Abstract Although the level of recycling activities fluctuates over time, the underlying driving forces point to the overall increase of these activities. For PET flake, thermal kilns can be used to selectively degrade minor amounts of PVC impurities, as PVC turns black on heating, enabling colour-sorting. (2) Waste storage, choosing carts (manual or automatic, 55 gallon to 120 gallon), dumpsters (compacting or non-compacting, 2 yard to 12 cubic yard), or roll-offs (15 to 30 cubic yards) with consideration for storage capacity and collection frequency. In addition, the wide range of containers and packs for branding and marketing purposes makes direct take-back and refilling less feasible. ABSTRACT Purpose Recent UK legislation requires businesses to segregate their food waste and present metal, plastic, glass and paper waste for collection separately. Together with feedstock recycling (1.7 per cent) and energy recovery (22.5 per cent), this amounted to a total recovery rate of approximately 39 per cent from the 21.1 million tonnes of plastic waste generated in 2003 (figure3). Recycling plastic packaging, Accessibility The evaluation process includes a review by purchasing officials to eliminate those proposals that do not meet technical and legal requirements as well as an objective analysis of the service proposed based on a weighted evaluation sheet, narrowing the list of vendors to a select few. Recycling of cross-linked rubber from car tyres back to rubber crumb for re-manufacture into other products does occur and this is expected to grow owing to the EU Directive on Landfill of Waste (1999/31/EC), which bans the landfill of tyres and tyre waste. The hierarchy of steps for integrated MSW is to first reduce or reuse, then incineration, and finally landfilling is the least preferred alternative. Solid Waste. However, if plastics are recycled into products that were previously made from other materials such as wood or concrete, then savings in requirements for polymer production will not be realized (Fletcher & Mackay 1996). Terminology used in different types of plastics recycling and recovery. Composting. 2005) and these find greater positive environmental benefits for mechanical recycling over landfill and incineration with energy recovery. The ability to substitute recycled plastic for virgin polymer generally depends on the purity of the recovered plastic feed and the property requirements of the plastic product to be made. HHS Vulnerability Disclosure, Help more here. Closed-loop recycling is most practical when the polymer constituent can be (i) effectively separated from sources of contamination and (ii) stabilized against degradation during reprocessing and subsequent use. Garage Services. Introduction to Recycling. For example, a small amount of PVC contaminant present in a PET recycle stream will degrade the recycled PET resin owing to evolution of hydrochloric acid gas from the PVC at a higher temperature required to melt and reprocess PET. Here the collection rate of PET bottles was 74 per cent of sales, compared with 36 per cent of sales in other states with kerbside collection only. Infectious wastes are typically generated as a result of biological, medical, or pathological activities. (4) A recycling coordinator (preferably full-time) can be appointed to develop and manage the program. A model of plastics recycling: does recycling reduce the amount of waste? (5) A recycling committee (e,g., ad hoc task force, standing recycling committee) can provide feedback, oversight, and continuity. Abstract: Solid Waste and Recycling For many people, municipal solid waste management is "out of sight, out of mind." In this era of increasing regulatory oversight (and the university community demanding greater environmental stewardship), the disposition of an item is considered before it is even purchased. Thermoplastics, including PET, PE and PP all have high potential to be mechanically recycled. Recycling | An Open Access Journal from MDPI 4.40 3.66 while the amount of msw produced ent up per person per day, recycling ha also increased. Environmental Protection Agency,(March 1996 ). NATO ASI Series, vol 351. Plastics are inexpensive, lightweight and durable materials, which can readily be moulded into a variety of products that find use in a wide range of applications. We will focus on production and disposal of packaging as this is the largest single source of waste plastics in Europe and represents an area of considerable recent expansion in recycling initiatives. 2009; Teuten et al. Once variation in recycling due to recycling-knowledge is accounted for . Abstract. Greenpeace USA argues that No. Composting is used to recycle organic material (e.g., leaves, food waste, even low-grade papers). plastic lumber as an alternative to higher cost/shorter lifetime timber, this is secondary recycling (ASTM Standard D5033). For large campuses, it might be necessary to phase in a recycling program by geographic campus regions or by types of recyclables collected. Institutions complete the loop by buying recycled products and identifying recycled- content products that are equivalent in price and quality to virgin products whenever possible, evaluating for price, quality, and user comfort. *Berger, M., & Goldfarb, J.L. Waste Reduction Behaviors at Home, at Work, and on Holiday: What A good place to start is changing the products that are purchased (e.g., avoiding excessive and unneeded packaging, using new products or equipment that require less use of the product). a CO2-e is GWP calculated as 100-yr equivalent to CO2 emissions. Incineration reduces the need for landfill of plastics waste, however, there are concerns that hazardous substances may be released into the atmosphere in the process. J. Fava et al., A Technical framework for life - cycle assessments, Workshop Report, (August 18-23, 1990 ), Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Smugglers Notch, Vermont. Historically, the