Kickstart: Goodbye to another ‘plastic-free July'

We're almost finished with another "plastic-free July," a global effort to encourage people to live without single-use plastics for an entire month.

This is year No. 10 for the effort. I've noticed a decent number of stories on the project this year, and a social media presence, too. As of July 29, Instagram has featured more than 400,000 #plasticfreejuly posts.

I admit it's unfair to compare, but #blacklivesmatter has more than 23 million Instagram posts and #covid19 has more than 29 million. Obviously other issues are getting more attention on social media in 2020, and they should.

But Jacqueline Savitz, chief policy officer at Oceana, wrote a column for DailyKos making the case that plastic-free July remains important in 2020.

"The idea of 'Plastic-free July' may not seem at first to measure up to matters at hand … but on closer examination, curbing plastic production is an intrinsic part of achieving social justice, and it's achievable, even in the context of a pandemic," she wrote. "It will likely take longer to break free from plastic than it will to develop a vaccine for COVID-19, but we have no time to waste."

Plastics issues aren't exactly invisible in 2020. We've reported frequently on the unprecedented level of attention that plastic waste is seeing in the U.S. Congress.

When we write about chemical recycling of plastics, we emphasize how the technology creates feedstocks that can be used to make new, virgin-quality plastic. But that's just part of the picture.

Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), a Berkeley, Calif.-based group, just released a report charging that current chemical recycling technologies are more focused on converting plastics to fuel.

The report claims that out of the 37 chemical recycling facilities proposed in the U.S. since 2000, only three are currently operational, and none have successfully recovered plastic to make new plastics on a commercial scale.

It concludes: "The chemical recycling industry has struggled with decades of technological difficulties and poses an unnecessary risk to the environment and health, and a financially risky future that is incompatible with a climate safe future and circular economy."

The report goes into detail on the chemical recycling efforts that have generated the most news headlines.

There's a headline that could have been written even in a nonpandemic year, right? If there's any trade show that you'd think could survive virtually, it would be the big Consumer Electronics Show.

But CES, which attracted more than 170,000 people and some 4,500 vendors to a real in-person show in Las Vegas earlier this year, has now announced that the 2021 event will be virtual only. It had been scheduled for Jan. 6-9.

Next year's CES will be "a new immersive experience, where attendees will have a front-row seat to discover the latest technology," according to the Consumer Technology Association. "This highly personalized experience will bring a global event to the comfort and safety of your home or office."

You may lament the opportunity to see the glitzy exhibits, connect with people in person and place a bet on the casino floor, but I'm looking at the bright side: We'll be able to cover the 2021 show without spending any of the annual travel budget.

Rhoda Miel is taking some well-deserved days off, so today's Kickstart is by Plastics News Editor Don Loepp. Follow me on Twitter @donloepp.