Colin Staub is a reporter at Resource Recycling. He can be contacted at [email protected].
ISRI2024 brought together paper, plastics, electronics and metals recycling companies for four days of discussion on key industry topics, leading up to ISRI announcing its new name, ReMA. | Photo courtesy ReMA
Companies from across the materials recovery spectrum gathered at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas last week for the ISRI2024 conference, which culminated in the long-running trade association unveiling a new name. Continue Reading
Sustainable Electronics Recycling International’s survey received 55 responses over two and a half weeks representing 214 facilities worldwide. | Jared Paben/Resource Recycling
A recently published survey of e-scrap companies in the U.S. and abroad offered a look at how many operators are handling plastics recovered from devices. It also provided insights on why a domestic e-plastics processing industry has yet to develop. Continue Reading
Plastic Odyssey has stopped in 20 countries over the last year and a half, working to connect local plastics recycling stakeholders and share recycling knowledge. | Photo courtesy Plastic Odyssey
It’s been nearly 18 months since a 128-foot vessel embarked on a global voyage to share knowledge and equipment with communities facing plastic pollution management challenges. A leader of the Plastic Odyssey project reported on the progress in an interview. Continue Reading
Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative redeemed 2.09 billion containers in 2023, up from 2.05 billion containers in 2022. | Dan Leif/Resource Recycling
An Oregon beverage stewardship group that manages the oldest container deposit program in the country reported a preliminary 2023 redemption rate of 90.5%, the first time the program has topped 90% since 2019.
The FDA gave a nod to several recycled resin products for food-contact use in various temperatures. | Vershinin89/Shutterstock
In the last half of 2023, numerous plastics recycling processes received the greenlight for use in food and drink packaging production. Continue Reading
KW Plastics plans to bring an additional 100 million pounds per year of olefin recycling capacity online in the next few months. | Courtesy of KW Plastics
There are plenty of reasons to be gloomy about recycled resin markets these days. But one of the largest plastics reclaimers in the U.S. is staying focused on a course of expansion, and it’s getting ready to start up an additional 100 million pounds per year of olefin recycling capacity. Continue Reading
A drop in overall plastics collection contributed to a decline in the annual bottle recycling rate, which decreased to 27.8% in 2022. | Mohamed Abdulraheem/Shutterstock
Just over 5 billion pounds of post-consumer plastic was recovered for recycling in 2022, an annual industry report found, marking a decrease from the prior year. One trade association pointed to macroeconomic factors like inflation as driving the lower recovery. Continue Reading
In January 2024, the U.S. imported 52.5 million pounds of scrap PET, over double the amount imported into the country in January 2023. | MarieKaz/Shutterstock
Scrap PET imports reached an all-time single-month record high in January, coming on the heels of a year that brought record-high imports of the post-consumer resin. Continue Reading
A new study placed Apple AirTag and Android Tile tracking devices in 93 bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging and tracked where the material ended up. | Oasisamuel/Shutterstock
An investigation that placed tracking devices in bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging and dropped them off in store collection receptacles around the U.S. found a “failing” drop-off collection system, its authors said. Amazon said it can’t control how material is handled once it enters the recycling system.
The Amazon-focused report, released March 19 and authored by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group and Environment America, is titled “Truth in Recycling: Does Amazon’s plastic packaging actually get recycled?”
Although it takes aim at Amazon’s plastic packaging materials, the U.S. PIRG report is more of an indictment of the plastic film drop-off system in the U.S. It comes on the heels of a similar investigation by ABC News last year, and it comes shortly after the leading directory listing drop-off locations for plastic materials was taken down last year due to funding and concerns about its accuracy.
In the latest report, the authors placed Apple AirTag and Android Tile tracking devices in 93 bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging, including bags and air pillows, and placed them in store drop-off collection locations. Then they tracked where the material ended up.
Of the 93 tracked bundles, 24 ended up at major PE recycling company Trex, 19 went to store distribution centers, 13 ended up in landfills, 13 never left the store they were dropped off at, eight went to transfer stations or “near multiple disposal sites,” four went to MRFs or other sorting facilities, four died in transit, three made it to a port, two went to an incinerator, and one each went to a composting facility, auto dealer and small freight firm.
“The store drop-off system for recycling plastic film is failing,” the authors wrote, adding it provides evidence contradicting Amazon’s claims about packaging recyclability.
