Latest news with #Holsinger
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NERC notes slight commodity value improvements, while MRFs announce significant upgrades
This story was originally published on Waste Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Waste Dive newsletter. MRFs in the Northeast noted an increase in average commodity prices for the first quarter of 2025, according to a report from the Northeast Recycling Council. In Q1, average blended commodity value without residuals was $102.34, an increase of more than 9% from the previous quarter. When calculating the value with residuals, prices were closer to $89.62, an increase of 8.6%, the quarterly MRF Commodity Values Survey Report says. Single-stream MRFs saw values increase by 12% without residuals and 11% with residuals, while dual-stream or source-separated MRFs saw increases of about 10% without residuals and 9% with residuals. Major publicly-traded waste companies echoed some similar commodity trends during their Q1 earnings calls. In a new format from previous reports, NERC's latest version also provided average prices for specific commodities. Surveyed MRFs reported an average OCC price of $99.68 and $54.92 for mixed paper. For plastics, MRFs reported PET at $363.31 per ton and natural HDPE at $1,910.20 per ton, among other plastic commodity prices. The Q1 report also noted some general trends, including an 8% increase in residue since the same period in 2022. It also highlighted that MRFs recorded lower volumes of outbound tons in 2024 compared to 2022, except for PP and bulky rigids, which increased by 40% and 29%, respectively. NERC says its reports are not meant to be used as a price guide for MRF contracts. NERC's quarterly report includes data from 19 MRFs across 12 Northeastern states. It surveys a variety of MRFs in a variety of markets, including those in five states with beverage container deposit laws, which affect material flows into MRFs. It presents a regional look at price trends and is a part of NERC's ongoing work to promote and boost recycled commodity supply and demand in the Northeast. Numerous factors can influence commodity values, but increasing operational efficiencies and MRF upgrades are often contributing factors that can help operators fetch higher prices. Here's a look at several companies throughout the U.S. that have recently announced significant MRF upgrades: The nonprofit recycler invested $12 million to upgrade the facility, which it unveiled as part of its 20th anniversary celebration in April. Eureka added four optical sorters, including three along its paper line. 'That was a huge thing for us, so now our paper quality is just so much better,' said Miriam Holsinger, Eureka's co-president, in an April interview. An upgraded cardboard separation system aims to increase small-format cardboard recovery, and a bigger conveyor belt aims to reduce downtime caused by cardboard jams. The improvements have cut maintenance time by about 60%, Holsinger said. Improved paper quality will be key for Eureka as it looks for new markets to sell the material, she said. 'If you want to stay ahead of the curve, especially to prepare for a possible economic downturn, having solid quality is always helpful in making sure we can continue to move material.' Casella's newly renovated MRF features $20 million in upgrades, including sorting equipment from Machinex, along with new power infrastructure and lighting. Casella also replaced the tipping floor and installed an improved fire suppression system. The upgrade, meant to improve material quality and operational efficiency, is expected to nearly double its processing capacity. Prior to the improvements, the Willimantic facility processed about 60,000 tons a year. During the company's Q1 earnings call, Casella executives said the facility is on track to deliver $4 million of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in 2025. The company says it has spent more than $50 million on other related recycling improvements in the last three years. The City of Phoenix's Public Works Department recently reopened its MRF after four years of construction. The improvements are meant to help Phoenix reduce contamination, which makes baled materials more valuable, officials said in a news release. The MRF, operated by Balcones Recycling, has all-new equipment including a front-end trommel, two ballistic separators, a sorting robot and 11 optical sorters. It processes about 30 tons an hour. The improvements are also meant to help Phoenix more efficiently manage recyclable material as its population grows. The city collects recyclables from about 420,000 households. Republic Services, Bridgeton, Missouri: A new MRF, scheduled for groundbreaking in Q1 2026, will serve the greater St. Louis area. Plans for the facility include at least 10 optical sorters for identifying and separating paper and plastic, as well as AI-enabled systems to help reduce contamination and adjust operations to maximize volumes. Republic expects to process about 45 tons an hour in the 105,000-square-foot facility. The project will employ about 60 full-time employees once it is completed in 2027, the company says. Portsmouth, Virginia: The city announced a new $200 million recycling facility, which will be built in a partnership between the Southeast Public Service Authority and AMP. The facility will use AMP's AI-assisted technology to sort single-stream recycling and will extend the life of the region's landfill, said Mayor Shannon Glover, who announced the partnership during an annual State of the City address on May 2. He did not announce a timeline for the project. Portsmouth's transfer station already uses AMP's technology. This story first appeared in the Waste Dive: Recycling newsletter. Sign up for the weekly emails here. Recommended Reading Northeast MRFs saw 40% jump in commodity values in a year: NERC report Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CBS News
