In case you missed it: Thoughtful, newsworthy comments from industry professionals, consumers and policymakers.

"Am I making the right strategic decisions, for not only shareholders and customers, but also for 43,000 [employees] who, you know, a lot of them really don't have a voice?"

— Waste Management CEO Jim Fish, in an interview with Waste Dive as part of the Waste Dive Awards for 2017. Fish said his people-first style of leadership is something he thinks about a lot.

"[The team's mission is to] unequivocally always have the best interest of the customer at the core of how we manage recycLA."

— Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation Director Enrique Zaldivar, outlining steps that his department is taking to address concerns and complaints about the city's new franchise collection system.

"Our trees provide valuable wood that can be made into products that can drive economic opportunities to benefit the Virgin Islands. … Treating it like common trash is highly inappropriate."

— Myron Jackson, president of the U.S. Virgin Islands Senate, as reported by the St. Thomas Source. The question of how to dispose storm debris in the Virgin Islands has sparked political debate between the governor and the territory's senate.

"It’s time to make Gainesville a leader in protecting the environment."

— Gainesville, Florida City Commissioner Adrian Hayes-Santos in a phone interview with WUFT. Hayes-Santos recently announced he wants Gainesville to have "the most progressive recycling ordinance in the Southeast." He wants to hit a 75% recycling rate by 2020.

"I don't know that we need to prove anything. The bottom line is there's fewer single use plastic grocery bags being littered today. No matter how you measure it there are fewer single use plastic bags being littered."

— Californians Against Waste Executive Director Mark Murray in a conversation with Waste Dive. A recent release from the group, touting a 72% drop in plastic bag litter, has caused a stir in the controversial politics of plastic bag bans. 

"From a landfill owner's perspective, it's certainly something that should be looked at as part of your overall post-closure and your master plan of your facility, especially if you're in a state that has a good portfolio for renewable energy credits, and if the federal government continues to provide federal tax credits for solar development."

— Solid Waste Association of North America President Jeff Murray in a conversation about installing solar panels on capped landfills. Murray added that concerns about landfills settling over time shouldn't stop an operator from considering post-closure panels.