Timeline

This National Agreement on Carpet Recycling is the product of over two years of work by members of the carpet industry, government agencies at the federal, state and local levels, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

• Midwestern Workgroup on Carpet Recycling | September 1999–November 2000
• Negotiated Outcomes Process | March 2001–October 2001

Midwestern Workgroup on Carpet Recycling

The Midwestern Workgroup on Carpet Recycling was established to address concerns about the growing amount of carpet that is reaching the end of its useful life and entering the waste stream in the Midwest region. Participants in this joint project promoted the idea of product stewardship as a method to address waste carpet.

Midwestern Workgroup on Carpet Recycling
Read a more detailed summary and timeline of the Midwestern Workgroup's efforts.

The workgroup was originally spearheaded by the states of Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin, with involvement from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA). The initial focus of their work was regional, but their efforts grew to be national in scope.

Members met six times between February and November 2000 to draft and finalize a national plan to increase the recycling and reuse of discarded carpet. The group's membership grew to include some 40 representatives from the carpet industry (manufacturers, retailers and recyclers), federal, state and local governments, and non-governmental environmental groups. The partnership wanted to take advantage of the developing recovery infrastructure and encourage carpet manufacturers to play a strong role in the recycling of waste carpet.

Workgroup Outcomes

The workgroup finalized its efforts with an agreement that was signed by a representative of the workgroup and the president of the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) in January 2001. |  Agreement (January 2001)

• Third-party Organization | The carpet industry committed to the creation, funding and management of a third-party organization which will be responsible for achieving the negotiated outcomes.
  
  
• Negotiated Outcomes | Government and the carpet industry agreed to negotiate national outcomes for the end-of-life management of carpet. These negotiated outcomes would establish reuse and recycling rates for discarded carpet.
  
  
• Model Procurement Guidelines | Government committed to developing draft model procurement guidelines for carpet. Public entities around the U.S. would adopt these guidelines, which will reward companies offering environmentally preferable products.
  
  

Negotiated Outcomes Process

The Negotiated Outcomes meetings worked to develop a negotiated schedule, the early part of an effort to phase out land disposal and incineration of post-consumer carpet. This process created the "rates and dates" detail of the Midwestern Workgroup's agreement (January 2001).

		Negotiated Outcomes Process
	A more detailed summary and timeline of the Negotiated Outcomes process.

In a series of six meetings beginning in March 2001, representatives from the carpet industry and government developed an initial ten-year plan to divert carpet from landfills and significantly increase reuse and recycling of post-consumer carpet.

As proposed, members of the carpet industry created a third-party organization. Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) is responsible for meeting the goals set forth in negotiated outcomes process, and monitoring, assessing and reporting on progress. CARE will be funded and managed by carpet industry members.

Outcomes

Representatives of the carpet industry and government negotiated a voluntary and non-regulatory agreement that encourages product stewardship for carpet. The parties agreed to a landfill diversion goal of 40% by 2012, with a series of increasing goals for recycling, reuse and incineration. The agreement maintains a flexible approach toward reaching the negotiated goals.

• The final agreement, National Agreement on Carpet Recycling, will be signed on January 8, 2002.
  
  
• The carpet industry has created Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE), a third-party organization that will be responsible for meeting the goals set forth in negotiated outcomes process, and monitoring, assessing and reporting on progress. CARE will be funded and managed by carpet industry members.
  
  
• Model Procurement Guidelines were drafted for government entities and will be distributed after final review in early 2002. These guidelines provide incentive for companies to offer environmentally preferable products.