Colin Staub is a reporter at Resource Recycling. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Recycled material shipments out of the U.S. have been on the decline for multiple years due to overseas regulatory changes. | MAGNIFIER/Shutterstock
U.S. exports of recycled paper and plastic were down during the first quarter of 2020 compared with previous years, according to new export data.
Technology developer Zabble is working with the University of California, San Francisco to reduce waste and increase diversion. | David Tran Photo/Shutterstock
A data collection and analytics platform is helping a California university improve its landfill diversion. In recent weeks, the platform has also helped combat the spread of COVID-19.
For now, the world’s most populous country continues to approve import licenses for recovered fiber. | peresanz/Shutterstock
China last week enshrined in law its intent to eliminate “solid waste” imports. Even so, the government continues to approve more imports of recovered fiber.
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.
Several weeks after suspending recycling programs, some city officials have reinstated service. | Sundry Photography/Shutterstock
A handful of municipalities have reinstated curbside recycling programs that were suspended due to the coronavirus. Still, dozens of others that curtailed service remain shut down.
Figures show New York City saw an uptick in collected residential material in March compared with a year earlier. | Felix Lipov/Shutterstock
Recycling programs are reporting greater residential recycling generation in March, concurrent with stay-at-home orders issued nationwide. Stakeholders involved with local programs are also noting the shift away from commercial generation may carry major financial implications. Continue Reading
Residential recyclable materials have become an increasingly important feedstock for manufacturers since the coronavirus outbreak. | RawPixel.com/Shutterstock
As the coronavirus impacts continue throughout the U.S., manufacturers are highlighting the importance of curbside recycling as a feedstock supply channel. Meanwhile, processors are seeing changes in demand for their material as consumer spending shifts.
Eight out of the 10 states with container redemption systems have enacted temporary measures limiting deposit returns in some way. | Karolis Kavolelis/Shutterstock
Stay-at-home orders are hitting container deposit systems hard, leading to significant declines in the volumes of high-quality recyclables moving to material processors.
Sonoco’s converted South Carolina machine will have a capacity of about 180,000 tons per year of recycled paperboard. | Steve Heap/Shutterstock
A major end user of recovered fiber will spend $83 million to retool operations in South Carolina and Wisconsin. But the move comes as the company closes a recycled paperboard mill in Canada.
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Aerial view of AeroAggregates’ Eddystone, Pa. facility.
AeroAggregates, a manufacturer of foamed glass aggregate, is developing two new facilities that will substantially increase the company’s capacity to take in MRF glass.