America Recycles Day is annually celebrated in November, but at Pratt Industries, recycling is always top of mind. We are proud to partner with local communities, municipalities and businesses to help educate, encourage and enable good recycling habits. From classrooms to boardrooms, Pratt Recycling is ready to assist with your sustainability and zero waste objectives and to have some fun along the way.
“Pratt Recycling partners with organizations, businesses, institutions and communities to annually recover more than 3 million tons of paper and other recyclables, diverting this material from landfills” says Shawn State, President of Pratt Recycling, Inc. “We receive material from every major metro area east of Oklahoma City, including: Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Miami, Nashville, New York City, Orlando, and others.”
In addition to recovering recycled materials, Pratt works closely with municipalities and other organizations to help educate the community on the importance of landfill diversion through recycling.
In Texas, the city of Denton’s Sustainable School’s Program teamed up with Pratt’s local recycling team to create an outdoor mural for their facility. Through a local competition, school-age children were challenged to submit artwork ideas with themes reflecting: Denton, recycling, sustainability or the environment. Winners were invited to work with local artists, city officials, volunteers and Pratt employees to paint their artwork on the facility, creating a beautiful mural with a great sustainability message.
Pratt’s ongoing partnership with the city of Denton, and their joint educational and community outreach programs, were recognized in 2022 by the State of Texas Alliance for Recycling with the Exceptional Recycling Partnership Award.
“This state-wide award helps us show how a strong partnership between municipalities and private companies is sustainable and also beneficial to both entities,” says Zachary Godbee, Denton Recycling Plant Manager.
Pratt Recycling also has a long, collaborative relationship with the Department of Sanitation New York City (DSNY). A few years ago, Pratt teamed up with the DSNY, the Manhattan Borough President’s Office and the Manhattan Solid Waste Advisory Board to create the Manhattan Paper Challenge. The challenge analyzed different districts within the city to see which district had the best rates for recycling. The community boards which achieved the highest rate increase in paper recycling were awarded quarterly as well as a grand prize at the end of the year-long challenge. The winning districts received a cash award to donate to a non-profit organization of their choice.
The challenge brought a greater sense of community awareness to the importance of recycling and helped further strengthen the positive partnership Pratt has with DSNY and the borough of Manhattan.
Similarly, Pratt has a long standing relationship with the city of Savannah, GA, assisting in their municipal recycling efforts and sustainable business practices for the last 15 years. In addition to collecting recovered materials in the city, Pratt’s recycling team provides a variety of educational resources on the practice of recycling, sustainable purchasing and reducing contaminants in the waste stream. To raise awareness and help educate the community, Pratt participates in the local speaker’s circuit, including lunch and learn sessions at businesses and attending community events. The success of the partnership has encouraged the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce to join Pratt and the city to expand these educational programs and outreach to their members.
Pratt Recycling is proud to partner with organizations, communities and industry associations to create awareness about the importance of recycling and to implement strategic recovery programs. Through these partnerships and collective efforts, we are able to annually divert more than 3 million tons of paper and other recyclable material from landfills across the nation. Pratt then uses the recovered fiber from old corrugated containers (OCC) and mixed paper products to manufacture our 100% recycled containerboard and corrugated packaging solutions.
“While Pratt Paper Mills use the paper based products,” says State, “the non-paper recyclables–including PET and HDPE plastics, steel cans and aluminum–are sold to other manufacturers who use this recycled material in their products.”
