four step guide | can calculator | permit holder visit | locating scrap dealer | dealer interview questions | setting up account

Four Step Guide

1. Register - By December 1, 2007
   
   
   
   Once a firehouse or unit is registered, each facility should designate one or two firefighters to spearhead the ACBC Program internally. These individuals would be responsible for:



2. Promote Solicit aluminum can donations from ABC on-premise permit holders. Visit each location in your firehouse's vicinity. For a listing, go to www.ncabc.com/search/advanced_search.aspx click on "malt beverage on premise" permit type and "All Active Permits Including Temporary Status" and then "Search." You will then be given a choice of the type of file. Excel should allow organizing by county to speed the process.
   
   Print, personalize and distribute flyers and posters (provided via cancentral.com website)
   
   Rallying co-workers and encouraging them to recruit local area ABC on-premise permit holders. The names of ABC on-premise holders by county can be found at www.ncabc.com/search/advanced_search.aspx. With your Excel spreadsheet, assign ABC permit holder visits based on address proximity.
   
   Recruiting Extra Help for your Program
   • The Ladies Auxiliary or Junior Firefighters may want to lend a hand.
   • Civic organizations and church groups
   • Boy and Girl Scout troops. This would make for an excellent Eagle or Gold project
   • High school students looking for community service hours to fill graduation requirements
   • College/University sorority and fraternity community service projects
   
   
   Click here to set up an Excel database of ABC permit holders in your area. The Excel file will be set up with the following helpful headings: Business Name, ABC Permit holder contact, address, city, zip code, telephone number, type of venue, ACBC participant, description of recycling arrangement, frequency of collection, poundage recycled each month, dollars earned each month, year-to-date recycling poundage total, year-to-date dollars earned, promotions, materials provided, who made the initial contact, their waste hauler or recycling dealer, comments/feedback.
   
   Through this database, you will be able to monitor and report recycling progress, evaluate your program, make projections, track aluminum can market trends or seasonal changes, set target goals, instantly have valuable information for the media, and serves as your monthly reporting form to NCSFA. This is the ideal method to recognize exceptional recycling by the establishment, milestones, award certificates and even help with friendly competition among participants. The database will also provide a list of potential participants who declined the first opportunity and may want to participate later on. Or if the permit holder's waste hauler decides to make a donation to cash contribution to the ACBC Program, they both can be credited as participants.



3. Collect Amass as many clean and dry aluminum cans as possible -- the more the better for the environment and N.C. children. Most recycling centers pay more for greater poundage. Ways to increase the volume might include:
   
   
   • Encourage patrons to bring used aluminum beverage cans to their favorite ABC on-premise facilities, if the ABC permit holders do not object.
   • Host a contest among ABC permit participants or neighboring firehouses.
   • Build a mountain of cans in a day at a designated location and see what a million cans look like.
   • Use natural environmental celebrations to keep ACBC recycling in the forefront such as- North Carolina's America Recycles Day - November 15. World Environment Day - June 5 Earth Day - April 22 Environmental Education Week - the week prior to Earth Day
   • Sealed clear plastic bags work well for indoor storage.
   
   
   Design the best approach for collecting the used aluminum beverage cans for your firehouse. Every area will offer its unique situation. If you have your own recycling trailer, it may be the most convenient for the manager of the ABC on-premise permit holder to deposit their cans in the trailer. Some urban or tourist area local governments may want to establish a commercial recycling area with separate bins for aluminum, glass, and PET. (This is the time for your firehouse to lobby for all or at least a portion of the aluminum cans recycling proceeds for the ACBC Program.)
   
   It may be easiest for a firehouse to regularly collect the aluminum cans using a systematic route and a pick-up truck, or a combination of approaches. The most important thing to avoid is have a recycling bin overflowing due to lack of collection. Local waste reduction programs and contacts will be able to advise about laws regarding recycling collection bins inside and outside establishments and health ordinances. The ACC has contacted North Carolina county and municipality local waste reduction program coordinators concerning NCSFA's ACBC Program. A list of these contacts can be found at www.p2pays.org/localgov/PAYT/ncwaste.asp.
   
   Another aspect of self-hauling off-site to the recycling center is the transportation of collected cans. It might be easier if all the cans are contained in 55 gallon drum size clear closed plastic bags or smaller, in a lidded wheel cart light enough to pick up and place a vehicle for transport or compacted to reduce volume. Knowing how you intend to transport the cans will help you work with ABC permit holders in developing their establishment's recycling options.



4. Recycle & Report
   Monthly Poundage Recycling Report - Turn your beverage cans into cash for ACBC! Aluminum cans have value and are traded as a commodity. Contact several recycling centers and discuss a possible long-term relationship. Determine how the recycling center can best assist with your program. Explain that you are collecting for the Aluminum Cans for Burned Children Program sponsored by the non-profit North Carolina State Firemen's Association and the Aluminum Can Council. All proceeds will be donated to the University of North Carolina Jaycee's Burn Center, Shriners Hospital Burn Centers for Children, and fire prevention education.