primary methods of waste disposal have been by landfill or incineration. The volumes of post-consumer waste are, however, up to five times larger than those generated in commerce and industry (Patel et al. substitution of heavy packaging formats with lighter ones, or downgauging of packaging). The driver (1) was legislation and the aim to decrease environmental impacts. A systematic review in recycling/reusing/re-manufacturing supply chain Optical sorters can be used to differentiate between clear, light blue, dark blue, green and other coloured PET containers. FOIA Landfill is the conventional approach to waste management, but space for landfills is becoming scarce in some countries. Use of different media can allow separation of PS from PET, but PVC cannot be removed from PET in this manner as their density ranges overlap. In the UK, dramatic increases in collection of the plastic bottle waste stream was only apparent after the relatively recent implementation of kerbside recycling (figure2). Consequently, waste glass recycling base has a . INNOVATIVE RECYCLING AND WASTE REDUCTION PARTNERSHIP RUTLAND, Vt. (June 3, 2016) - Casella Waste Systems, Inc. and its customer and collaborator Hypertherm of Lebanon, N.H. have been recognized for their work and innovation around industrial recycling and waste reduction by the New Hampshire Businesses for Social Responsibility (NHBSR). Managers must carefully consider the many choices available to determine the type of system that will best suit their campus, either contracting the service or providing it with in-house forces. Given the difficulty of instituting waste reduction practices, waste reduction can be the most effective method in terms of cost and operational considerations. 2009b). Sample Abstract - Environmental and Natural Resources If the institution decides to use contractors, the request for proposal is a starting point; it considers service frequency, equipment type, collection equipment redundancy, safety history, bonding capacity, access to material recovery and disposal facilities, recyclable market contracts, educational programming, and value-added services. (1) Policy statements can make recycling mandatory and emphasize waste reduction and recycled product purchases. Recycling of plastics is one method for reducing environmental impact and resource depletion. Examples are plastic crates and bins manufactured from HDPE recovered from milk bottles, and PET fibre from recovered PET packaging. 2003). In terms of energy use, recycling has been shown to save more energy than that produced by energy recovery even when including the energy used to collect, transport and re-process the plastic (Morris 1996). Flow control is growing in popularity among state and local government officials because it allows them to control where waste is taken, thus greatly affecting facilities managers disposal options. Frontiers in the Science and Technology of Polymer Recycling, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1626-0_1, Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout. The Vermonters' Guide to Recycling poster is available in (Arabic), Bosnian, Franais (French), (Nepali), Espaol (Spanish), and Swahili.. 1. In the UK, total use of plastics in both domestic and commercial packaging is about 40 kg per person per year, hence it forms approximately 78% by weight, but a larger proportion by volume of the MSW stream (Waste Watch 2003). government site. Recycling is published bimonthly online by MDPI. Growth in collection of plastic bottles, by bring and kerbside schemes in the UK (WRAP 2008d). Many administrators want recycling to reduce overall costs, but facilities managers should not overlook costs or inappropriately assign them to another cost center, which risks a reduced recycling scope in the future because of a lack of financial support. These only have slight deterioration in clarity from virgin PET, and are being used at 3050% replacement of virgin PET in many applications and at 100 per cent of the material in some bottles. Refuse Disposal and Collection. 2023 Springer Nature Switzerland AG. Biodegradable plastics can also be composted, and this is a further example of tertiary recycling, and is also described as organic or biological recycling (see Song et al. In the UK, a landfill tax has been applied, which is currently set to escalate each year until 2010 in order to increase the incentive to divert wastes from landfill to recovery actions such as recycling (DEFRA 2007). Post-consumer recycling therefore comprises of several key steps: collection, sorting, cleaning, size reduction and separation, and/or compatibilization to reduce contamination by incompatible polymers. 2003; Perugini et al. However, biodegradable plastics also have the potential to complicate waste management when introduced without appropriate technical attributes, handling systems and consumer education. The application of laser-sorting systems is likely to increase separation of WEEE and automotive plastics. Various methods exist for flake-sorting, but traditional PET-sorting systems are predominantly restricted to separating; (i) coloured flakes from clear PET flakes and (ii) materials with different physical properties such as density from PET. Terminology for plastics recycling is complex and sometimes confusing because of the wide range of recycling and recovery activities (table2). UG! A major challenge for producing recycled resins from plastic wastes is that most different plastic types are not compatible with each other because of inherent immiscibility at the molecular level, and differences in processing requirements at a macro-scale. In this paper, we will review the current systems and technology for plastics recycling, life-cycle evidence for the eco-efficiency of plastics recycling, and briefly consider related economic and public interest issues. There are additional issues associated with variations in the quantity and quality of supply