According to the European Commission, an estimated 100 billion plastic carrier bags are used in the European Union every year – an average of almost 200 bags per capita. Around 90 percent of these are lightweight bags (thinner than 0.05 millimeters), and most are used only once before being thrown away.
The mayor of Chicago presented his 2017 budget proposal to the City Council last week and it includes a 7-cent fee on all paper and plastic bags given out at stores.
Greg Janson of plastics reclaimer QRS Recycling knows all too well what happens when material suppliers aren’t informed about load quality.
The national average price of post-consumer PET beverage bottles has been rising steadily since January. On Jan. 3, the national average price was 10.8 cents per pound and has moved up 39.8 percent to the current 15.1 cents per pound.
Scrap plastics recently enjoyed a month-to-month rise in shipments abroad. Paper and metals, however, were marked by declines.
Plastic products sold in California with “biodegradable” and “compostable” printed on their labels cost Walmart nearly $1 million in a settlement earlier this month.
The California Attorney General announced today the state has filed a lawsuit against ENSO Plastics, Aquamantra and Balance Water for allegedly falsely claiming their plastic bottles were biodegradable. Continue Reading
The City of Calgary’s curbside recycling program has accepted plastic bags since it was rolled out in 2009, but it has faced a recurring issue: residents tossing them in the cart loose, instead of in bundles. This year, an outreach campaign aimed to address the problem head-on.
Kelly Semrau, SC Johnson
For years, the plastics recycling sector has aimed to keep plastic film out of curbside bins and carts, in an effort to both keep the material clean and avoid the well-documented problems bags and other items cause at recycling facilities.