Prices for curbside recyclables have surged across the board, with OCC and mixed paper values increasing sharply and natural HDPE crossing the $1 threshold for the first time.
A substantial EPR bill is moving forward in the Oregon legislature. | Grindstone Media Group / Shutterstock
Bills establishing extended producer responsibility for packaging materials were introduced in a handful of states this year. Several have failed to gain traction, but at least two key proposals remain active.
More than 100 employees will be hired to work at Brightmark’s upcoming $680 million Georgia plant. | Frank Fiedler / Shutterstock
Brightmark recently announced it will build a second facility bringing in mixed plastics for chemical recycling. To be located in Georgia, the plant will have a processing capacity of 800 million pounds per year.
An expanded list of beverages will be covered in Connecticut’s bottle-deposit program under a new piece of legislation on the governor’s desk. | alexs333 / Shutterstock
Connecticut lawmakers passed legislation overhauling the state’s 41-year-old container deposit program, with one supporter calling the move the most significant U.S. bottle bill expansion in a decade.
Officials estimate shifting funding responsibility completely to producers will save municipalities an estimated 156 million Canadian dollars (about $129 million U.S.) per year. | Sunset Blue / Shutterstock
The Ontario government will make producers fully financially responsible for recycling their products, a major expansion of the province’s extended producer responsibility system. The changes will come into effect within the next four years.
A Maine committee vote of “ought to pass” for LD 1541 sets it up for possible votes by the full House and Senate chambers. | RawPixel.com / Shutterstock
A committee in Maine’s legislature advanced a bill that gives government officials direct control over how much money producers would be forced to pay to support the recycling of their packaging.
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Recovered fiber end users detailed the impacts of rising OCC prices in their quarterly reports. | BAO Images Bildaentur / Shutterstock
Major recovered paper end users anticipate paying more for feedstock as 2021 progresses, according to recent statements from company executives. Mill operators also shared updates on their recycled fiber capacity expansions.
Recycling industry groups are lobbying for federal infrastructure spending in materials recovery. | Gary Blakeley / Shutterstock
As federal elected officials debate significant investments in the nation’s infrastructure, recycling and composting stakeholders are pushing them to steer some of that money into materials recovery.
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U.S. exports of scrap plastics increased in the first quarter of 2021, with Malaysia as the largest overseas destination. | WWK Photography / Shutterstock
Recovered material exports were up in the first three months of 2021 compared with the prior year. India dominated the paper export market, and Canada brought in nearly a third of all exported plastic.
Financial documents show TerraCycle US saw double-digit growth in the company’s Zero Waste Boxes program. | Postmodern Studio / Shutterstock
Coronavirus-related closures hurt financial performance for TerraCycle US last year, but increased profitability in the company’s Zero Waste Boxes business helped buffer the impacts.