compared with virgin plastics. Success is measured in various ways. Energy-recovery processes may be the most suitable way for dealing with highly mixed plastic such as some electronic and electrical wastes and automotive shredder residue. Life-cycle analyses has also been used for plastic-recycling systems to evaluate the net environmental impacts (Arena et al. The importance of education cannot be overstated, especially at the start of a new program. As a consequence, the production of plastics has increased markedly over the last 60 years. The useful energy recovered can vary considerably depending on whether it is used for electricity generation, combined heat and power, or as solid refuse fuel for co-fuelling of blast furnaces or cement kilns. To maximize the cost efficiency of these programmes, most kerbside collections are of co-mingled recyclables (paper/board, glass, aluminium, steel and plastic containers). Legal implications affect three areas: (1) legislation, with more than 15 major federal laws that pertain to the environment having been passed since 1970, subtitle D of the RCRA empowers the EPA to require states to submit solid waste plans for the disposal of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW), (2) regulatory agencies, each state has its own regulatory agency that acts much like the EPA, directly impacting solid waste disposal practices at institutions of higher education and (3) flow control, a growing component of MSW management that has designated approved disposal sites for various categories of MSW. Prepared for Council for Solid Waste Solutions. Markets for construction and demolition debris (e.g., building materials) are sometimes difficult to find but available, so facilities managers should incorporate recycling of construction and demolition materials into contract language. Abstract Barker et al investigate the congruence of 102 college students' self-reported paper-recycling behaviors and attitudes with actual behavior. Posted by As the manufacture of plastics also requires energy, its production is responsible for the consumption of a similar additional quantity of fossil fuels. In: Akovali, G., Bernardo, C.A., Leidner, J., Utracki, L.A., Xanthos, M. (eds) Frontiers in the Science and Technology of Polymer Recycling. I have been pulling my hair out the last two days trying to condense my 10-page recycling report, available here: http://www.greenerpackage.com/recycling, to 600 words for publication in PlasticsNews! five times as the totalamount of msw going to frm 145.3 million landfills dropped to 134 million tons Systemic barriers (e.g., decentralized purchasing, specifications, price) can obstruct the purchase of recycled goods. Approximately 50 per cent of plastics are used for single-use disposable applications, such as packaging, agricultural films and disposable consumer items, between 20 and 25% for long-term infrastructure such as pipes, cable coatings and structural materials, and the remainder for durable consumer applications with intermediate lifespan, such as in electronic goods, furniture, vehicles, etc. Extended producer responsibility can also be enacted through deposit-refund schemes, covering for example, beverage containers, batteries and vehicle tyres. Innovative technologies for the removal of organics and surface contaminants from flakes include dry-cleaning, which cleans surfaces through friction without using water. Recycling plastic, (6) The waste stream and disposal process can be analyzed to understand the campus waste life-cycle (e.g., classify buildings, examine a few buildings in each class over a period of time, gain insight into how and what waste is generated and sent to disposal). Once in- house services are contracted to vendors, reestablishing in-house capabilities is difficult and expensive. There are, however, developments in this area and new technologies such as ballistic separators, sophisticated hydrocyclones and air-classifiers that will increase the ability to recover post-consumer flexible packaging (Fisher 2003). 2018 Dordan Manufacturing Company, Incorporated. Even when a plastic item degrades under the influence of weathering, it first breaks down into smaller pieces of plastic debris, but the polymer itself may not necessarily fully degrade in a meaningful timeframe. Tertiary recycling is either described as chemical or feedstock recycling and applies when the polymer is de-polymerized to its chemical constituents (Fisher 2003). The losses of rejected material and the value of the recycled resins would be enhanced. When choosing storage devices, the benefits and costs must be compared by cost, accessibility, environmental concerns, frequency and difficulty of maintenance and cleaning, impact on regulations, and the potential for on- the-job-injury. Other separation techniques such as air elutriation can also be used for removing low-density films from denser ground plastics (Chandra & Roy 2007), e.g. A. Ntim, Selected Topics in Environmental Management, (1993). 2008). Collection of used plastics from households is more economical in suburbs where the population density is sufficiently high to achieve economies of scale. Local or State Requirements. These include four categories: primary (mechanical reprocessing into a product with equivalent properties), secondary (mechanical reprocessing into products requiring lower properties), tertiary (recovery of chemical constituents) and quaternary (recovery of energy). and transmitted securely. 