The US and Canada recycled more than 1.127 billion pounds of PVC in 2024, according to a new study from the Vinyl Institute, only about 4% higher than 2019 levels.
Volumes were only 45 million pounds higher than in 2019, but showed a shift between post-industrial and post-consumer sources of recyclate, according to the report from the Vinyl Institute and data analytics firm Scrapp.
Post-industrial material recycled rose by 10%, to 1.056 billion pounds, driven in part by high landfill costs and strong manufacturer demand for recycled content, the report said.
But post-consumer material fell to 71.3 million pounds, missing the goal set in 2020 by 58%. “This unexpected drop is primarily attributed to a significant slowdown of vinyl flooring replacement projects in the retail market that peaked in 2019,” the report said.
However, the group’s Viability grant program is awarding up to $1 million over each of three years to increase post-consumer recycling capacity, capabilities and technologies.
Awards have included $100,000 to Northeastern University in Boston to study recycling for vinyl used in healthcare, and funding assistance for Israeli startup Plastic Back for a pilot plant in Hebron, Ohio.
The Vinyl Institute also has enhanced its public PVC recycling directory.
Ned Monroe, CEO of the group, said, “The findings underscore a positive outlook: Post-industrial recycling is thriving, and opportunities for post-consumer recovery are significant. Looking ahead, we can clearly see a fruitful path forward through voluntary collaboration and continued innovation across manufacturers, recyclers, and downstream partners.”
Full members of the Vinyl Institute are major US PVC resin producers Westlake, OxyChem, Shintech and Formosa Plastics. Supporting members include Dow, Eastman, ExxonMobil, Geon Performance Solutions, Kaneka, Lubrizol, Surteco and Teknor Apex.
Persistent weakness in the key housing sector
Flooring manufacturer Mohawk Industries has repeatedly noted the soft US housing landscape since 2023, after sales volumes peaked during the 2020-2022 housing and remodeling boom. Sales of flooring including luxury vinyl tile (LVT) or plank (LVP) and flexible sheet have a strong correlation to residential construction trends.
In 2024, US sales of existing homes reached 4.06 million, the lowest level since 1995, according to the National Association of Realtors, amid relatively high mortgage rates and a record high median home sales price. Existing structures represent the majority of home sales.
At the JP Morgan Industrials Conference last month, CFO Steve Bender of PVC producer Westlake said about 60% of the company’s vinyl demand is from building products including water and sewage pipes, fittings, siding and trim.
Moving forward
“The growth of post-industrial recycling shows that the material is not the issue — logistics and/or economics are holding back post-consumer material recycling from growing at the same rate,” the report said.
“Ultimately, if processes are perfected for post-industrial recycling, then this expertise may be carried over to the more complex post-consumer side.” Looking ahead, the industry aims to develop strategies to increase post-consumer PVC recycling.
Despite the study results, the Vinyl Institute acknowledged “recyclers across North America who have long understood PVC’s circular potential despite limited systematic support.”
Due to its high chlorine levels as well as significant amounts of additives such as plasticizers to increase flexibility, PVC traditionally has been included among hard-to-recycle materials, given its incompatibility with infrastructure designed for other polymers such as PET and HDPE.
In addition, because of its concentration in the construction sector, the polymer is often mixed in with construction debris rather than curbside collection.
Recycling also can be unattractive due to intensive sorting requirements and limited end-use demand, making recovered materials less valuable than PET and HDPE. In addition, as with many polymers, virgin resin is relatively inexpensive and disincentivizes the use of recycled resin.
The report was “designed to help industry stakeholders establish a credible baseline for PVC recycling efforts, inform future targets and explore potential strategies for accelerating PVC recycling in North America,” the Vinyl Institute said.
