Study Shows that PET Bottles are Widely Available for Recycling Nationwide

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association (Washington, DC) participated in a study commissioned by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, 2015-16 Centralized Study on the Availability of Recycling for Beverage Containers. The study identifies the prevalence of recycling programs that accept beverage containers, including PET bottles/jugs and jars, aluminum beverage cans, glass beverage bottles and cartons. The findings on PET showed that a majority of the country, 92 percent of the U.S. population, can recycle PET bottles/jugs and jars. “It’s important to make recycling available to consumers. The more convenient we can make recycling for consumers, the more people will recycle,” said George Southworth, Director of industry affairs—RPPG & PMDAC at SPI. “This study shows that many Americans have the resources they need to recycle, so it’s up to us to keep educating and advocating for more effective recycling.”

The study further breaks down the availability of recycling by the type of recycling available and finds that 54 percent of U.S. residents have automatic/universal curbside recycling of PET bottles/jugs and jars, while the other curbside programs were optin, which is available to 6 percent of the population, and subscription, which is available to 8 percent of the population. In total, 68 percent of U.S. residents have some sort of curbside recycling available. Drop-off programs were available to 24 percent of the U.S. population and, when combined with the curbside recycling availability, totals 92 percent of all programs—curbside and its subsidiaries and drop-off programs—available to the U.S. population. “This new study helps us to make a true assessment of the ease and availability of recycling by consumers across the country,” said Dan Mohs, chairman and CEO of Placon Corporation. “This report also serves as a contextual guide for brands who make claims about their recycling and sustainability efforts.”

Courtesy: This article originally ran in the September 2016 issue of Waste Advantage Magazine. View

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