By Sarah Zimmerman
“It’s the economy stupid!” James Carville’s mantra during the first Bill Clinton presidential campaign has proven to be close to reality for the Carpet America Recovery Effort ( CARE) in 2007, said Frank Hurd, chairman. Though there were several hindrances on CARE’s mission in 2007, Hurd still called the year successful. “The good news is the strength of CARE has shown throughout 2007 with another double-digit increase in postconsumer carpet diversion.”

So, green is the new black, or so goes the continued fashionable progression of eco-conscious, sustainable and environmentally friendly products and practices throughout the industry. And, on the forefront of the “fashion” movement remains the veteran, CARE. For six years now the group has been a major player in the diversion and recycling of carpet. Teamed with many companies and organizations— which continue to rise each year—CARE has increased awareness, education and efforts to make the carpet category and industry as a whole more involved in reducing its environmental footprint.

And, the numbers show just how large an impact CARE and its affiliates have had, as the group surpassed the billion-pound diversion mark in 2007 and increased its carpet collection sites from 37 in 2006 to 56 last year. (Editor’s Note: At press time the organization had 61 sites in use).

CARE also announced its total postconsumer diversion and recycling numbers for 2007, reporting that last year 296 million pounds were diverted from landfills (a 17% increase from 2006) and 275.1 million pounds were recycled (a 19% increase from 2006).

“Although CARE did not achieve its aggressive 2007 goal of a 50% increase in landfill diversion, we made substantive inroads against that goal,” said Jeremy Stroop, operations manager. And, with the group again reporting a double-digit increase in both diversion and recycling, it looked at the changing economy as one of its biggest challenges in 2007, which was part of several unique attributes in last year’s data.

2007 factors

One of the most interesting changes in 2007 was the incredible increase of inventoried post-consumer carpet collected for recycling. According to data collected through CARE’s survey process, inventories rose by at least 19 million pounds last year. This data, however, was not included in the reported diversion or recycled numbers, but if included, obviously an even higher level of diversion and recycling can be accounted for in 2007.

Stroop said the rise in inventory is largely attributed to the economic downturn. “Lack of overall end uses for post-consumer carpet has resulted in the increased inventory.” He pointed to a decline in the automotive market—which impacts the demand for new carpet and for engineered resins from recycled carpets used to make automobile parts—and the obvious housing market slump as two key outlets for post-consumer carpet that had dwindled from 2006.

Stroop also noted a nonrecurring event in 2007, which tempered growth: a fire at a major carpet processor affected the industry’s ability to process significant amounts of diverted carpet—particularly nylon 6,6. The recovery from the fire also took longer than expected, putting a strain on the collector network.

Some improvements and advancements, however, in CARE’s 2007 statistics included an increase in survey participation, an increase in accuracy, reclamation improvements, CARE branding awareness, launching of a new standard and surpassing one billion pounds of diverted carpet.

Stroop said last year’s response rate to CARE’s survey was the highest yet, with 32 companies providing complete quantitative data and another four giving partial responses— this in comparison to 2006, where only 19 companies provided data.

He also noted an increase in CARE brand recognition as a step in the right direction toward continued growth and education. According to the Carpet & Rug Institute Commercial Tracking Survey, CARE’s name recognition has increased significantly since 2005. For instance, in the healthcare segment, CARE awareness has gone from 25% in 2005 to 45%; in corporate, from 24% to 44%; in government, from 23% to 40%, and in education, from 24% to 30%.

Reiterating the group’s increased popularity, Stroop said CARE’s Web site today receives over 200,000 visits annually, and currently— after 2007’s collection site increases—half of all states in the U.S. now have at least one reclamation center in place. He also noted CARE’s 5th Annual Conference reported a 54% increase in attendance over 2006 with 163 people, including 10 federal and state government reps present. (Editor’s note: Growth continued at this year’s conference with another increase in attendance at the 6th Annual CARE Conference.)

CARE also welcomed 19 new sponsors in 2007, bringing that total to 56.

Another key advancement CARE took part in last year was the launching of a new sustainable carpet assessment standard. NSF 140-2007 was introduced to provide a market-based definition for a path to sustainable carpet and establish performance and environmental requirements for public health and environment; energy and energy efficiency; bio-based, recycled content and EPP materials; manufacturing, and reclamation and end-of-life management ( FCNews Nov. 25/Dec. 3, 2007).

And, crossing its one billion pound diversion marker, CARE has recovered approximately 149 million pounds of post-consumer carpet per year since its inception in 2002. In economic terms, this translates into about 150 direct jobs and about 300 indirect jobs each year.

Also, the amount of net avoided greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2007 alone recovered the equivalent of 2.5 million barrels of oil or the amount of GHG emissions absorbed by 27 million tree seedlings grown for 10 years. Stroop also mentioned the carpet industry’s 46% reduction since 2002 in the use of water to produce a square yard of carpet.

Looking ahead

This year presents ongoing challenges for CARE, as Stroop said, “We do not expect the housing market to substantially improve, which means there will be fewer new homes and less demand for carpets and carpets containing recycled content. In addition, the demand for padding, including fiber pad made from 100% post-consumer carpet, is also depressed.”

He added the auto market was also below normal growth rates in the first quarter of 2008—sales of domestic and foreign cars from major manufacturers were down 10% to 19% versus a year ago.

Therefore, a major challenge in 2008 will be diversification of the demand from other end markets. CARE is focusing on understanding the needs and requirements for engineered resins that can be made from post-consumer carpet to be used in high- performance plastics.

Other key goals for this year include:

• Develop a midcourse strategy (based on Independent Assessment feedback).

• Achieve a 20% increase in diversion focused on two areas— open a dialogue with the plastics industry and identify key requirements for use of post-consumer carpet as feedstock, and secure four public entities using CARE procurement guidelines.

• Hire a full-time executive director, who will help to achieve $100,000 in new sustainable funding for CARE and secure 20 new CARE sponsorsat the $5,000 or above level.

“Last year was a good year for CARE, with solid progress made in carpet diversion,” Stroop explained. “As market and economic conditions weakened in 2007 and into 2008, CARE members are challenged to continue to nurture this business opportunity for all members of the value chain, so that when conditions improve we will continue to see aggressive growth into the future.”

He said the group is confident it has the commitment of its membership to invest the resources to continue growth in 2008 and beyond. “We have proven that the success of CARE has significant economic and environmental impact. As the markets mature, this impact should grow exponentially.”