The U.S. continued to ship less scrap plastic overseas during the first half of this year, federal trade data shows. U.S. companies exported 510 million pounds of scrap plastic during the first six months of 2022, down 22% year over year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The bureau recently released June numbers, allowing Resource Recycling to compare the first half of 2022 with the first half of 2021. For years, the amount of plastic being exported has been falling, and this year saw that trend continue. The chart below shows the top 10 downstream destinations for U.S. scrap plastics during the first half of the year.
This article appeared in the September 2022 issue of Resource Recycling. Subscribe today for access to all print content.