07-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Photojournalist witnesses Venezuelan migrants' arrival in El Salvador: "They had no idea what was coming"
Three weeks ago, photojournalist Philip Holsinger stood on a tarmac in El Salvador waiting for three planes to arrive, cameras slung across his body. He was told the planes were carrying Venezuelan migrants from the United States who would become inmates at the Terrorism Confinement Center, a notorious prison in El Salvador also known as CECOT. As the Venezuelans emerged from the door to make their way down the gangplank, their faces dropped. "They're greeted by this scene, a sea of black-clad, masked police in riot gear," Holsinger told 60 Minutes Overtime. "I've looked through my lens at many types of faces, laughing, crying, terrified, angry… they had no idea what was coming." A 60 Minutes report this week found that a majority of the Venezuelans who arrived in El Salvador that day have no apparent criminal record. In response to these findings, a Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman told 60 Minutes that many of those without criminal records "are actually terrorists, human rights abusers, gangsters, and more. They just don't have a rap sheet in the U.S." Holsinger has spent over a year in El Salvador, documenting the government's controversial crackdown on violent gangs like MS-13 and Barrio 18. In March 2022, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele declared a "state of emergency" to address gang violence in the country. Then, a "state of exception" was approved by the Salvadoran legislature that suspended certain constitutional freedoms, allowing law enforcement to arrest and prosecute tens of thousands of people with alleged, or even suspected, gang ties. It's been renewed every month since. The Salvadoran government claims over 85,000 arrests have been made under the state of exception. The country, once known as the "murder capital of the world," closed 2024 with a record low of 114 homicides, according to their government statistics. Human rights groups have heavily criticized the government's approach to gang violence, saying arrests are often made with little evidence, and without a fair and speedy trial. Since 2022, the prison population in El Salvador has exploded. The current occupancy rate is nearly 163%, according to World Prison Brief. Holsinger has photographed and interviewed inmates, including members of MS-13, in Salvadoran prisons, like Izalco Prison. But the most notorious prison he's visited by far is CECOT. Designed to house a population of over 40,000 people, it is known for its strict rules and spartan living conditions. "Life in the cell, in CECOT, is the definition of austerity," Holsinger told Overtime. "There are no books. There's no television… zero outside communication. Nothing goes out. Nothing comes in. There's 24-hour surveillance." Inmates sleep on metal slabs, with no pillows or blankets. Unsolicited talking and eye contact with guards is generally prohibited, Holsinger said. "When we walked into the cell block, I was shocked by the silence… it's like a church," Holsinger said. "It got under my skin," Holsinger said. "Because it means something… Does it mean people are being treated bad, and they're quiet, or does it mean they just got order?" When the Venezuelans deported from the U.S. arrived in El Salvador, officers used a standard procedure for CECOT inmates, grabbing them by the neck and pushing their bodies downward, as they walked them briskly toward the bus. "They move them fast and hard. And they intentionally want them to feel that they're powerless," Holsinger told Overtime. A Venezuelan man seated in one of the buses looked over at Holsinger's camera for a moment. "When the guard noticed it, the guard grabs him by his hair and shoves his head back down," Holsinger told Overtime. "That's the beginning of their lesson… which is total powerlessness." After leaving the buses at the prison's entrance, the Venezuelans were brought into a room where teams of men buzzed their hair off. Guards shouted commands to speed up the process, and slapped some of the Venezuelans who spoke up. "The guards are [saying] 'Fast! Fast! Fast!'" Holsinger said. Staring at a black-and-white photograph of a man with far-away eyes having his head shaved, Holsinger recalled what he was thinking when he took his picture. "He may be a criminal. He may be innocent. He may be a father. I don't know his story at all. But I know his eyes," he said. "He didn't fight… like, hopelessness. [He] just gave in." Another man who caught Holsinger's attention shouted "I'm innocent" and "I'm gay," and was crying as his head was shaved. 60 Minutes has now identified that man as Andry Hernandez Romero. He and the other Venezuelans were deported from the U.S. after President Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act, claiming the men were members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang. Romero's lawyers told 60 Minutes that he is a 31-year-old gay makeup artist with no criminal record in the United States or Venezuela. "He was being slapped every time he would speak up… he started praying and calling out, literally crying for his mother," Holsinger told Overtime. "His crying out for his mother really, really touched me." Romero and the other Venezuelans were ordered to strip naked and put on the CECOT uniform: a white shirt, white shorts and white rubber slippers. Then they were forced to kneel in a line with their hands cuffed behind their backs, their bodies stacked against each other. "This is a standard body posture that anybody in CECOT… will be trained in," Holsinger explained. Finally, the men were pushed to the ground, their faces pressed to the concrete floor. As Holsinger snapped the last few photographs, he felt that he had just watched the Venezuelan men become "ghosts." "They've been stripped of their hair and their clothes… It's like your life just ceased to exist. You're just a person in white clothes now," Holsinger said. "And it was a sense of watching people disappear." The video above was produced by Will Croxton. It was edited by Sarah Shafer.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
