Forest Products

Introducing the New Forest Products Working Group

We are excited to announce that the new Forest Products Working Group has officially launched! The working group, which includes cross-industry representation of leading companies committed to addressing unmet needs in the forest products sector, will focus on developing practical tools and resources to address challenges and opportunities around forest resources. The eight founding members today include Avery Dennison Corporation, Avon Products, Inc., Bank of America, Catalyst Paper, Domtar, HAVI Global Solutions, Sappi Fine Paper North America, and Staples. The launch of the working group has been covered in various media outlets, including Sustainable Life Media, Environmental Leader, and Green Retail Decisions. Founding members convened for the first time last week to begin laying the groundwork and direction of the working group, and the next in-person meeting for the group is scheduled for December 14 in Boston. Please contact us with any inquiries related to the upcoming meeting or if you’d like more information about the Forest Products Working Group.

Packaging

Packaging Recovery Labeling System: Pilot Participants Announced

Today we publically announced details of next year’s national pilot of the new Packaging Recovery Label System, a voluntary label developed by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition to communicate to consumers how to recycle a package after its use. Five leading companies have agreed to implement the label on select packaging starting in 2012: ConAgra Foods, Costco Wholesale, Microsoft, REI, and Seventh Generation. As part of this project, we recently launched the www.how2recycle.info website to provide information about the new label and resources on local recycling availability. If you’d like more information about this effort, please visit our website or contact Anne Bedarf.

In conjunction with the announcement of the pilot participants, we also released a new report, Labeling for Package Recovery, which details challenges with current packaging labels, looks at two international labeling systems, and considers how an effective labeling scheme could address shortcomings of the U.S. recycling and recovery system. The report is now available for free download here.

Chemicals

GreenBlue Welcomes James Ewell as Chemicals Director

James Ewell has joined GreenBlue as the Director of the newly expanded GreenBlue Chemicals program. James was a member of the original team that founded GreenBlue, so we are delighted to welcome him back to the organization. James has over 15 years of experience working with leading companies on sustainability strategies. He was previously the Director of Consulting and Senior Project Manager for McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC), where he developed and implemented criteria for designing and manufacturing sustainable products. Under James’ leadership, the new GreenBlue Chemicals program will build on the success of CleanGredients to develop more tools and resources to identify and promote safer chemicals as an essential step in the design and production of more sustainable products. We look forward to introducing James to supporters of our Chemicals program over the coming months.

Packaging

Updated LCA Data Sets in COMPASS

COMPASS is a life cycle based online software tool for packaging designers and engineers to assess and compare the human and environmental impacts of different packaging designs. We are excited to announce that updated data sets for the United States, the European Union, and Canada are now available. The update includes background data for all materials and processes currently found in the tool. End of life profiles were also updated with current recovery and disposal rates for Europe and United States. In addition, new data were added for recycled HDPE and recycled PET. This is the first major update to COMPASS data since the release of version 2.0 last year, and we anticipate another data release by the end of 2011. Please contact Minal Mistry with any questions about COMPASS or to inquire about a subscription.

Packaging

GreenBlue Staff Participate in Kids' Science Challenge

The Kids’ Science Challenge is a nationwide competition for 3rd-6th graders to participate in hands-on learning about science and engineering. Partially funded by the National Science Foundation, students are presented with three topics each school year and they are invited to submit experiments or prototypes. The winning students visit a team of scientists for a day to make their experiment or prototype come to life. For the 2011-2012 school year, one of the three topics is a zero waste challenge, which asks kids to invent a package that never ends up in a landfill. Our Sustainable Packaging Coalition staff, as well as several member companies, offered their expertise to help develop the topic with the challenge organizers. Please see the Kids' Science Challenge website or download the brochure for more information, and please help spread the word to any 3rd-6th graders that may be interested!