U.S. Bank Expands Its Recycling Program

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--U.S. Bank, lead bank of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), is expanding its recycling program, and in the process, has been the impetus for the launch of a new Ohio business that is solving the conundrum of developing a cost-effective recycling program for smaller work facilities.

“Reducing our environmental footprint is always top of mind at U.S. Bank”

Eco2Go Recycling Solutions LLC. will provide a creative and efficient way to help U.S. Bank recycle cans and plastics from approximately 1,100 of its bank-owned facilities that, in the past, were deemed too small for traditional recycling services. It is expected that more than 50,000 pounds of materials from the bank’s smaller sites will now be recycled annually, which aligns with U.S. Bank’s commitment as a responsible environmental steward. This is in addition to the material already recycled at its larger sites and the more than 20,000 pounds of shredded confidential documents that U.S. Bank recycles each year.

Lisa O’Brien, senior vice president and director of environmental affairs at U.S. Bank, said the bank, along with its waste management consultant Consolidated Waste Management (CWM), determined that there wasn’t a good market alternative to traditional recycling services. As a result, the idea for Eco2Go was spawned -- and a new company formed -- to make user-friendly containers that would not only be able to collect employee’s recyclables, but also be durable enough to ship to the nearest recycling center when they were full.

U.S. Bank is placing environmentally friendly Eco2Go portable recycling containers at its smaller sites to collect recyclable materials, including those with plastic recycling symbols 1 through 7, aluminum, tin and other metal cans, plastic grocery bags and plastic bottles with lids. When the Eco2Go box is full, it will be picked up by UPS as part of a regular delivery or pickup at the branch, and then delivered to a nearby recycling center.

“Reducing our environmental footprint is always top of mind at U.S. Bank,” said O’Brien. ”We had to think creatively to identify a recycling service that met the needs of each of our bank-owned premises. Employing the Eco2Go concept makes sense for many of our traditional branches and smaller sites where we have fewer than 50 employees because it takes advantage of a cost-effective distribution system that’s used only when needed. ”

Mark Wiseman, principal and vice president of CWM, which currently manages the waste and recycling services for 1,600 U.S. Bank locations, said, “In trying to meet U.S. Bank’s objective to reduce and minimize the amount of waste going to a landfill, it was easy to implement traditional recycling services for those properties that generated a significant amount of recyclable waste. But, as we evaluated the amount and type of recyclable material generated in typical bank branches and smaller offices, providing a convenient and cost effective recycling service proved to be more of a challenge.”

After designing a user-friendly container to collect and ship the materials, Wiseman said it made sense to use one of the most efficient routing and delivery systems in the world, UPS, which already made regular delivery and pickups at U.S. Bank locations. “The Eco2Go concept eliminates the need for a waste collection truck to make weekly or bi-weekly pickups, resulting in the additional benefit of reducing carbon emissions and fixed monthly costs associated with those services.”

The program was piloted in 60 U.S. Bank branches and Wiseman said that U.S. Bank’s employees were engaged and excited to participate.

O’Brien added that employee feedback from the pilot program was supportive and most boxes were returned within six to eight weeks. “The cost was significantly less than traditional recycling, allowing us to provide an effective way to recycle while still managing our expenses. Eco2Go also provided a formal life cycle analysis for their program to ensure that it would have a positive net environmental impact, given the impact of the transportation and materials.”

Designated by the Environmental Protection Agency as an ENERGY STAR® Partner, U.S. Bank has been recognized by both Newsweek and Bank Technology News for integrating green behaviors into its employees daily work practices, as well as into the products and services it provides to customers.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $340 billion in assets as of Dec. 31, 2011, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States. The company operates 3,085 banking offices in 25 states and 5,053 ATMs, and provides a comprehensive line of banking, brokerage, insurance, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services products to consumers, businesses and institutions. U.S. Bancorp and its employees are dedicated to improving the communities they serve, for which the company earned the 2011 Spirit of America Award, the highest honor bestowed on a company by United Way. Visit U.S. Bancorp on the web at www.usbank.com.

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