Expanding plastics recycling could support $50 billion in annual economic output
The analysis shows the estimated combined impact of mechanical and advanced (nonmechanical) recycling technologies working together to process a broad range of used plastics.
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): A new analysis released by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) found that if just 50 percent of plastics in the municipal solid waste stream were redirected from landfills to recycling facilities, the U.S. could gain an estimated 173,200 jobs, $12.8 billion in annual payroll, and $48.7 billion in additional annual economic output.
The analysis shows the estimated combined impact of mechanical and advanced (nonmechanical) recycling technologies working together to process a broad range of used plastics. Mechanical recycling is designed to efficiently process items such as water or laundry detergent bottles and a variety of nonmechanical recycling technologies can convert hard-to-recycle plastics, such as flexible packaging and synthetic clothing, back into their original building blocks to make new products.
“Strengthening our recycling infrastructure is a win for U.S. manufacturing and helps keep more used plastics out of landfills and in the economy,” said Ross Eisenberg, president of America’s Plastic Makers. “This report shows that modernizing and expanding plastics recycling can strengthen domestic supply chains, create thousands of skilled jobs and provide the high-quality recycled materials that brands and manufacturers want to add to their products.”
Courtesy: www.americanrecycler.com
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