The other is transforming production, use, and disposal of plastic into a circular economy that values end-of-life items as raw material rather than waste for disposal, the paper says. This latter strategy would pose challenges for chemists, engineers, policymakers, and plastic manufacturers. These challenges include “reducing or eliminating the use of unnecessary plastics, setting global limits for virgin plastic production, creating globally aligned standards for commodity plastics to be practically recoverable and recyclable by design, and developing and scaling plastic processing and recycling technologies,” Borrelle’s team says. “Achieving substantial reductions in global plastic emissions to the environment requires an urgent transformative change,” the researchers conclude. The American Chemistry Council (ACC), which represents manufacturers of plastic resins, says plastics don't belong in the environment and that the plastics industry is committed to solving this problem. "However, recommendations to reduce plastics production and use would be highly counterproductive and impractical," the ACC says in a statement. "Studies show that alternatives to plastics can significantly increase our environmental footprint." /environment/sustainability/Plastic-trash-waterways-increase-due/98/i36 20200917 Study suggests curbing production growth or circular economy approach Concentrates 98 36 /magazine/98/09836.html Plastic trash in waterways to increase due to industry expansion sustainability, environment, plastic, materiasl, polymers, policy con govpol Cheryl Hogue environment sustainability materials polymers policy Plastic trash will far outstrip efforts to keep it out of waterways unless production of virgin plastic is curbed or used plastic becomes raw material for new plastic, researchers say. Shutterstock A man paddles a canoe through a trash-choked river in Indonesia. river polluted plastics boat Plastic in waterways to increase due to industry expansion Chemical & Engineering News Plastic trash in waterways to increase due to industry expansion Plastic trash in waterways to increase due to industry expansion
by Cheryl Hogue | September 17, 2020
—Not-so-fantastic plastic: Europe is ready to shake up the plastics industry to resolve its failure to recycle “European Commission lays out its plan to recycle more than half of plastic by 2030, mulls a plastic tax” It was 2013 in southern India when Toby McCartney, then a charity worker, saw people setting fire to diesel-soaked balls of waste plastics to form a hard lump for patching potholes.
by Alex Scott | March 19, 2018
—Plastic Energy, Nestle study plastic recycling in the UK “” Plastic Energy is teaming up with the consumer product giant Nestlé to study construction of a recycling plant in the UK. Plastic Energy’s pyrolysis process converts postconsumer plastics into a synthetic crude. The company runs two plants in Spain and is building another in the Netherlands with Sabic, which intends to use the oil to make plastics. Plastic Energy has similar plans with the chemical maker Ineos. Consumer goods companies like Nestlé are under pressure to find solutions to the mounting problem of plastic waste. /environment/recycling/Plastic-Energy-Nestle-study-plastic/98/i41 20201024 Concentrates 98 41 /magazine/98/09841.html Plastic Energy, Nestle study plastic recycling in the UK Recycling, chemical recycling con bus Alexander H. Tullo environment recycling Plastic Energy, Nestlé study recycling in UK Chemical & Engineering News Plastic Energy, Nestle study plastic recycling in the UK Plastic Energy, Nestle study plastic recycling in the UK
by Alexander H. Tullo | October 24, 2020
—Europe tackles plastics waste “New strategy targets a step change in packaging recycling” The European Commission has unveiled its first-ever Europewide plan to tackle plastics waste, including waste entering the oceans. At the heart of its plan is a goal that all plastics packaging used in the region must be recyclable by 2030.
by Alex Scott | January 22, 2018
—EU firms agree to more plastic recycling “Environmental groups criticize the voluntary agreement for lacking ambition” More than 100 public organizations as well as companies making and recycling plastic in the European Union have agreed to recycle at least 10 million metric tons (t) of plastic annually by 2025. Currently, less than 4 million t of plastic are recycled in the region out of the more than 27 million t of plastic waste generated, according to the European Commission. The signatories to the declaration, which include firms such as BASF, Covestro, and Unilever, are members of the Circular Plastics Alliance, a partnership between plastics producers, converters, and recyclers the EC set up in December 2018 in response to the growing environmental hazard posed by plastic waste.
by Alex Scott | September 25, 2019
—Researchers are examining plastic’s many hazards to human health “” A panel of researchers is comprehensively analyzing the multiple hazards that plastic poses to human health throughout the material’s life cycle. The study is examining the human health effects from fossil fuel extraction for use as plastic feedstocks, everyday use and disposal of plastic, and plastic pollution, the researchers say in a paper (Ann.
by Cheryl Hogue | September 09, 2022
Plastics, Biddle pointed out, are worth more per pound than steel. But whereas steel tends to get recycled, most plastics aren’t because they come in many types and grades. Costing less to build than facilities for virgin plastics, MBA’s plants can sort bulk plastic waste and recycle it into resins that are nearly as pure as the original material, Biddle said.
by Jean-François Tremblay | June 24, 2013
—Biodegradable Plastics Panned “” The marketing of plastics that manufacturers claim are biodegradable won’t significantly cut the amount of plastic ending up in the world’s oceans, concludes a report from the UN Environment Programme. These plastics biodegrade only under conditions that are generally not found in oceans, such as prolonged exposure to temperatures higher than 50 °C, the report says.
by Cheryl Hogue | November 30, 2015
“Don’t worry, only 92% of plastics ends up here,” he says. “Plastics Recycling is a Lie” flashes on the screen. Both videos make their points. The Coca-Cola video is a good explainer of the recycling process. But very little plastic is actually recycled today. It’s fair to say that plastics recycling is more of an aspiration than a lie.
by Alexander H. Tullo | June 25, 2022
—Opening plastic packaging produces microplastics “Tearing and cutting lead to measurable debris from various forms of plastic” Tiny pieces of plastic known as microplastics are ubiquitous. These microplastics are additives in products such as cosmetics, or they can be formed from the degradation of larger pieces of plastic in the environment. A new study finds that the act of opening plastic packaging may be yet another source (Sci. Rep. 2020, DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-61146-4). Cheng Fang of the University of Newcastle in Australia and coworkers tested whether microplastics are formed as a result of opening plastic packaging. The researchers used their hands, scissors, and knives to tear or cut plastic shopping bags, packaging film, plastic bottles, gloves, and packaging foam.
by Celia Henry Arnaud | March 21, 2020