YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP, Michigan
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November 4, 2022
(press release)
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Recycling upgrades made possible through partnerships spearheaded by The Recycling Partnership, America’s leading beverage companies, and the Michigan Soft Drink Association The Recycling Partnership announced Ypsilanti Township, Michigan, has been selected to receive an investment to expand residential recycling access and transform the current community recycling program from an opt-in system to universal distribution for more than 15,000 households. As part of the investment, free, 96-gallon recycling carts will be provided to all eligible residents of Ypsilanti Township – doubling the existing household access points for its curbside recycling service. The investment is part of the Every Bottle Back initiative, a beverage industry-led effort to reduce the industry’s plastic footprint and to create a cleaner environment, in collaboration with The Recycling Partnership and the Michigan Soft Drink Association. “Through this initiative, Ypsilanti Township will be able to standardize recycling collection and ensure equity in the program with every eligible household having a cart,” said Cassandra Ford, Community Program Manager at The Recycling Partnership. “Residents will be able to recycle more and increase the capture of valuable recyclables needed to make new products and packaging.” “American Beverage is pleased to announce an investment in Ypsilanti Township, news which will continue the growth of our Every Bottle Back initiative in the great state of Michigan,” said Katherine Lugar, president and CEO of American Beverage Association. “It is our hope that these recycling infrastructure improvements and community partnerships will continue to increase overall recycling rates in the state, helping to keep more plastic out of the environment and creating an even cleaner community for Ypsilanti Township, its residents and businesses.” “Michigan’s soft drink producers and distributors take pride in leading our state’s sustainability efforts,” said Derek Bajema, president and CEO of Michigan Soft Drink Association. “We’re committed to improving overall recycling rates through comprehensive, community-based initiatives. As the eighth community to receive an Every Bottle Back investment in our state, Michigan’s beverage industry’s positive impact continues to be realized through these valuable partnerships, helping us reach our ultimate goal to keep our state beautiful.” Ypsilanti Township will receive $243,000 from American Beverage Association through The Recycling Partnership which benefits more than 50,000 Ypsilanti Township residents and, over the next decade, is expected to bring more than 40 million pounds of new recyclables into the recycling stream, including more than 1.5 million pounds of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and more than 607,000 pounds of aluminum. The grant also includes over $15,000 for community education and outreach. Ypsilanti Township is the latest in more than two dozen initial projects the beverage industry has committed to under Every Bottle Back. Previous investments in Michigan total more than one million dollars from Every Bottle Back investments and over six million in community and state matching funds. These investments include collaborations in Ann Arbor, Trenton and Marquette County in Ishpeming Township, Marquette Township, Negaunee Township, Michigamme Township and Marquette City. Launched in 2019 by American Beverage, the Every Bottle Back initiative is an integrated and comprehensive partnership featuring The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo that aims to improve the collection of the beverage industry’s plastic beverage bottles, which are designed to be 100 percent recyclable. To date, Every Bottle Back investments total more than $19 million in committed funding and are projected to yield 719 million more pounds of PET over 10 years. About The Recycling Partnership: At The Recycling Partnership, we are solving for circularity. We mobilize people, data, and solutions across the value chain to unlock the environmental and economic benefits of recycling and a circular economy. We work on the ground with thousands of communities to transform underperforming recycling programs; we partner with companies to achieve packaging circularity, increase access to recycled materials, and meet sustainability commitments; and we work with government to develop policy solutions to address the systemic needs of our residential recycling system and advance a circular economy. We foster public-private partnerships and drive positive change at every step of the recycling and circularity process. Since 2014, we have diverted 770 million pounds of new recyclables from landfills, saved 968 million gallons of water, avoided more than 670,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases, and driven significant reductions in targeted contamination rates. Learn more at recyclingpartnership.org. About American Beverage’s Every Bottle Back initiative: The Every Bottle Back initiative is an integrated initiative to improve plastics circularity by The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper, PepsiCo and Polar Beverages alongside sustainability leaders Closed Loop Partners, The Recycling Partnership and World Wildlife Fund. These efforts support individual sustainability commitments undertaken by The Coca-Cola Company, Keurig Dr Pepper, PepsiCo and Polar Beverages. Learn more at www.everybottleback.org.
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