The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC), Brattleboro, Vermont, will host two webinars in December. The first, Recycled Content in Paper: Opportunities and Challenges, is scheduled for Dec. 2 at 2 p.m. eastern, while A Global Perspective on Plastic is scheduled for Dec. 8 at 3 p.m. eastern.
Recycled Content in Paper: Opportunities & Challenges addresses current marketplace dynamics and opportunities for recycled-content paper. Speakers include Terry Webber, executive director of packaging, American Forest & Paper Association; and Laura Rowell, director of global sustainability, Sonoco Products Co.
Rowell speaks on Sonoco's paper packaging recycled-content initiatives, the types of products that rely on mixed paper and international projects to introduce innovation in package recycling.
Webber provides an overview of paper recycling in the U.S. and globally, how markets are shifting, the use of mixed paper in products and the role of minimum-recycled-content requirements.
In A Global Perspective on Plastics, attendees hear about the challenges associated with plastic use, recycling and disposal. Panelists Dave Ford of the Ocean Plastics Leadership Council, Erin Simon of the World Wildlife Fund and Yoni Shiran of Sytemig discuss what their organizations are doing to address plastic use, waste and recycling.
Closed Loop Partners maps plastic recycling infrastructure, packaging waste in new tool
The tool is designed to guide investors, brands, entrepreneurs and policymakers to make data-driven decisions and collaborate on plastics circularity, according to the firm.
Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy has released its U.S. and Canada Recycling Infrastructure and Plastic Waste Map, a new tool that is part of the New York City-based company’s broader Advancing Circular Systems for Plastics and Packaging Initiative. Closed Loop Partners says the map “brings to light the diversity of plastic waste and the volumes and flows by country and state, highlighting critical opportunities to recapture valuable plastics and reincorporate them into manufacturing supply chains.”
Paula Luu, a director at Closed Loop Partners, says the firm began working on the map in April in partnership with Resource Recycling Systems (RRS), Ann Arbor, Michigan, and The Recycling Partnership, Falls Church, Virginia.
She says data for the map were sourced from a blend of reports in the market and proprietary market data from groups that included the American Chemistry Council, Washington; More Recycling, Sonoma, California; the Association of Plastic Recyclers, Washington; Deloitte, with U.S. headquarters in New York; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Container Recycling Institute, Culver City, California; RRS; and others.
According to the analysis, the U.S. and Canada are sending 11.5 million metric tons, or nearly 12.7 million short tons, of plastic packaging to landfills annually. Only 18 percent of plastic packaging is being captured for recycling, despite growing demand for recycled content in plastic packaging. More than 250 brands and retailers in the U.S. have publicly committed to increase recycled content in their products and packaging, the firm says, yet the current supply of recycled plastics meets only 6 percent of the demand for the most common plastics in the U.S. and Canada.
“Indeed, our analysis indicates new demand for recycled plastics will go up by 5 to 7.5 million metric tons by 2030,” Luu says. “It is clear that it will take significant investments and improvements in our recycling systems to ensure that we can meet the demand for recycled content.”
The reason the project began by looking at plastic packaging, she says, is because it “is perhaps the most symbolic and visible manifestation of plastic waste in our day-to-day lives. It’s also the category of plastic that has the most data available in the market.”
She adds, “We chose to explore plastic packaging as a starting point to delve deeper into the different types of plastic, beyond packaging, that aren’t always spotlighted yet are equally challenging. These include bulky rigids, textiles and apparel with synthetic fibers and plastics from construction and health care industries, just to name a few.”
Closed Loop Partners says it has published this map to identify the magnitude of the challenge, the key infrastructure gaps and the areas of opportunity. “By increasing visibility across the plastics value chain, we can drive collaboration among diverse stakeholders—from policymakers and brands to plastics manufacturers and materials recovery facilities,” the firm says in the news release announcing the initiative.
The report highlights the diverse formats, applications and end-of-life markets for plastics, demonstrating the need for multiple solutions, according to Closed Loop Partners.
“The most interesting thing the tool has to offer is really going to depend on which geography and material is of interest to the user,” Luu says. “Every map and visualization is rich with data and key insights. For example, we found that there are 650,000 metric tons (716,502 short tons) of PET thermoforms in the U.S. and Canada. The Southeast has 18 percent of that volume alone.”
