ACC report shows jump in rigid recycling

ACC report shows jump in rigid recycling

The American Chemistry Council and Moore Recycling Associates have released their 2009 National Report on Postconsumer Non-Bottle Rigid Plastic Recycling [1], which shows a 33 percent year-over-year jump in rigid plastic recycling in the U.S.

Over 479 million pounds of post-consumer rigid plastics were collected for recycling in 2009, with approximately 51 percent of the material recycled into new products in the U.S. or Canada. Additionally, of the 479 million pounds of plastic, 194 million pounds were durable goods, such as pallets, crates, buckets and e-plastics. Most end-markets for these types of plastics consisted of composite building products, such as railroad ties, pots, crates or lumber.

The report goes on to detail the effect of the recession on the plastics export market, its future growth outlook, as well as persistent quality control and bale standard challenges. Regarding the latter, the report concludes that a major barrier to additional demand for non-bottle rigid plastics is the absence of bale specifications, although it acknowledges that both the ACC and the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers are taking steps to address the issue.

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