The National Recycling Coalition (NRC) has cancelled its 2009 Annual Congress & Expo, slated to be held this fall in Portland, Ore. The organization made the move after conducting “an extensive analysis of likely attendance and exhibitor and sport financial support,” according to a letter sent from the NRC board to coalition members.

The board also has begun discussions about a “formal relationship” with Keep America Beautiful, according to another letter it sent to NRC members.

“The Board of Directors of the National Recycling Coalition, Inc. has decided that it is in the best interests of the organization, its mission, and its membership to pursue a formal relationship with Keep America Beautiful, Inc.,” the letter says. “We are unified in our support for this decision, which was reached only after many months of careful consideration and due diligence on an array of strategic options for NRC, to include partnering or more formal arrangements with a number of other organizations, as well as downsizing and even ceasing operations. Today’s extraordinary times required extraordinary imagination and measures if NRC were [sic] to have a vibrant future.”