Mechanical recycling in the U.S. and Canada recaptures the value of 2,557 million metric tons of plastic packaging after final use per year, primarily from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles, according to the analysis. However, mechanical recycling is not an end-of-life solution for many other forms of plastic waste, like apparel, construction plastics, automotive applications and more, Closed Loop Partners says. This is where “advanced” recycling technology, such as chemical recycling, potentially could fill this gap, addressing these hard-to-recycle plastic-based products.
“We see transparency and measurement as critical first steps toward effective collaboration,” Luu says. “Knowing where materials recovery facilities are located, how much plastic waste is in circulation, what different types of plastic packaging exist and how these can map to populations helps reveal synergies between diverse stakeholders—from recyclers to brands to municipalities. Stemming plastic waste successfully requires a complete picture and understanding of the entire plastics value chain. Right now, we have a team within our Center for the Circular Economy who are leveraging this data to explore how different advanced recycling technologies can help address these unrecovered materials that are not currently captured by mechanical recycling technologies.”
According to Closed Loop Partners, “However, these [advanced] solutions still cannot serve all materials and markets perfectly or in perpetuity, and we must also deploy and scale reuse and rental systems, among others, to help extend the life of materials and reduce the overall volume of virgin plastic entering the market.”
The organization adds, “Without a multipronged approach, plastic waste in all forms, from various industries, will continue to grow.”
Kate Daly, managing director of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners, says, “To efficiently and effectively tackle all plastic waste, we must first understand the volume and types of plastic flowing through our economy. Using plastic packaging as a starting point, this analysis helps investors, brands, entrepreneurs and policymakers understand the diversity of plastic waste in our system and make data-driven decisions. This tool helps galvanize stakeholders to accelerate our collective journey toward a circular economy for plastics through multiple plastic-waste mitigation strategies, and we call upon additional industries to share their data on plastic waste streams to shed light on the additional opportunities.”
Closed Loop Partners says it is working with groups across the U.S. and Canada to leverage additional data on other plastic materials, which it will add to this dataset to increase transparency and understanding of all types of end-of-life plastic flowing through current systems.
“Foundational to effective action and investment is an informed understanding of where, how much and what quality of plastic waste is being generated in the United States and Canada,” says Anne Johnson, principal and vice president of global corporate sustainability for RRS. “Packaging waste only scratches the surface of the plastic waste problem. Polyester textiles contribute to 13.4 billion pounds of landfill waste in the U.S. and require both traditional and new advanced recycling platforms to recapture their value after use. This data visualization tool can be built upon to shine a light on the full spectrum of plastic waste in existence today, providing much-needed transparency and collectively advancing a circular economy for plastics.”
Peylina Chu, executive director for the Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council, St. Paul, Minnesota, says, “We are excited to see this U.S. and Canada Recycling Infrastructure and Plastic Waste Map from Closed Loop Partners. As the health care industry looks for circular solutions for the millions of tons of clean health care plastic, this map helps set a precedent for collaborative efforts along the plastic value chain that can help efficiently identify and leverage synergies between healthcare plastics and other valuable scrap plastic streams as we all add data and share insights on this global waste challenge.”
Industrial Service Solutions announces partnership with ZB Group
ISS Recycling Technologies Division will provide sales, service and parts support for ZB Group’s equipment.
Industrial Service Solutions (ISS), Houston, Recycling Technologies division has announced its partnership with ZB Group of Spain to provide sales, service and parts support for ZB Group’s line of recycling equipment, which includes the Thor mobile shredder and preshredders.
According to ISS, this new relationship will help position ZB Group as a leader in heavy-duty recycling equipment for the scrap metal industry.
“The ZB Group Thor shredder line has established itself as the best solution to the scrap metal recycler needing a mobile unit solution throughout the world. Bringing ISS – Recycling Technologies division alongside our efforts for North America for sales and especially service and parts support, backed by our engineering group in Spain and the U.S., puts us in a superior position to grow our position as the leader in mobile shredding technology,” said Ignacio Rivero, ZB Group’s international director.
Known for its breadth and depth in a broad range of industry applications, as well as expertise in multiple equipment types, ISS says it has an unmatched organization throughout North America for supplying and supporting stationary automobile shredders, motors and drive systems, emissions controls, castings and wear parts, the Taurus US line of shears and more.