“No matter how much Amazon and others say its packaging is ‘recyclable,’ the truth is that plastic never has been widely recycled and likely never will be,” the report states. “The better approach to plastic packaging is to stop producing and using it.”
In a statement to Plastics Recycling Update, Pat Lindner, Amazon’s vice president of sustainable packaging, pointed to the company’s work with The Recycling Partnership and other projects to improve recycling infrastructure.
“Amazon is continuously reducing packaging waste and working to make recycling easier for customers, however, we do not have control over how packaging is handled once it has been disposed of by municipalities or recycling centers,” Lindner said.
Although the largest portion ended up at Trex, the report considers material that ended up at Trex in the same category as material that was landfilled or incinerated. The report acknowledges there are “some positives to Trex’s products,” but it also criticizes Trex as a “downcycler” for using the plastic in decking materials rather than putting it back into packaging.
It also casts doubt on how much of the post-consumer plastic film dropped off in stores, a major collection source Trex has built up as its NexTrex program, makes it into Trex products due to contamination. Trex uses both post-consumer material and cleaner film from commercial sources like warehouses and back-of-house retail locations.
The report indicates it’s unclear what happened to the 19 bundles that were tracked to store distribution centers or warehouses. “It is possible that the trackers died before the plastic was transferred from the distribution center to a recycler, landfill, Trex, or that the plastic could simply be sitting there with no place to go,” the authors wrote.
The sorting facilities that received four of the tracked bundles were K&S Recycling in Vancouver, Washington, which received two tracked loads from New Seasons grocery stores in Portland, Oregon; Independent Recycling Services of Chicago, which received a tracked load from Tony’s Fresh Market in Chicago; and Polyfit in Tecate, Mexico, a plastics reclaimer that received material from a Sprouts store in Culver City, California.
The report’s authors contacted the two MRFs, which confirmed they didn’t accept plastic film – few U.S. MRFs do – and they couldn’t reach the reclaimer in Mexico.
ISRI2024 brought together paper, plastics, electronics and metals recycling companies for four days of discussion on key industry topics, leading up to ISRI announcing its new name, ReMA. | Photo courtesy ReMA
Companies from across the materials recovery spectrum gathered at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas last week for the ISRI2024 conference, which culminated in the long-running trade association unveiling a new name. Continue Reading
Sustainable Electronics Recycling International’s survey received 55 responses over two and a half weeks representing 214 facilities worldwide. | Jared Paben/Resource Recycling
A recently published survey of e-scrap companies in the U.S. and abroad offered a look at how many operators are handling plastics recovered from devices. It also provided insights on why a domestic e-plastics processing industry has yet to develop. Continue Reading
Plastic Odyssey has stopped in 20 countries over the last year and a half, working to connect local plastics recycling stakeholders and share recycling knowledge. | Photo courtesy Plastic Odyssey
It’s been nearly 18 months since a 128-foot vessel embarked on a global voyage to share knowledge and equipment with communities facing plastic pollution management challenges. A leader of the Plastic Odyssey project reported on the progress in an interview. Continue Reading
Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative redeemed 2.09 billion containers in 2023, up from 2.05 billion containers in 2022. | Dan Leif/Resource Recycling
An Oregon beverage stewardship group that manages the oldest container deposit program in the country reported a preliminary 2023 redemption rate of 90.5%, the first time the program has topped 90% since 2019.
