A Word About Recycling with Ollie Maier
A while back we talked about the large and growing floating island of plastic in the ocean and compared it in size to the state of Texas. Thus we were pleased when we read the following article in the Recycling Today newsletter.
“This week, the Senate and House by unanimous vote passed the Save our Seas Act of 2018, which reauthorizes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program and calls for the U.S. government’s help in supporting international waste management solutions to reduce marine debris.”
We find both the Plastics Industry Association and the American Chemistry Council (ACC) praised Congress for this Save our Seas Act. They felt it would help reduce the waste in our oceans and encourage recycling in other nations. It would also aid in the research and development of innovations to reduce marine debris.
Concerning the impact of man-made trash on the environment, wildlife and human health, the president and CEO of ACC said, “While marine debris is a huge problem, it’s also a solvable one. Recent studies show ocean plastics most often result from poor waste management infrastructure, including insufficient collection, recycling and recovery facilities in rapidly developing countries."
The ACC has goals to reuse, recycle or recover all plastic packaging by 2040 and for all plastic packaging to be recyclable or recoverable by 2030.
It is now up to the President to sign the bill – that is only 233 words.
To switch subjects slightly but stay with plastic, a study found plastic packaging helps reduce waste over other types of packaging. “The study showed In 2010, the amount of waste produced in the U.S. declined despite a rise in consumer spending.”
The authors of the study stated, “We were surprised to learn in this study just how much of an impact plastics had on solid waste weight and volume reduction over the years."
It was found on average, products using other types of packaging used 3.2 times more material. It also found the combined weight of these other materials was about 4.5 times greater.
A spokesperson for the ACC added, “And our industry is working to further realize plastics’ sustainability benefits through our commitment to recycle or recover all plastic packaging by 2040."
And going even more into plastic packaging, another article covered how the Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA) is working to reduce plastics waste.
One of their goals is to reuse, recycle or recover 100 percent of plastics packaging by 2040.”
In a program called Operation Clean Sweep Blue, the CPIA will recognize companies that are excelling within the existing program and allow companies to showcase and share data and metrics.
This international program is designed to prevent resin pellet, flake and powder loss and keep them out of the environment, including oceans and waterways.
Now a personal note: A reader (Thanks KD) emailed me a web address they found interesting and thought I might too. It is a site that lists items recycled for reuse in the original manner or in creative new ways. Companies with these no longer needed items list them and individuals/companies that can use them purchase them well below the cost of a new item.
The site is https://www.repurposedmaterialsinc.com, but I must warn you, looking at all the things available can be very addictive and time consuming – speaking from experience.
Till next week, do have an enjoyable and safe one.
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Ollie is a local citizen concerned with the environment and helping others. A retired Air Force fighter and instructor pilot, he is a graduate of Leadership San Marcos and received his degrees at Texas State University where he worked on staff before totally retiring. For questions or comments, he invites you to call him at 512-353-7432 or e-mail omaier@txstate.edu.