2005). Sorting of co-mingled rigid recyclables occurs by both automatic and manual methods. Although, it should be noted that the ability to maintain whatever residual level of material input, plus the energy inputs and the effects of external impacts on ecosystems will decide the ultimate sustainability of the overall system. Needs action on sorting and separation, plus development of further outlets for recycled PP, poor, extremely difficult to cost-effectively separate from co-mingled collection, separate collection of industrial packaging and EPS foam can be effective. This trend for both rates of mechanical recycling and energy recovery to increase is continuing, although so is the trend for increasing waste generation. However, it can also be argued that use of lightweight plastics can reduce usage of fossil fuels, for example in transport applications when plastics replace heavier conventional materials such as steel (Andrady & Neal 2009; Thompson et al. PDF Infographic full-060513 - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Chemical recycling of PET has been more successful, as de-polymerization under milder conditions is possible. Bethesda, MD 20894, Web Policies Hence, the general trend is for collection of recyclable materials through kerbside collection alongside MSW. This is not surprising as it is effectively reversing the energy-intensive polymerization previously carried out during plastic manufacture. All Rights Reserved. Chandler Slavin on Oct 16, 2012 4:53:00 PM, Topics: These systems also have the capability to separate polymer by type or grade and can also separate polyolefinic materials such as PP from HDPE. Cost-Benefit Analysis. An official website of the United States government. M. Z. Hauschild, B. These are the price of the recycled polymer compared with virgin polymer and the cost of recycling compared with alternative forms of acceptable disposal. Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article. How Two Vermont Brothers Built, Trashed, Then Revived Their $1.8 Feedstock recycling of polyolefins through thermal-cracking has been performed in the UK through a facility initially built by BP and in Germany by BASF. This indicates a historical growth rate of about 9 per cent p.a. Biodegradable plastics have the potential to solve a number of waste-management issues, especially for disposable packaging that cannot be easily separated from organic waste in catering or from agricultural applications. Recycling packaging, Recycle Like You Live Here Three Easy Steps Energy recovery from waste plastics (by transformation to fuel or by direct combustion for electricity generation, use in cement kilns and blast furnaces, etc.) manufacture into a re-usable container, which once entering the waste stream is collected and recycled into a durable application that when becoming waste in its turn, is recovered for energy. Abstract of Recycling Report for PlasticsNews UG! Incineration can be used with recovery of some of the energy content in the plastic. A true hierarchy may not be a realistic option given the amount and type of resources devoted to MSW management at the institution. 2009; Teuten et al. Recycling, Economics dictate that most manufacturers will already use close to the minimum required material necessary for a given application (but see Thompson et al. Facilities managers can purchase chemicals in smaller quantities to offset high disposal costs of unused chemicals. Inclusion in an NLM database does not imply endorsement of, or agreement with, The same logic applies to durable consumer goods designing for disassembly, recycling and specifications for use of recycled resins are key actions to increase recycling. b Usage was for the aggregate EU-15 countries across all market sectors in 2002. c Typical values for water and greenhouse gas emissions from recycling activities to produce 1 kg PET from waste plastic (Perugini et al. This is a large topic that cannot be covered in this paper, except to note that it is desirable that compostable and degradable plastics are appropriately labelled and used in ways that complement, rather than compromise waste-management schemes (see Song et al. All recycling programs benefit from pilot program equipment testing, waste stream analysis, and a plan to alert customers of possible changes in the recycling program. New approaches such as laser-sorting systems can be used to remove other impurities such as silicones and nylon. Other Recyclables. One contribution of 15 to a Theme Issue Plastics, the environment and human health. After rebounding from a few bad decisions and rotten timing over the past two decades, the brothers . can be used to reduce landfill volumes, but does not reduce the demand for fossil fuels (as the waste plastic was made from petrochemicals; Garforth et al. Sink/float separation in water can effectively separate polyolefins (PP, HDPE, L/LLDPE) from PVC, PET and PS. Many states reclassify wastes more stringently than the EPA, therefore the state, not the federal classification will most likely be what managers will have to know to determine proper disposal methods for campus waste. J. E. McCarthy, Recycling and reducing packaging waste: How the United States compares to other countries, Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 8 (1993) pp 293 - 360, CrossRef Recycling is clearly a waste-management strategy, but it can also be seen as one current example of implementing the concept of industrial ecology, whereas in a natural ecosystem there are no wastes but only products (Frosch & Gallopoulos 1989; McDonough & Braungart 2002). Some shift away from single-use plastic carrier bags to reusable bags has also been observed, both because of voluntary behaviour change programmes, as in Australia (Department of Environment and Heritage (Australia) 2008) and as a consequence of legislation, such as the plastic bag levy in Ireland (Department of Environment Heritage and Local Government (Ireland) 2007), or the recent banning of lightweight carrier bags, for example in Bangladesh and China. However, while technically feasible it has generally been found to be uneconomic without significant subsidies because of the low price of petrochemical feedstock compared with the plant and process costs incurred to produce monomers from waste plastic (Patel et al. 2007). Recycling is a process that converts the used material into usable after processing. Before