Cheap prime plastics have contributed to tightened margins for some plastics processors. | Nokwan007/Shutterstock
Rock-bottom virgin prices and manufacturing shutdowns tied to the coronavirus have put a significant squeeze on plastics recycling profits of late. Some operators, however, expect conditions to start improving soon.
Authorities allege Plastic World Recycling violated several environmental regulations by dumping chemical and cleaning products into a storm drain. | AVN Photo Lab/Shutterstock
A Pennsylvania plastics recycling company has been accused of dumping pollutants into a waterway near its facility.
The Alliance to End Plastic Waste announced earlier this month it would be supporting a female-led plastics recycling plant in Ghana. | Courtesy of ASASE Foundation.
The Alliance to End Plastic Waste is currently working to implement more than a dozen initiatives worldwide. The group’s leader recently explained key details, as well as how COVID-19 has impacted progress.
Connecticut will begin a phased-in deposit program resumption on May 20. | monticello/Shutterstock
Connecticut retailers will begin accepting deposit containers on a limited basis this week and will ramp up to full service early next month. COVID-19 disruptions to deposit programs continue in other states.
Despite challenges caused by the pandemic starting in March, the first quarter of 2020 showed strong sales for some businesses that use recycled plastic. | Chaosamran_Studio/Shutterstock
Three major recycled plastic consumers recently reported their business performance during the first few months of 2020. They touched on COVID-19, recycled material costs and their outlook for the future.
Natural HDPE inched up this month, but most other post-consumer plastic grades are trading for lower prices.
Campbell’s recently pledged to incorporate 25% recycled plastic in its PET bottles by 2030. | Katherine Welles/Shutterstock
Campbell’s Soup Company, which uses a variety of plastic packaging in addition to its signature steel soup cans, says its PET containers will hit a 25% recycled-content level within a decade.
Officials estimate that 20 projects receiving grants will collectively divert an additional 15,400 tons of post-industrial and post-consumer plastic from landfills each year. | ImagineStock/Shutterstock
North Carolina recently awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to help plastics recycling companies invest in new equipment.
Cement Lock can use scrap plastic to fuel its rotary kilns, which produce an additive used in cement production. | Courtesy of Cement Lock.
A Florida company is working to commercialize a process that uses low-value scrap plastic as fuel in cement production.
An industry analyst recently noted that low virgin resin pricing means challenges for ensuring end users choose to use recycled plastic. | batuhan taskinkaya/Shutterstock
The coronavirus pandemic has piled on top of existing plastics recycling market strife to cause pricing fluctuations and create uncertainty about how end users will meet their sustainability commitments.