IMPACT IN ACTION
After proving successful in its first year, Worthington extended its cylinder recycling program for the 2024 camping season to a second Connecticut location: Rocky Neck State Park. By the end of the two-year pilot, the program is expected to have collected and diverted nearly 4,000 propane cylinders from the state’s solid waste system. These cylinders are being recycled at a 100% rate, while the residual propane recovered is repurposed.
“We are excited about the promising results of the pilot program,” stated Annie Lane, director of product sustainability, Consumer Products, Worthington Enterprises and chairwoman of the Cylinder Collective. “The Company took the responsibility of developing and executing the pilot program because we want to show that we’re serious about doing our part to recycle and meet the state’s laws. We are committed to being responsible stewards of the environment and partnering with our industry peers to make positive changes.”
The first year of the program took place in Hammonasset Beach State Park Campground in Madison, Connecticut. Working with Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), the Company identified Hammonasset—one of the most visited parks in the state—and strategically set up recycling containers throughout the grounds to collect one-pound propane cylinders. In addition, Worthington worked with park staff to promote the program to visitors and managed the contractor relationship to collect the cylinders and recover any remaining propane before recycling the metal as scrap steel.
This program stemmed from Connecticut legislation passed in 2022 requiring an industry-managed stewardship recycling program for residential gas cylinders. In 2025, the program will be handed off to the Cylinder Collective, a non-profit organization initiated by Worthington and comprised of residential gas cylinder producers, to begin statewide implementation.