In communities around the country, recycling programs are limiting the materials they collect, altering service hours or shutting down altogether. | Oksana Shturo/Shutterstock
Recycling programs nationwide have curtailed service due to the coronavirus pandemic, potentially hampering the supply of scrap plastics moving to reclaimers in the weeks to come.
The federal government and states that have issued “stay-at-home” orders have decided recycling businesses are “essential.” | youkatan/Shutterstock
In the states that have issued stay-at-home orders, companies engaged in recycling processing or plastic product manufacturing are not subject to forced shutdowns.
How2Recycle Staff emphasize that knowing what not to recycle is just as important as knowing what to recycle. | Dan Leif/Resource Recycling, Inc.
A recent Greenpeace report noted companies are increasingly calling a wider variety of products “recyclable.” | Marko Rupena/Shutterstock
Environmental advocacy group Greenpeace USA released its findings that products made from plastics Nos. 3-7 are being billed as widely recyclable despite low MRF acceptance nationwide.
Holli Alexander of Eastman Chemical said collection unknowns are part of the current chemical recycling landscape. | Plastics Recycling Conference / Brian Adams Photography
When it comes to development and commercialization of chemical recycling technologies, interest is high. A chemical recycling workshop at last week’s Plastics Recycling Conference and Trade Show was sold out, with over 300 attendees.
How2Recycle announced that all PP tubs, trays, bottles and cups will now be labeled with the organization’s “check locally” label. | Josep Curto/Shutterstock
Changes in U.S. recycling programs led the How2Recycle labeling initiative to downgrade recyclability classifications for non-bottle rigid PET containers and certain PP products, potentially impacting recovery of those materials.
Greg Janson of plastics reclaimer QRS Recycling knows all too well what happens when material suppliers aren’t informed about load quality.
After used nets are collected, they undergo a cleaning and drying process before they’re baled and sent to a reclaimer.
A consortium focused on recovering marine plastics for recycling has rolled out its first product: an office chair made with recycled nylon.
Through the Bradley Beach, N.J. partnership, SC Johnson is providing financial support to assist with infrastructure costs. | Courtesy of SC Johnson
SC Johnson recently launched a pilot curbside film collection program in a small New Jersey community. Rather than mix film into existing single-stream recycling, the program has residents use a dedicated container.
The Recycling Partnership has identified three key initiatives to improve the current recycling system.
PET collection is lagging behind recycled resin demand by more than 1 billion pounds per year, according to a study, and investment of $500 million is needed to improve the situation.