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Tag Archives: data

New programs pop up in Iowa redemption deserts

Published: April 24, 2024
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Bottle return at a reverse vending machine.

After a 2022 program overhaul allowed most retailers to opt out of deposit system container collection, a report from Cleaner Iowa found that there are 29 counties without a redemption center. | Veja/Shutterstock

Overhauls to Iowa’s bottle bill in 2022 that allowed retailers to opt out of collection are reducing access, as industry players warned when the bill passed. But redemption centers are stepping up to help solve the problem – including by launching a new bag drop program.  Continue Reading

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Panelists: AI has a bigger role to play in recycling

Published: April 10, 2024
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Panelist Rebecca Hu said during the session that AI is moving beyond robotics and the technology is on track to provide data and create partnerships that could improve the whole value chain. | Big Wave Productions/Resource Recycling

Artificial intelligence is a key element of increasing plastic recycling, panelists at the 2024 Plastics Recycling Conference in Grapevine, Texas, said last month. Continue Reading

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Data quantifies progress on plastic recycling

Published: January 3, 2024
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Research charts on table with pen.

Nine large companies that are part of World Wildlife Fund’s ReSource: Plastic project reported that they increased their average use of recycled plastic from 10.2% in 2021 to 12.0% in 2022. | David Gyung/Shutterstock

Some of the largest brand owners slightly increased the amount of recycled plastic they used globally in 2022. And in the U.S., end market demand for RPET grew notably last year, even as bottle collection slipped. Continue Reading

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US plastic bale exports decrease

Published: August 22, 2023
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Canada remains the top destination for U.S. exports of plastic bales, taking in 10% more of them this year than it did in 2022. | StockStudio/Shutterstock

Exports of recovered plastics fell during the first six months of 2023, newly released federal trade statistics show. Continue Reading

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US recycles 13.3% of packaging, Plastic Pact estimates

Published: February 28, 2023
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recycling plastics packaging

The estimate was derived using data from the U.S. EPA and industry associations APR and NAPCOR. | Photka/Shutterstock

A report from the U.S. Plastics Pact found a national recycling rate of 13.3% for plastic packaging and an overall potentially recyclable, reusable or compostable rate of 36% for Pact members.

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US PET bottle recovery rate increases 1.5 percentage points

Published: December 14, 2022
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PET bottles for recycling.

The increase marks the end of a years-long slide in the country’s PET bottle recovery rate, which had been falling since 2017. | New Africa/Shutterstock

The U.S. PET bottle recovery rate made a notable jump last year, reaching 28.6%, according to an industry report published today. 

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US scrap plastic exports continue to fall

Published: November 15, 2022
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Stacked cargo containers on a ship.

The U.S. exported about 737 million pounds of scrap plastic over the course of the first three quarters of 2022. | Sheila Fitzgerald/Shutterstock

U.S. companies exported about 22% less scrap plastic during the first nine months of this year, continuing a trend of decreased overseas shipments.

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Industry group launches project to gather data, share solutions

Published: August 24, 2022
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Putting bottle into recycling bin.

A new effort from industry group The Recycling Partnership aims to assess and change behavior. | Air Images/Shutterstock

Recycling doesn’t work unless people can put material into the stream, so The Recycling Partnership is expanding its efforts to both understand and change consumer behavior at the bin.
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