JENNIFER GRZESKOWIAK

FORGET HEIDI KLUM. The solid waste industry may be cable television's next big star. The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), Silver Spring, Md., is partnering with Pompano Beach, Fla.-based IPITV, a private production company, for “We're Green and Growing,” a TV series intended to educate the public about what goes on behind the scenes in the industry.

“I think that it will show that the industry and people working in the industry are, in fact, professionals,” says John Skinner, executive director and CEO of SWANA. “And it will teach people that there is quite a bit going on with respect to managing waste. It's not just picking it up and putting it in a hole in the ground.”

The production company was inspired by the ads Houston-based Waste Management has been running on network television promoting the industry as an important part of the community. Impressed with SWANA's work, IPITV approached the association about taking part in a show that would highlight companies and groups that are “doing something unique, doing the right things” when it comes to solid waste management, says Jim Callahan, creative director for IPITV.

The company currently plans to air five episodes over a yearlong period. SWANA will open each episode with a five-minute segment, followed by profiles of various companies and groups, which the association will help IPITV identify. Callahan says that he would like to target waste-to-energy companies, in particular.

The series is slated to begin in the fall on cable channels, possibly including Bravo and Bloomberg TV.