The Michigan Recycling Coalition’s position paper, 2011 State of Recycling in Michigan: A Way Forward outlined the economic benefit of meeting the State’s 50% waste utilization goal and identified six key elements of a comprehensive recycling program in Michigan and their costs. This position paper was used to begin policy conversations with Department of Environmental Quality staff and the Governor’s office. In November of 2012, Governor Snyder identified recycling as a key environmental issue for his administration.

Since that time, the Department has been working with waste, recycling, and composting stakeholders as well as proponents and opponents of Michigan’s Bottle Bill to understand potential implications of pro-active policy designed to increase access to recycling and ultimately recover more material for recycling. A limiting factor in these discussions is a severe lack of data and information about how funding would most effectively be applied to accomplish collective resource recovery goals.

Students will gain an intimate understanding of the end of life management of materials in Michigan, be privy to state level policy conversations, and have access to businesses and municipalities providing resource recovery services. Students will have opportunities to engage in conversations with professionals and present findings in stakeholder meetings. They will be invited to attend and network with industry professionals at the MRC’s annual conference, April 29-May 1 at the Ypsilanti Eagle Crest. Students will potentially present findings to an audience at the conference. Findings will be made available through MRC media channels and used to inform and develop policy and apply resources.