Survey tracks plastics recycling in North America

Sponsors of a 2019 survey of plastics recycling rates in North America say its results show both collection and infrastructure are in need of significant investment.

The recently released 2019 U.S. Post-Consumer Recycling Data Report, sponsored by the Association of Plastics Recyclers (APR), the Foundation for Plastic Recycling and the American Chemistry Council (ACC), found that a combined 87.9 percent of the material recovered for recycling in the U.S. and Canada was purchased by reclaimers, with just 12.1 percent exported.

The total amount of post-consumer plastic recovered for recycling in the U.S. reached about 5.1 billion pounds in 2019, including bottles, non-bottle rigid plastics, film and other plastics but excluded foam from its totals.

The study found that in aggregate, recycling of bottles, non-bottle rigid plastics and film fell by 27 million pounds in 2019, or 0.5 percent.

“Flat or declining recycling rates are a sign that the system needs support,” said Steve Alexander, APR’s president and CEO. “Declines in mature recycling streams, such as PET and HDPE bottles, make brand company commitments to increased recycled content even more challenging. … Our modes of commerce and consumption are changing and our system of recovering resources must change too. Collection of quality material is essential for recyclers to produce quality feedstock at lower environmental and economic costs.”