WellSpan doctor, nurse accused of diverting, personally using controlled substances
FRANKLIN COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) — A doctor and registered nurse at WellSpan hospitals in Franklin County are accused of diverting and taking controlled substances meant for patients, charging documents show. Dr. Brian Holsinger, 33, of Shippensburg, at WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital (WCH), and former Registered Nurse Carmen Bartoletti, 39, of Greencastle, who worked at WellSpan Waynseboro Hospital (WWH) and WCH, were both charged Thursday, according to the Attorney General's Office. Investigators were alerted on Nov. 29 about Ketamine found missing at least two different times at WCH, allegedly involving Dr. Holsinger, from a vending system that nurses go through to get the medication for patients. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now The AG's Office says Holsinger, an emergency medicine physician, allegedly admitted when interviewed in March to taking Ketamine in vials and taking it home with him for personal use. The AG's Office says when asked how often, he said a dozen or fewer times. He told investigators the first time he did it in the late summer or early fall of 2023 was an accident. He said he put a vial of leftover Ketamine in his scrub pocket, forgetting about it, and took it home with him. He kept it for a week to see if it would be noticed missing, but when it wasn't, he decided to use it himself, the charges show. Holsinger admitted to taking Ketamine home 'a dozen times or less.' Batoletti is accused of taking medication from the medication vending systems at both hospitals and not wasting the remaining contents. The charging documents outline 18 different times when Bartoletti administered medication such as Morphine, Oxycodone, and Lorazepam to patients, then not documenting the remaining drugs as 'wasted.' Bartoletti claimed she would sometimes forget to waste the remaining medication after she would lock it in a drawer, put it in a container, or sometimes put the vials in her pockets and take them home with her when investigators questioned her. The charges show that when further questioned about putting Morphine vials in her pocket, she had no more explanation. The Department of State suspended Bartoletti's nursing license in December 2024 for missing multiple required drug screenings. Officials say she used diverted drugs for 'personal' use. Both of them face multiple felony charges of acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, along with other misdemeanor charges. Both of them were placed on unsecured bail set at $25,000 each by Magisterial District Judge Glenn Manns. Each of them have preliminary hearings scheduled for April 22. A request for comment was left for WellSpan Friday, but abc27 has yet to hear back as of this writing. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
How one photojournalist documented US deportees' arrival in El Salvador
More than 250 alleged gang members, many of whom were Venezuelan, were deported from the U.S and flown to a prison in El Salvador by the Trump administration on March 15. Photojournalist Philip Holsinger documented their arrival, telling ABC News about capturing the images for Time magazine. "I don't think they were ready for what they saw," Holsinger said. "It's a major military operation where they bring the police and the military together for security purposes and surround the planes. And to put these guys, it takes about 22 buses for this amount of people to transport them to their supermax prison." The administration acknowledged that many of the detainees have no criminal history in the U.S., and lawyers for at least five of them filed declarations stating they have never been gang members. Holsinger said on Monday that he was struck by the detainees' appearances, having previously seen "hardened criminals" during prison transfers. "By the end of the night, there was nobody that was defiant," he said "I mean, the whole process of the intake is so aggressive -- for security reasons, you know, the security forces will tell you -- but it's still, it's very forceful." According to Holsinger, the detainees arrived in the Central American nation on commercial charter flights rather than military aircraft, so there was no way to chain anyone to a seat. "They are shackled in a, you know, a typical shackling of ankles, wrists, and then connected by one chain," Holsinger said. "And you know, they're guarded by special operations from Homeland Security that's on the plane." MORE: Administration invokes state secrets privilege to shield info on deportation flights On Monday, U.S. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett of the District of Columbia Circuit criticized the Trump administration's use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport the men without due process. "Nazis got better treatment under the Alien Enemy Act," Millett said during a court hearing. "People weren't given notice. They weren't told where they were going. Those people on those plans on that Saturday had no opportunity to file habeas [corpus] or any type of action to challenge the removal." Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign argued that President Donald Trump was exercising core presidential powers by deporting Venezuelans whom the administration accused of being violent gang members without providing evidence. The administration also criticized U.S. District Judge James Boasberg for attempting to reverse the deportation flights, alleging that he overstepped his authority. How one photojournalist documented US deportees' arrival in El Salvador originally appeared on