The FDA gave a nod to several recycled resin products for food-contact use in various temperatures. | Vershinin89/Shutterstock
In the last half of 2023, numerous plastics recycling processes received the greenlight for use in food and drink packaging production. Continue Reading
KW Plastics plans to bring an additional 100 million pounds per year of olefin recycling capacity online in the next few months. | Courtesy of KW Plastics
There are plenty of reasons to be gloomy about recycled resin markets these days. But one of the largest plastics reclaimers in the U.S. is staying focused on a course of expansion, and it’s getting ready to start up an additional 100 million pounds per year of olefin recycling capacity. Continue Reading
A drop in overall plastics collection contributed to a decline in the annual bottle recycling rate, which decreased to 27.8% in 2022. | Mohamed Abdulraheem/Shutterstock
Just over 5 billion pounds of post-consumer plastic was recovered for recycling in 2022, an annual industry report found, marking a decrease from the prior year. One trade association pointed to macroeconomic factors like inflation as driving the lower recovery. Continue Reading
In January 2024, the U.S. imported 52.5 million pounds of scrap PET, over double the amount imported into the country in January 2023. | MarieKaz/Shutterstock
Scrap PET imports reached an all-time single-month record high in January, coming on the heels of a year that brought record-high imports of the post-consumer resin. Continue Reading
Companies that have voluntarily signed on with the U.S. Plastics Pact used 9.4% post-consumer recycled resin in 2022, up from 8% the prior year. | Saravutpics/Shutterstock
Companies producing a third of all plastic packaging by weight in the U.S. used 9.4% post-consumer recycled resin in 2022, up from 8% the prior year, the U.S. Plastics Pact recently reported. Continue Reading
A new study placed Apple AirTag and Android Tile tracking devices in 93 bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging and tracked where the material ended up. | Oasisamuel/Shutterstock
An investigation that placed tracking devices in bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging and dropped them off in store collection receptacles around the U.S. found a “failing” drop-off collection system, its authors said. Amazon said it can’t control how material is handled once it enters the recycling system.
The Amazon-focused report, released March 19 and authored by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group and Environment America, is titled “Truth in Recycling: Does Amazon’s plastic packaging actually get recycled?”
Although it takes aim at Amazon’s plastic packaging materials, the U.S. PIRG report is more of an indictment of the plastic film drop-off system in the U.S. It comes on the heels of a similar investigation by ABC News last year, and it comes shortly after the leading directory listing drop-off locations for plastic materials was taken down last year due to funding and concerns about its accuracy.
In the latest report, the authors placed Apple AirTag and Android Tile tracking devices in 93 bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging, including bags and air pillows, and placed them in store drop-off collection locations. Then they tracked where the material ended up.
Of the 93 tracked bundles, 24 ended up at major PE recycling company Trex, 19 went to store distribution centers, 13 ended up in landfills, 13 never left the store they were dropped off at, eight went to transfer stations or “near multiple disposal sites,” four went to MRFs or other sorting facilities, four died in transit, three made it to a port, two went to an incinerator, and one each went to a composting facility, auto dealer and small freight firm.
“The store drop-off system for recycling plastic film is failing,” the authors wrote, adding it provides evidence contradicting Amazon’s claims about packaging recyclability.
“No matter how much Amazon and others say its packaging is ‘recyclable,’ the truth is that plastic never has been widely recycled and likely never will be,” the report states. “The better approach to plastic packaging is to stop producing and using it.”
In a statement to Plastics Recycling Update, Pat Lindner, Amazon’s vice president of sustainable packaging, pointed to the company’s work with The Recycling Partnership and other projects to improve recycling infrastructure.
“Amazon is continuously reducing packaging waste and working to make recycling easier for customers, however, we do not have control over how packaging is handled once it has been disposed of by municipalities or recycling centers,” Lindner said.
Although the largest portion ended up at Trex, the report considers material that ended up at Trex in the same category as material that was landfilled or incinerated. The report acknowledges there are “some positives to Trex’s products,” but it also criticizes Trex as a “downcycler” for using the plastic in decking materials rather than putting it back into packaging.
It also casts doubt on how much of the post-consumer plastic film dropped off in stores, a major collection source Trex has built up as its NexTrex program, makes it into Trex products due to contamination. Trex uses both post-consumer material and cleaner film from commercial sources like warehouses and back-of-house retail locations.
The report indicates it’s unclear what happened to the 19 bundles that were tracked to store distribution centers or warehouses. “It is possible that the trackers died before the plastic was transferred from the distribution center to a recycler, landfill, Trex, or that the plastic could simply be sitting there with no place to go,” the authors wrote.
The sorting facilities that received four of the tracked bundles were K&S Recycling in Vancouver, Washington, which received two tracked loads from New Seasons grocery stores in Portland, Oregon; Independent Recycling Services of Chicago, which received a tracked load from Tony’s Fresh Market in Chicago; and Polyfit in Tecate, Mexico, a plastics reclaimer that received material from a Sprouts store in Culver City, California.
The report’s authors contacted the two MRFs, which confirmed they didn’t accept plastic film – few U.S. MRFs do – and they couldn’t reach the reclaimer in Mexico.