— Gary Liss, vice president of Zero Waste USA, on what to do if China's proposed import ban is implemented.

"Although we do not see a material impact to our overall business, we believe this action does create further uncertainty in forecasting recycling price levels."

— Jim Fish, CEO of Waste Management, during the company's Q2 earnings call, on the pending Chinese import ban. Fish expressed confidence in Waste Management's sorting capabilities around targeted commodities.

"Everything is uncertain."  

— Adina Adler, senior director of international relations for the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), in a conversation with Waste Dive, on the possibility of further import restrictions from China. Adler said China could target mixed metals and other high-value scrap, like iron, steel and aluminum.

"There’s a lot of BS in solid waste and recycling. There’s a lot of people who substitute hopes for facts, and a lot of people, I think, have made the unfortunate mistake of saying this is all easier than it really is." 

— Chaz Miller, outgoing NWRA directory of police and advocacy, on advice that he'd give to young industry professionals, in an interview with Waste Dive. Miller added that young people entering the industry should be skeptical and ask questions.

"Thank God, there's only one California in the nation, and beyond that, thank God, there's only one Los Angeles, because there couldn't be a worse political governmental communist environment in the nation. We've never had [a situation like Chiquita Canyon] in the history of our landfills and we won't have another one."

— Waste Connections CEO Ron Mittelstaedt during his company's Q2 earnings call, on a controversial landfill project in California. Mittelstaedt said that he didn't expect the Chinese import ban to seriously effect his company's earnings, but cautioned that commodity markets are always unpredictable.