The U.S. Secretary of State has indicated U.S. support for a global plastics pollution treaty. | Gerain0812/Shutterstock
The U.S. has signaled support for a worldwide agreement to reduce marine plastic pollution. Meanwhile, the EU is drafting stricter export rules, a watchdog group is mapping plastic dump sites, and researchers shared findings on the greenhouse gas impacts of virgin plastic shipments.
Extruded opaque sheet of thermoplastic from printed film scrap (left) and translucent sheet produced through a supercritical CO2 extrusion process. | Courtesy of AIMPLAS
A form of pressurized carbon dioxide can be used to remove contaminants from post-consumer plastic melt, improving the quality of the final pellets, according to a research organization.
A pilot project at a facility in Denmark is being backed by a number of packaging and recycling stakeholders. | Nordroden / Shutterstock
A European materials recovery facility will install sorting detection equipment to identify digital watermarks on plastic packaging.
With the expansion, the facility will total more than 645,000 square feet. | Courtesy of Swedish Plastic Recycling
A Swedish plastics sortation firm is set to double its capacity and eventually add reclamation equipment on-site. Swedish Plastic Recycling says it will be able to process all plastic packaging collected through residential systems in the country.
Research scientists are working to solve the challenge of recycling artificial turf. | severija / Shutterstock
Efforts in Europe will leverage chemical recycling technologies to recover plastics from two particularly problematic sources: wind turbine blades and artificial turf.
A 100,000-square-foot facility in Spain will have the capacity to process more than 50 million pounds of e-plastics per year. | sonsart/Shutterstock
Spanish plastics recycling operation Fosimpe will enter the mixed-plastics processing sector in the coming weeks, driven not only by the global regulatory environment but by greater public interest in domestic material processing.
New rules took effect Jan. 1, 2021, and scrap plastic traders are already describing a chaotic situation for shipments around the world. | al clark/Shutterstock
U.K. regulators will relax restrictions on scrap plastic storage, in response to what they’re calling “disruption” caused by changes to the Basel Convention.
Approvals were given to two technologies to recycle post-consumer PET bottles into new food and drink packaging. | alenka2194/Shutterstock
A European authority gave the thumbs up to using Starlinger and EREMA technologies to recycle post-consumer PET for use in food and drink packaging.
Currently, PepsiCo uses 30% RPET across the EU. | pixinoo/Shutterstock
PepsiCo will use only post-consumer PET in its plastic beverage packaging for certain brands sold in nine European countries by 2022, the company announced this month.
There are now only a few types of scrap plastic shipments not subject to the new Basel criteria. | Go_Legacy/Shutterstock
Experts with the U.S. EPA say there are a number of potential outcomes from upcoming shifts in global rules governing scrap plastic shipments. Under one possibility, trade in scrap plastic will no longer be allowed between the U.S. and most other countries.