Fair Trade Recycling launches a takeback offset program in Africa, and rare earth metals will increase in demand. Offset impact: Advocates of legal exports of used electronics often point out that much of the material in crude processing sites was generated in those developing countries themselves. A new initiative from Fair Trade Recycling aims to address the issue in Ghana...

Pharmacies are encouraged to take advantage of a clean HDPE feedstock, and prize money is put up for packaging innovations. Conference report: Successful agricultural plastics recovery relies on cooperation between the many players involved. Particularly important is outreach to farmers, who are the first link in the collection chain. That was a key takeaway from the 2nd International Recycling Forum...

A beverage heavyweight pledges $6 million to the Closed Loop Fund, and a European effort leads to a plastic-free blister pack. Fiber alternative: A new type of blister pack made without plastic has been developed by Swedish paperboard company Iggesund and Norwegian packaging company Moltzau. According to a press release, constructing the common packaging product out of paper rather than...

Arrow Transfer and Storage of Hicksville, N.Y.; iTad Solutions of South San Francisco, Calif.; Shredder's Inc. of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; and WesTex Document of Amarillo, Texas have either achieved or renewed their NAID certifications for physical destruction of hard drives.Synetic Technologies of Kansas City, Mo. announced it has received AAA certification by NAID for mobile and plant-based electronic data...

Residents fear a local government e-scrap collection program will harm charities, and recycling professionals describe the routes they took into the industry. Ghana: The Environmental Protection Agency of Ghana announced it will establish an e-scrap collection center in the country's Ashanti region, in an effort to reduce unsafe handling. Ghana Business News reports the electronics will ultimately be transported to...

Unlike in consumer markets, repairing CRT displays remains a common practice for the aviation industry, and a new phone's screen may look cool but it's prone to breaking. CRT use: Although CRT devices have all but been phased out of the consumer market, CRT usage remains relatively common in cockpits of airplanes. Aviation International News' AINonline estimates there are still thousands...

Researchers explore fluorescence to advance food- and drink-container sortation, and an advanced films manufacturer begins closed-loop recycling with customers' materials. Fluorescent sortation: It's often difficult for sortation systems to detect what a container was used for prior to recycling. Reuters reports British researchers are developing a system that applies phosphor to container labels and uses fluorescent light during sorting to...

A pair of Northeast states accept applications for recycling-related grants, and funds are awarded for a host of initiatives in Midwest and West Coast jurisdictions. Performance-based grants: The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is accepting applications for grants based on recycling achievements during the 2016 calendar year. The Recycling Performance Grants program provides funds according to the weights of recyclable...

A contamination-reduction campaign draws an angry response from some residents, and New York City approves a ban on polystyrene foam food-service items (again). Contamination battle: Waste Management is working to combat high levels of contamination in one California community, but city council members are hearing angry pushback from their constituents. The Lodi News-Sentinel reports that Waste Management will issue fines...

The Middle East finds itself in the "starting phase" of e-scrap management, and Europe's ambitious electronics collection goals may prove challenging to meet. India: The India branch of Chinese manufacturer Xiaomi announced it will begin a new electronics takeback and recycling program in India, accepting a variety of devices including those made by other companies. According to PC Magazine India,...