RMA plans industrial byproducts meeting.

The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA), as part of the Industrial Resources Council, is coordinating a one-day workshop on the use of industrial byproducts in highway construction in Little Rock, AR, on February 1.

"The RMA has always sought to work with other stakeholders in an effort to provide the most timely information that will allow us to expand markets for scrap tires," stated the RMA's senior technical director, Michael Blumenthal.

The workshop is being co-sponsored by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality and EPA Regions 4 and 6 Office of Solid Waste and Recycling, as well as the Industrial Resource Council (IRC). The IRC is comprised of organizations representing industrial byproducts.

The workshop will be held at the Arkansas Highway & Transportation Department in Little Rock, AR. There is no cost to attend the workshop, but attendees must register with the RMA to attend.

Increasing the use of industrial byproducts is a priority goal of the EPA's solid waste and recycling program. The EPA Resource Conservation Challenge has identified industrial byproducts as an underutilized resource and is seeking ways to get industry and government working together to take advantage of this resource. The Arkansas workshop is the first effort by the IRC to engage state and local officials in this process.

The RMA is the national trade association for the rubber products industry. Its members include more than 100 companies that manufacture various rubber products, including tires, hoses, belts, seals, molded goods and other finished rubber products. RMA members employ over 120,000 workers and account for more than $21 billion in annual sales. Further information is available from the RMA at www.rma. org.