A bill in California’s legislature adds wine and liquor bottles to the state container redemption program. | Josep Curto/Shutterstock
The California Senate passed a bill that would divert large amounts of glass from the curbside stream into the deposit system by applying a California Redemption Value to wine and liquor bottles.
AF&PA data notes that in 2021 about 80% of U.S. paper mills used some recycled paper and about one-third used only recycled paper. | noomcpk/Shutterstock
The U.S. paper and OCC recycling rates for 2021 were 68.0% and 91.4%, higher than the previous year, the American Forest & Paper Association announced in a press conference May 24.
Colorado is the third state in the U.S. to pass a packaging extended producer responsibility bill, and the first in the 2022 legislative session. | Arturs Budkevics/Shutterstock
While many industry leaders praised the recent passage of a Colorado bill establishing extended producer responsibility for printed paper and packaging, others are calling for Gov. Jared Polis to veto it.
NERC’s survey showed that the blended value for a ton of recyclables in the first quarter of 2022 was down 15% from the previous quarter but up 57% year over year. | Olexandr Panchenko/Shutterstock
The value of curbside recyclables dropped again in the first quarter of 2022, according to a newly released bale study. But pricing remained higher than what was seen during the same period last year.
The introduction of the EPR bill came after lawmakers stripped a prior EPR proposal out of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s executive budget proposal. | Paul Brady Photography/Shutterstock
This story has been updated and corrected.
An extended producer responsibility bill that has the support of environmental activists was recently introduced in New York, while a Colorado EPR bill moved to the Senate floor.
A number of prominent names are financing Myplas USA’s first U.S. polyethylene film recycling plant, to be located in Rogers, Minn., outside of Minneapolis. | Joyce Blessthink/Shutterstock
Brand owners and other private and public entities are investing millions of dollars into a plastic reclaimer’s project to build a 170,000-square-foot film recycling facility in the Upper Midwest.
Call2Recycle is offering a bulk collection service for battery recycling called OneDrum. | Courtesy of Call2Recycle
A battery collection kit sold by Call2Recycle helps communities, MRFs and others reduce the labor needed to sort and prepare batteries for downstream shipment.
Broken down by scrap type, a study found that bottles, non-bottle rigid plastics and other plastics all saw declines individually in 2020. | TeuNg StyLe/Shutterstock
The U.S. is processing more of its scrap plastic domestically, but the overall weight of plastic recycled in 2020 dropped just under 6% from 2019, according to an annual industry report.
Industry leaders detailed how recycling operations have adapted a year into the pandemic.
During a recent virtual panel, the Northeast Resource Recovery Association reported that many recycling facilities are operating at 100% again, after pandemic disruptions. Additionally, a disease expert offered current guidance on preventing spread in facilities.
The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) received market pricing numbers from 16 MRFs in 10 states for its first-quarter 2021 survey. | Max Barnum / Shutterstock
A pricing survey of Northeast U.S. recycling facilities underscores the impact of skyrocketing commodity prices during the first quarter.