Presentation by Rick Anthony and Neil Seldman, November 19, 2024
The U.S. recycling movement emerged organically in the 1970s from grassroots activism across the country, catalyzed by events like the 1969 Survival Walk from San Diego to Sacramento and the first Earth Day in 1970. What began as drop-off centers evolved into curbside collection programs, with pioneers in cities like Berkeley, Madison, and Modesto demonstrating that organized citizens and small businesses could fundamentally change waste management. By Earth Day 1980, Rick Anthony and Neil Seldman organized the First National Recycling Congress in Fresno, bringing together over 400 participants who established the National Recycling Coalition to represent this burgeoning movement. Despite EPA predictions that recycling rates would never exceed 25%, these early activists proved recycling was viable. They faced opposition from virgin material corporations, landfill operators, and incinerator companies. These activists were drawn from diverse backgrounds including teachers, veterans, and environmentalists.
The movement’s success drove industrial innovation and economic development through the 1980s and 1990s. Companies like Garden State Paper, which produced newsprint from 99% recycled newspapers, and Nucor Industries, which manufactured steel from 100% scrap metal, responded to the availability of secondary materials with new manufacturing technologies. The demand for recycling professionals created career opportunities, with salaries for recycling coordinators rising from $10,000-$14,000 in 1980 to nearly $100,000 by decade’s end. This infrastructure helped citizens defeat hundreds of proposed garbage incinerators and ultimately achieved diversion rates of 40-50% in many communities, with some Zero Waste cities reaching 70-80%. This far exceeds early skeptics’ predictions and establishing recycling as a permanent fixture of American life.
While it was not recorded, we’ve put together this more in-depth statement. [pdf]