Date: July 8, 2008
Source: Allied Waste Industries, Inc.
Allied Waste Launches National Partnership With RecycleBank to Persuade Millions to Recycle
Incentive program aims to convert millions of homeowners into avid recyclers by offering rewards from Coca-Cola, Target.com and other brand name retailers
Allied Waste Industries, Inc. (NYSE: AW), the second largest waste management company in the country, and RecycleBank, the premier rewards and loyalty program that motivates people to recycle, have announced a strategic partnership to launch a nationwide recycling incentive program.
This partnership has the potential to bring together Allied Waste's seven million residential customers with RecycleBank's unique incentive program that enables households to earn rewards in the form of RecycleBank Points for recycling. Households can redeem RecycleBank Points for gift cards, gift certificates and discounts to more than 400 brand name national and local retailers across the country. Participating retailers include Bed Bath & Beyond, Coca-Cola, CVS/pharmacy, Dunkin' Donuts, Evian, IKEA, Kraft Foods, Target.com and Whole Foods, among others. Participants can also convert their rewards into donations for select charitable organizations. To date, more than 100 million points have been awarded, with families earning, on average, between $200 and $300 in retailer rewards annually.
A shared commitment to creating cleaner, greener communities is the cornerstone of this initiative. Every year, Allied Waste saves 20 million trees, five billion kilowatt hours of energy and eight and a half billion gallons of water by processing nearly four billion pounds of recyclable materials. These efforts will be accelerated through RecycleBank's proven program. In Clayton, New Jersey alone, recycling rates skyrocketed 73 percent following implementation of the RecycleBank program. To date, RecycleBank has helped divert more than 80 million pounds of recyclables from landfills.
Currently, only consumers within nine Northeastern and Midwestern states have access to the RecycleBank program. Yet Allied Waste's national footprint will allow for potentially millions of additional residents from around the country to benefit. By the end of 2009, Allied Waste and RecycleBank hope to add at least one million new residential customers to the program. Doing so could translate into an additional 800 million pounds of garbage being diverted away from landfills and into recycling centers every year. The program will be customized for commercial and industrial customers in the near future, as well.
"Our partnership with RecycleBank is another way in which we are continuing our long history of providing innovative solutions to our customers while also being strong stewards of our environment," said Jay Leyden, Senior Vice President, Customer Development, Allied Waste. "By matching our national reach and state-of-the-art recycling centers with RecycleBank's creative incentive program, we create a great opportunity that can benefit millions of customers, the participating retailers and, ultimately, the environment."
Participating in the program is simple. Customers are assigned an RFID (radio frequency identification) that is imbedded in their RecycleBank cart, in which they are encouraged to recycle all paper, plastics and metal -- with no sorting necessary. In each community, Allied Waste picks up and weighs the recyclables collected. RecycleBank Points are then awarded to the community for each pound of recyclable materials, with the total amount evenly divided among all participating customers.
"Allied Waste is leading the waste services industry by providing communities with solutions that protect our environment and create economic value. We are proud to have the opportunity to partner with Allied Waste," said Ron Gonen, CEO and Co-Founder, RecycleBank.
The Allied Waste-RecycleBank partnership will be launched in Dallas/Ft. Worth, Los Angeles and Minneapolis/St. Paul. Information about how to register for the program will be distributed starting this week. It is expected that the program will be expanded to include all of Allied Waste's remaining markets across the country during early 2009.
To learn more, interested participants are encouraged to contact Dan Jameson, Vice President, Government Relations and Municipal Services, Allied Waste at 480.627.2700.
About Allied Waste
Allied Waste is America's second largest non-hazardous solid waste services company and an environmental leader. Headquartered in Phoenix, AZ, Allied Waste provides waste collection, transfer, recycling and disposal services to millions of residential, commercial and industrial customers in over 100 markets spanning 38 states and Puerto Rico. Our team of 23,000 dedicated employees operates within a highly efficient, integrated organization that generated 2007 revenue of $6.1 billion.
About RecycleBank
RecycleBank is a rewards program that motivates people to recycle. It does this by quickly and easily measuring the amount of material each home recycles and then converting that activity into RecycleBank Reward Points that can be used at hundreds of local and national rewards partners. RecycleBank is simple to implement, market-driven and proven to work, saving municipalities' money and rewarding citizens for their environmental stewardship. RRE Ventures Sigma Partners and Kleiner Perkins Caulfield Byers are the largest institutional shareholder group and Ron Gonen, the co-founder and CEO is the largest individual shareholder. Visit www.recyclebank.com/ for more information.
Any trademarks listed in this release are the property of their respective owners.
Sign up to receive our free Weekly News Bulletin