May 29, 2014. /Lesprom Network/. The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) joined the newly created Recycling Partnership, formed by the Southeast Recycling Development Council (SERDC) and the Curbside Value Partnership (CVP), as an inaugural member. The Recycling Partnership is designed to create public-private partnerships that provide grants and technical expertise to municipalities in the Southeast region for improvements in recycling infrastructure and education. Its goal is to drive sustainable increases in the amount of recyclable commodities recovered in the Southeast region and then expand nationally, as AF&PA said in the press release received by Lesprom Network. 

“The Recycling Partnership adds another important initiative to AF&PA’s ongoing efforts to increase paper and paper-based packaging recovery,” said AF&PA President and CEO Donna Harman.

AF&PA will sit on the organization’s Advisory Committee, which will make decisions regarding the communities selected for funding and the scope of each community’s implementation program.

"Part of what makes this project so exciting is that it is truly representative of the different sectors and materials of the recycling supply chain. It's foundational to our success," CVP Executive Director Keefe Harrison explains.

AF&PA recently announced that 63.5% of all paper consumed in the U.S. was recovered for recycling in 2013. The industry has a sustainability goal to exceed 70% paper recovery for recycling by 2020.

The American Forest & Paper Association serves to advance a sustainable U.S. pulp, paper, packaging, and wood products manufacturing industry through fact-based public policy and marketplace advocacy.