Aluminum Can Calculator

Questions To Be Addressed Prior to ABC Permit Holder Visit

• How are the used beverage cans going to be collected from the businesses? These logistics are most important from a labor, storage, capital investment, operations, and compliance perspective and will impact the selection of internal an external aluminum can storage containers.
• Aluminum cans have value and donating aluminum cans to ACBC Program might increase the cost of recycling the other commodities. On the other hand, the donation of aluminum cans to ACBC generates customer good will and provides an invaluable community service with unlimited potential to keep on giving.
• Can the aluminum cans be stored in a recycling container outside the establishment? Contact your local solid waste, recycling or public works officials and health department to learn about codes and ordinances regarding recycling and storing containers inside and outside of restaurants and bars.
• Review "Starting an ABC On-Premise Aluminum Cans For Burned Children Recycling Program" in this tool book.
• Calculate approximately how many aluminum cans are generated weekly. (Please see recycling calculator.)
• Suggest an early start for aluminum beverage can recycling, in order to get a jump- start on the January 1, 2008 Session Law 2005-348 implementation for all recyclable containers. Starting with aluminum cans should help ease the transition to other containers, make full compliance easier, and enable employees to catch the recycling spirit and become proficient. Plus, it is good for the environment, your customers, and the community!
• Take along the Sustaining Our Environment Requires a Can-do Attitude leave-behind for the owner or manager. This will make it easy for the ABC on-premise permit holder to respond back to the ACC/NCSFA and join the program, and for us to keep you in the know.
• Firehouses are encouraged to involve the local community as well. Ask local schools, community groups and businesses to save cans and turn them into the recycling center or designated location to raise funds for ACBC Program. The ACC has lesson plans for teachers so they can integrate environmental education into their classroom as well.
• Local media outlets (television and radio news stations, newspapers and bulletins) may want to publicize the ACBC fundraising aspect of the can collection drive and share how local bars, hotels, restaurants, bowling alleys, and marinas are helping the environment and North Carolina's children.
• Email success stories and photos with copy to Jenny Day at jday@cancentral.com. These will be used on the website and can provide fun ways for other firehouses to keep their ACBC Programs refreshed as well as for media outreach.
• Check back with ABC on-premise permit holders who did not volunteer their cans initially. Once they feel the synergy and the buzz about how the cans are working for the community, patron participation, and membership benefits, let them know that you would welcome them to the program as well.

Locating Recycling Center/Scrap Dealer

The North Carolina Department of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance publishes the North Carolina Market Director, a list of companies that accept aluminum cans from the state. This reference can be found at www.p2pays.org/DMRM/start.aspx. Click on "Metal" for the material you are recycling and then click on "Cans-Aluminum".

To locate the nearest buy-back recycling center/scrap dealer for your aluminum cans, go to www.earth911.org and type in your zip code. The website finds the closest centers and provides contact information.

Questions to Ask While Interviewing a Prospective Recycling Center/Scrap Dealer

• Are you willing to provide collection bins?
• Could pick-up service be arranged or exchanged for a cost reduction in the amount paid for aluminum cans?
• If you have a large recycling event planned and anticipate the collection of 100,000 aluminum cans (which un-compacted fills an 18 wheeler), could you stage a recycling trailer. Session Law 2005-348 requires ABC on-premise permit holders to continue to recycle their recyclable containers within their location even when the bar is closed. This is applicable at sports complexes, marinas, golf courses, race tracks and other venues that are being utilized beyond their usual purpose to host a large concert or public event and generate a large volume of beverage cans.
• Are you willing to take cans from the public, credit your ACBC Program account and send a check each month to the firehouse?
• Would it be possible for firefighters or permit holders to bring cans directly to your facility? Is there an opportunity for an after hour drop-off?
• Can the recycling center/scrap dealer provide or rent indoor and outdoor recycling bins/containers as part of the firefighter's ACBC Program?
• If there are several ABC permit establishments in close proximity to one another recycling at least 500 pounds a week, could the center arrange to pick-up at these businesses?
• Would you be willing to participate in an arrangement where total recycled monthly poundage would be calculated at one time reflecting quantity value* and one check cut per month?

  *Most recycling centers pay more at say 100 pounds or 500 than if you bring in lesser amounts throughout the month. The recycling center operator would minimize the number of checks saving man hours and possibly reducing banking fees.

• Is it possible to post flyers about the ACBC Program at the recycling center?
• Would the Center/Scrap Dealer like for the ACBC Program to publicize the recycling center in press releases, on our website and on posters? Not only will the recycling center receive credit for supporting your ACBC Program, but will allow the community to make donations to the program at the recycling center or other designated locations.
• Would the Center/Scrap Dealer be interested in supporting promotional community outreach events designed to generate a large volume of cans in a day or week event for the ACBC Program? These events could coincide with Earth Day, America Recycles Day, Environmental Education Week, U.S. Conference of Mayors/Novelis/KAB City Recycling Challenge, or the county fair. The recycling center/scrap dealer might be interested paying a recycling premium over the going rate to encourage participation, generate good will and publicity.

Setting Up A Recycling Center Account