Iowa DNR to host second stakeholder meeting on Sustainable Materials Management


The Iowa Department of Natural Resources will hold an online public meeting Sept. 30 with stakeholders to discuss how waste is generated and managed in Iowa.

The meeting will be held via Zoom from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required. After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

The second of four stakeholder meetings to be held over two years, this meeting aims to help investigate and develop a transition plan toward an Sustainable Materials Management system for Iowa.

The DNR has worked with residents, businesses and institutions to craft the Iowa vision for Sustainable Materials Management. These meetings will help create specific strategies through integrating technology, infrastructure, policies, funding and performance metrics.

Iowa’s existing solid waste management system focuses primarily on materials at the point of disposal. A Sustainable Materials Management approach includes many positive attributes, such as recycling and composting waste discards into new products. However, it does not emphasize waste prevention or environmental impacts associated with the product’s lifecycle.

The Iowa Sustainable Materials Management vision promotes finding new opportunities to reduce environmental impacts, conserve resources and reduce costs associated with managing materials throughout their life cycle.

For additional information, email dnrsmmiowa@scsengineers.com.