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Ethics complaint filed in SB 54 back-and-forth

Published: March 5, 2025
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Baled plastics for recycling.

An anonymous complaint asked California’s Fair Political Practices Commission to investigate Rachel Wagoner for a violation of a ban that prevents former regulators from receiving compensation to work against the state on matters that were under their purview. | Zlikovec/Shutterstock

A formal ethics complaint has been lodged against Rachel Wagoner, formerly the director of the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery who is now with producer responsibility organization Circular Action Alliance. The complaint alleges that she is lobbying her former agency in violation of a state “switching sides” ban. Continue Reading

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PureCycle maintains price expectations for its R-PP resin

Published: March 5, 2025
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Closeup of plastic resins of various colors.

The company’s flagship plant in Ironton, Ohio, is experiencing fewer and less serious issues, amid rapidly growing interest in the chemically recycled resin. | XXL Photo/Shutterstock

Editor’s note: Learn more about food-grade recycled PP and many other topics at the 2025 Plastics Recycling Conference on March 24-26 in National Harbor, Maryland. 

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Oregon is first to approve EPR plan

Published: February 26, 2025
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Oregon capitol building with trees in bloom.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality announced it approved a program plan on Feb. 21. | Yanqiang Dai/Shutterstock

After several years of work, Oregon has approved an extended producer responsibility plan, laying out how packaging producers are expected to fulfill the requirements of the law.   Continue Reading

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Chemical recycling projects receive backing

Published: February 26, 2025
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PET bales stacked for recycling.

Three companies announced funding and other progress toward building chemical recycling capacity. | Menzl Guenter/Shutterstock

Several companies recently announced progress toward chemical recycling capacity, including a developing method to recycle PET that could require much less energy. Continue Reading

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Price spread between color, natural HDPE at record high

Published: February 26, 2025
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The price spread between the two grades of HDPE bales stood at 85.07 cents per pound for February, according to RecyclingMarkets.net data, the highest level the index has tracked in seven years. | Jared Paben/Resource Recycling

The price spread between natural and color HDPE reached a record high in February, as natural bales pricing increased while mixed-color bales remained near historic lows.  Continue Reading

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RPET imports raise industry concerns

Published: February 20, 2025
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Cargo containers stacked at a logistics hub.

Scrap PET imports rose faster than overall scrap plastic imports did last year, continuing what has been an emerging challenge for the domestic plastics recycling industry. | S Oleg/Shutterstock

Domestic RPET market participants have struggled to compete with inexpensive imported material for nearly two years. But the lack of a specific Harmonized Tariff System code obscures the scale of the issue even as PET’s share of scrap imports surpassed 50%.  Continue Reading

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Small-format recycling within reach, Closed Loop finds

Published: February 20, 2025
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Billions of small-format plastic items are produced each year but are lost to landfills or incinerators across the board. | Golden Shrimp/Shutterstock

Editor’s note: Learn more about plastic recycling trends and many other topics at the 2025 Plastics Recycling Conference on March 24-26 in National Harbor, Maryland.  Continue Reading

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Demand, virgin pricing drive runup in PP bale values

Published: February 20, 2025
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Closeup of PP with a chasing arrows recycling symbol.

Both buyers and sellers quoted prices as high as 17 cents per pound in mid-February, citing capacity additions and competition with virgin resin for the runup. | CalypsoArt/Shutterstock

Editor’s note: Learn more about food-grade recycled PP and many other topics at the 2025 Plastics Recycling Conference on March 24-26 in National Harbor, Maryland.  Continue Reading

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Recovered plastic exports decline again in 2024

Published: February 12, 2025
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Scrap plastic exports fell in 2024 while recycled plastics imports rose, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. | Druid007/Shutterstock

Scrap plastic exports fell by about 2% in 2024, according to new trade data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Meanwhile, recycled plastic imports reached record levels, making the U.S. a net importer of the material. Continue Reading

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