Plastics Recycling - Did You Know?

While some materials have been with us for hundreds of years and recycled for the past 40, plastics were only introduced in large quantities during the Second World War. Thats a big reason why plastics recycling technology is at an earlier stage in its development process. evertheless, certain types of plastics pac!aging " particularly soft drin! bottles made from #$T, and mil!, water and %uice %ugs made from &'#$ " are being successfully recycled in a growing number of communities across the country. (nd the plastics industry is wor!ing hard to increase the recycling of these as well as other plastic pac!ages. )enerally spea!ing, the recycling process is the same regardless of the type of plastic resin being reclaimed. *irst, the post"consumer plastics are inspected for quality and washed to remove any residual impurities. Then, theyre ground into pieces, dried and processed into pellets or fla!es. *inally, the reclaimed materials, in either fla!e or pelleti+ed form, become feedstoc! in the manufacture of new products. Two plastic resins " polyethylene terephthalate ,#$T- and high density polyethylene ,&'#$- " ma!e up about ./"00 per cent of all plastic bottles found in the household. #$T is primarily used for soft drin! bottles, although it is also found in some other pac!aging applications such as edible oils and liquor. &'#$ is commonly used to ma!e mil!, water and %uice %ugs, detergent and bleach bottles, and motor oil and lubricant bottles. 1ore than 40 per cent of all #$T soft drin! bottles are now being recycled. These plastics containers have the second highest 2scrap value3 of recyclable materials in pac!aging " ne4t to aluminum. &'#$ has the ne4t highest value. 1ar!ets currently e4ist for #$T and &'#$ right across 5anada. 6n 7ntario, for e4ample, mar!ets e4ist for all of the #$T and &'#$ bottles which can be collected. ew products being made from recycled #$T include non"food bottles, carpeting, strapping, office binders and folders and fibrefill for s!i %ac!ets, outerwear and sleeping bags. *ive recycled 8"litre #$T soft drin! bottles ma!e enough fibrefill for a mans s!i %ac!et. ,6t ta!es 9/ to fill a sleeping bag and 9: to ma!e a square yard of carpeting;ecycling of &'#$ mil! and %uice %ugs and household detergent bottles is growing at an increasing rate. <ecause mil! containers are not pigmented, they are more valuable to recyclers and may be separated from other pigmented containers such as bleach, detergent and other household cleaning product containers before recycling. 6t is not essential to sort &'#$ by colour, however, since much of this post"consumer recycled material is used to ma!e products such as motor oil bottles, household detergent bottles, pails, construction fencing, and irrigation and drain tubing which are routinely coloured.

Environment and Plastics Industry Council

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ew products manufactured from recycled &'#$ include detergent bottles, motor oil bottles, trash cans and containers for liquid cleaning supplies. The plastics industry has introduced a voluntary container coding system that identifies by their principal material resin type. The symbols, which can be found on the bottom of plastic containers, are specifically designed to help recyclers sort these materials. *or purposes of the code, polyethylene terephthalate is denoted by the o. = and the letters #$T$> high density polyethylene carries the o. 8 and the letters &'#$. Symbols are also provided for containers made of vinyl or polyvinyl chloride , o. 9, ?-> low density polyethylene , o. 4, @'#$-> polypropylene , o. /, ##-> polystyrene , o. :, #roduct Stewardship-> and other resins , o. A, 7T&$;-. ew products made from recycled vinyl include drain pipe, office accessories and refuse containers. @ow density polyethylene, such as that found in grocery bags, can be recycled for use in new grocery sac!s and trash bags. 1a%or grocery chains in the western and (tlantic provinces offer at"store recycling for plastic bags. Similar activity started in 7ntario in 800: and is now growing. (t"store recycling of plastic bags is %ust starting to ta!e off in the province of Buebec. @arge amounts of polypropylene from used automotive batteries are recycled each year in orth (merica. (bout 40 per cent of the recovered polypropylene is used in the ne4t generation of batteries. The balance is used for other automotive applications and in consumer products such as wheels for barbecue grills and lawn mowers. The 5anadian #olystyrene ;ecycling (lliance ,5#;(- is part of a highly successful group of e4isting companies headquartered in #ort &ope, 7ntario, that is dedicated to the recycling and re" manufacturing of used post"consumer polystyrene into high"end picture frames and decorative mouldings. This group of companies is vertically integrated and employs some 8/0 people in 7ntario. ;ecycled polystyrene can be used to ma!e office and school supplies, video cassettes, protective industrial pac!aging and horticultural containers. 6t ta!es nine small foam coffee cups to ma!e a =8"inch ruler. ,6t ta!es eight to ma!e a pair of scissor handles and four to ma!e a des! set pen-. <y early =008, almost 400 5anadian cities and municipalities were collecting plastics for recycling through curbside collection and drop"off programs. 6n 7ntario, 5anadaCs most densely populated province, the collection of plastics other than #$T has grown tremendously. ;ight now, about 00 per cent of 7ntario households can recycle &'#$ in their <lue <o4.

Environment and Plastics Industry Council

www.plastics.ca/epic www.plastics.ca

You Can Help $veryone wants to ta!e personal action to address environmental concerns. &ere are a few suggestions designed to help improve the level and quality of post"consumer plastics recycling in your community. The most efficient, cost"effective recycling collection system will fail unless householders understand how to participate. ;esearch shows that one in four 5anadians are still confused about what types of plastic they can include in their recycling programs. 6f youre confused about what plastics your community will accept, or if there are special requirements for preparing your recyclables, please call the agency or department responsible for refuse collection in your area. While not essential, it will help the plastics recycler if you ta!e a moment to rinse out your plastic bottles and containers before placing them in the recycling container. ,6t also helps eliminate odours and prevents attracting insects or animals to your recycling bo4 or drop"off site-. 6t is not necessary to remove paper labels from plastic bottles. 6f you ta!e the time, however, removing paper labels from pigmented plastic bottles will help the recycler. ,*ill the bottle or container with hot water, wait a few moments, and then peel off the paper label-. ;emove all caps, lids and pumps and include them separately in your curbside recycling bo4. (lthough caps are not considered contaminants, they trap air in bottles and ma!e them more difficult to compact when baled. ;emove all aluminum foil seals, closures and labels from bottles and containers. These contaminate the recycling process. ( growing number of communities, supermar!ets and other retail outlets are collecting plastic grocery sac!s for recycling. $ven small scraps of paper can contaminate a large bale of plastics. #lease remove paper , such as sales slips, from your bag by simply turning the bag inside out. <ottles or containers that have contained insecticides, pesticides, new or recycled motor oil, or any ha+ardous material, are generally not suitable for curbside recycling. #lease chec! with your community. 'ispose of any residue at a to4ic waste depot and dispose of the container properly. ,( growing number of automotive supply outlets and service stations will accept used motor oil, anti"free+e and other automotive product containers for recycling-. 6f you have any questions about plastics recycling, or are considering starting or e4panding a plastics recycling program in your community, contact the $nvironment and #lastics 6ndustry 5ouncil.

Environment and Plastics Industry Council

www.plastics.ca/epic www.plastics.ca