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Toronto imposes 5 cent bag tax
TORONTO (Dec. 4, 3:55 p.m. ET) -- Toronto stores will have to charge shoppers C5 cents (US4 cents) per shopping bag beginning June 1. The bag tax is being imposed instead of an earlier proposal to require retailers to give consumers who bring their own bags a C10 cent (US8 cent) discount per bag.

PET recycling rate improves, but questions loom
WASHINGTON (Dec. 4, 12:50 p.m. ET) -- The PET bottle recycling rate rose for the fourth straight year to 24.6 percent in 2007. That is the highest PET recycling rate since it was 24.8 percent in 1998. But the influence of China looms large in the new recycling numbers, and in the bales of mixed plastics sitting in warehouses, waiting for that country to resume the buying that it put on hold two months ago.

Recycler Eco2 upgrades machinery, cuts staff
SAN FRANCISCO (Updated Dec. 4, 4:10 p.m. ET) -- Water-free PET recycler Eco2 Plastics Inc. has laid off more than 80 employees, or 70 percent of its workforce. But Chief Executive Officer Rod Rougelot said the second-generation equipment installed at its Riverbank, Calif., plant should give the company “a positive cash flow” in the first quarter of 2009.

AFM looks into recycling of runners’ blankets
PETALUMA, CALIF. (Nov. 26, 6:10 p.m. ET) -- A few years ago, David Deigan noticed three or four dumpsters filled with disposable plastic blankets given at the end of the Chicago Marathon. Now, a pilot program is investigating the best way to recycle the wraps.

At TerraCycle, re-creation is serious work
TRENTON, N.J. (Nov. 21, 6 p.m. ET) -- Processors looking for an example of the next generation of eco-entrepreneurs seeking inroads into the plastics industry would do well to take note of a small business based in a former New York Times distribution center in Trenton.

Nestlé expecting sustainability-savvy suppliers
CHICAGO (Nov. 21, 4:15 p.m. ET) -- There are a lot of things companies can do that create an appearance of being green and sustainable. But Nestlé Waters North America´s Kim Jeffery wants to do things that actually enhance sustainability and the environment.

Recycler Adirondack expanding to Texas
MCALLEN, TEXAS (Nov. 18, 3:15 p.m. ET) -- Argyle, N.Y.-based Adirondack Plastics & Recycling Inc. is extending its reach to the Southwest, opening a new facility under the banner of Valley Plastics & Paper Recycling Inc. in McAllen.

Australia debates true plastics recycling rate
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA (Nov. 17, 3 p.m. ET) — An argument has broken out over recycling efforts in Australia’s packaging sector, including allegations that official figures understate use of plastic packaging and overstate its recycling rate.

Worldwide recycled-plastic trade plummets

Xuan

BEIJING (Nov. 14, 1:40 p.m. ET) -- The once-red-hot global trade of recycled plastic is facing a bitter winter. Market prices have plunged across the board, and even more troubling to insiders, demand appears to be disappearing. Industry players in the United States are struggling to deal with the collapse of the Chinese and domestic markets.

China´s recyclers seek looser restrictions

Lam

BEIJING (Nov. 13, 8:50 a.m. ET) — Looking for some relief from a difficult economic environment, China’s plastic recyclers are asking the government to loosen restrictions on some waste plastic imports. A recycling industry trade group has formally asked the government to reverse some restrictions it has on imports of waste plastic.

PWP Industries expands in West Virginia
MINERAL WELLS, W. VA. (Nov. 12, 1:35 p.m. ET) -- Food packaging thermoformer PWP Industries plans to expand its Mineral Wells plant, according to a Nov. 3 open-for-business report from Gov. Joe Manchin’s office. The project will include an 80,000-square-foot plant that will recycle plastic bottles.

Coke recycling plant to open this month
CHICAGO (Nov. 10, 4:55 p.m. ET) -- The joint venture food-grade PET recycling plant of Coca-Cola Co. and United Resource Recovery Corp. will begin operations later this month when the first of two 50-million pound lines starts up in Spartanburg, S.C. Scott Vitters, director of sustainable packaging at Coca-Cola, revealed the plans at the Sustain ´08 conference in Chicago.

Tekni-Plex sells PET recycler PureTech Plastics
CHICAGO (Nov. 10, 3:40 p.m. ET) -- Re:Think Recycling of Chicago has made its first acquisition, buying PureTech Plastics from Tekni-Plex Inc., for an undisclosed price. The deal includes a 20 million pound-per-year post-consumer PET recycling plant in East Farmingdale, N.Y.

Nestlé sets ambitious eco goals in report
GREENWICH, CONN. (Nov. 10, 1:50 p.m. ET) -- Nestlé Waters North America Inc. has issued an ambitious first corporate citizenship report in which it outlines nearly 30 goals. The report addresses everything from the quality of bottled water compared with municipal water, to the feasibility of using recycled content or bioplastics.

N.Y. City proposes 6 cent charge on bags
NEW YORK (Nov. 7, 3:25 p.m. ET) -- New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing a 6 cent charge to consumers for each plastic bag they use. Retailers would receive 1 cent of each fee, to convince them to comply with the plan.

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