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EPA awards recycling grant for Green Island Alliance program

Release Date: 2/2/2005
Contact Information: Dean Higuchi, (808) 541-2711

Funds will be used for programs on Guam, CNMI, Palau

HONOLULU The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded $30,000 to the Electicore Consortium to organize a scrap material recycling program in the Pacific called the Green Island Alliance.

"It's important that Guam, CNMI and Palau take every opportunity to recycle to save precious landfill space and protect the environment," said Eileen Sheehan, manager for the EPA Pacific Southwest Region's Pollution Prevention and Solid Waste Office. "The Green Island Alliance project will be a vital step forward in increasing recycling in the Pacific. Consolidating the scrap material from various islands will make recycling economically feasible, create jobs, and facilitate the sustainability of a regional recycling program."

The Green Island Alliance program will investigate scrap material collection activities on Guam, CNMI and Palau including:

-volumes of collected and uncollected scrap materials,
-material types,
-shipping requirements,
-legal and regulatory framework, and
-groups involved in the scrap material collection activities.

Based on the findings, the alliance will identify a suitable process and vessel for the transport of scrap material off the islands for recycling. The project will start by looking at scrap metal and aluminum cans and then move on to glass, plastic and other types of solid waste.

This project has support from the EPA Pacific Southwest Region's Pacific Islands Office, the Guam EPA, and several key non-governmental organizations on the islands.
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