“ISS – Recycling Technologies continues to add quality products, service and support for a wide range of offerings in the recycling industry. Through our partnership with ZB Group, we’ve added another proven line of recycling equipment to our offerings. The Thor mobile shredder is by far the most superior mobile shredder available. Our experience in shredding, along with our unmatched local support, will continue to expand on the success of ZB Group in North America,” said Bill Tigner, vice president of ISS – Recycling Technologies.
ZB Group North America supports the mobile shredder product line from its Atlanta location through factory technicians and parts warehouse.
AMP Robotics
Amp Robotics partners with Waste Connections
Waste Connections plans to deploy the systems on container, fiber and residue lines across numerous material recovery facilities.
Amp Robotics Corp. (Amp), a Denver-based creator of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics used to recover recyclables reclaimed as raw materials, has signed a long-term agreement with Waste Connections Inc. to deploy 24 AI-guided robotics systems.
“We’re excited to partner with Amp to expand the deployment of state-of-the-art technology in our materials recovery facilities, furthering our sustainability initiatives and increasing returns,” says Worthing F. Jackman, president and CEO of Toronto-based Waste Connections. “Waste Connections is committed to expanding resource recovery capacity, and we believe Amp’s robotics systems align with our goals to enhance safety, increase productivity and improve recovered resource quality.”
Amp’s technology recovers plastics, cardboard, paper, cans, cartons and many other containers and packaging types that can be reclaimed for raw material processing. For example, its AI platform identifies different types of plastics, including polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP) and polystyrene (PS), sorted further by color, clarity and opacity, along with different form factors—lids, tubs, clamshells, cups and more.
Amp’s technology can adapt to container packaging introduced into the recycling stream with recognition capabilities to the brand level—increasingly critical as demand for sufficient quantities of high-quality recycled material grows to meet consumer packaged goods companies’ commitment to use of postconsumer recycled content.
“We’re thrilled to be supporting Waste Connections’ commitment to expanding resource recovery as we extend our efforts to modernize recycling operations and advance a more circular economy,” says Matanya Horowitz, founder and CEO of Amp Robotics. “To see such a robust expansion of our pipeline and mark this milestone in a year upended by COVID-19 is a testament to our industry-leading technology—and working with a visionary company like Waste Connections helps enable and strengthen an essential public service.”
Since the onset of COVID-19, businesses turned to automation to keep employees safe amid social distancing requirements, navigate ongoing labor shortages to remain operational, and adapt to spikes in residential volume and material types caused by abrupt shifts in consumer buying patterns.
Within the United States, Amp's footprint covers more than 20 states, including California, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, Michigan, New York, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin, in addition to those with forthcoming Waste Connections installations and other projects in development.
Maine waste collectors injured by chemicals in trash
Two Casella Waste Systems employees were hospitalized for chemical burns after a container filled with hydrochloric acid burst and caused a fume cloud.
Two waste collection workers in Maine were recently burned when a container of hydrochloric acid burst, prompting industry leaders to remind consumers to properly dispose of hazardous materials, reports the Portland Press Herald.
The Casella Waste Systems, Rutland, Vermont, employees collecting trash in York County were hospitalized on Oct. 26 for chemical burns after a container filled with hydrochloric acid burst and caused a fume cloud, the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) said this week. The workers are expected to make full recoveries.
“Waste collection and disposal is among the most dangerous jobs in the United States and Canada. It is critical that residents and industry professionals work together to make safety the number one priority to avoid incidents like this,” David Biderman, CEO and executive director of the association, said in a statement.
John W. Casella, chairman and CEO of Casella, called on customers to do their part to protect workers.
“Safety is the top priority for all of our people. Everyday, regardless of circumstances, our people are providing an essential service that ensures public and environmental health and safety,” he said in a statement. “It is imperative that our customers and communities continue to play an active role in helping to ensure everyone’s safety. We believe these workers will make speedy and full recoveries, but this incident serves as a reminder that there are specific times and places for residents to dispose of hazardous waste.”
SWANA recommends residents contact local municipal or waste management staff with questions about how to properly dispose of materials. Hazardous waste and chemicals should not be placed at the curb for collection, according to the association.
North America’s largest waste haulers stretch from coast to coast, generating tens of billions of dollars in revenue and employing hundreds of thousands of employees. View More
Posted by DeAnne Toto
