NRRA names new executive director

Epson, New Hampshire-based Northeast Resource Recovery Association (NRRA) has announced Reagan Bissonnette as the NRRA’s new executive director.

Bissonnette is currently the senior director of Easement Stewardship & Counsel at the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. Prior to joining the Forest Society, Bissonnette practiced law as a corporate attorney at global Boston-based law firm Ropes & Gray LLP. She will join the NRRA effective June 10.

The NRRA is one of the leading nonprofit organizations in New England focused on waste reduction and recycling. Since its founding in 1981, the NRRA’s membership has grown to include more than 400 municipalities, individuals and businesses in New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Southern Maine. As part of its work, the NRRA serves its members and the public by helping municipalities manage their waste and recyclable materials in a cost-effective way, while engaging in advocacy and education on waste reduction and recycling to help make New England more sustainable, the association says in a news release.

“The NRRA has a long history of serving New England by helping municipalities and their residents conserve our scarce resources,” Bissonnette says. “I am deeply honored to be leading the NRRA into the future as the public and municipalities face considerable challenges concerning how to recover and recycle the resources we use daily.”

She adds, “I believe that effective waste management and resource recovery is one of the most pressing environmental issues of our time.  I look forward to working with municipalities and their residents throughout New England to help meet these challenges, which I believe present opportunities for growth and innovation.”

Bissonnette joins the NRRA with a background in nonprofit management and law. While at the Forest Society, Bissonnette led one of the organization’s largest departments, advised the Forest Society on legal matters and leveraged technology to support the organization’s mission. As a corporate attorney, Bissonnette worked on complex mergers and acquisitions and advised for-profit and nonprofit clients on best practices in corporate governance.

NRRA Executive Director Mike Durfor announced earlier this year that he would be retiring from his position after 10 years growing the organization.

“At each step of the hiring process, the selection committee of the board found even more layers of Reagan’s qualifications and aptitude for this important position,” remarks Duncan Watson, NRRA board president and assistant director of public works for Keene, New Hampshire. “Reagan brings a unique breadth of experience, from nonprofit management to a personal passion for waste reduction. We have no doubt that she will continue Mike Durfor’s excellent leadership and help New England communities meet the unique challenges that exist in the resource recovery and waste management industries today.”