, star-studded, “Let’s Recycle Right” PSA campaign. Celebrities who have
already joined the campaign include Kristen Bell, Anthony Mackie, Angie Harmon,
Gabrielle Reece, Alanis Morissette, and many others.

“The new RI labels will provide the most basic, bare bones information that we need
Rhode Islanders to have in order to produce good quality recycling,” says Krystal
Noiseux, RIRRC’s Education and Outreach Manager. “They don’t drill down into every
detail you need to be a perfect recycler, rather they focus on using pictures, and
providing only the essential rules that anyone can easily follow, starting in
elementary school.”

School is precisely where the initiative will begin. RIRRC is kicking off things
immediately by distributing free standardized labels to every public school in Rhode
Island. Beginning in July, RIRRC will also provide free labels for recycling bins to
every state agency, and to municipalities for use in municipal buildings and other
public spaces. Private businesses and institutions, including private schools, will
also have access to free labels at that time, if they pledge to fully participate in
RI’s recycling program.

“Through such initiatives as the Green Ribbon Schools program and through our
school-construction regulations that require dedicated space within new school
buildings for recycling, Rhode Island schools have been environmental leaders,”
remarked Ken Wagner, Rhode Island Education Commissioner. “Many Rhode Island
educators work with their students on a variety of recycling projects to help their
schools and their communities. Our students and educators are proud to lead the way
toward recycling right.”

As the standardized labels make their way onto bins across the state, RIRRC hopes
seeing them repeatedly will help to reinforce the most essential recycling rules,
and therefore, good recycling habits. “We have a vision,” says Noiseux, “of a day
where every child growing up in Rhode Island sees the same, basic, consistent
recycling message on bins across Rhode Island—at home, at school, at the park, at
the mall, and eventually, at work.”

For more information, or to get labels for your public school now, contact
knoiseux@rirrc.org.

About Recycle Across America
Recycle Across America (RAA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which has
developed the first and only society-wide standardized labeling system for recycling
bins to help eliminate the public confusion surrounding recycling and to improve the
economics of closed loop manufacturing. RAA and the standardized labels have been
identified as a world-changing solution by Ashoka Global Innovators for the Public
and are being referred to as “one of the most important environmental fixes taking
root today.” For more information about RAA’s standardized label initiative or its
celebrity-led ‘Let’s Recycle Right’ campaign, visit
www.recycleacrossamerica.org.

About Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation
Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation is the quasi-state environmental agency
dedicated to providing the public with environmentally sound programs and facilities
to manage waste. The agency helps fund and promote the state’s recycling program,
and owns and operates the Materials Recycling Facility and Central Landfill in
Johnston.