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July 07, 2022 08:30 AM

Kickstart: The importance of a clean recycling stream

Rhoda Miel
Managing Editor
Plastics News Staff
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    The importance of a clean recycling stream

    Recycling is messy.

    That's not just a statement about sorting facilities or the lack of post-consumer recycled material availability as brand owners pledge to increase their use of recycled material or public policy issues such as California's new legislation that covers extended producer responsibility and high targets for recycling. This is about the day-to-day process of curbside recycling, specifically about how poor separation of recyclables from nonrecyclables by homeowners is hurting recycling programs.

    In Denison, Texas, city leaders may revise their curbside program as its waste hauler reports that 60 percent or more of what goes into bins is contaminated by leftover food, plastic bags or other items. As a result, entire loads of collected items end up being landfilled rather than recycled.

    The city is considering alternatives as its recycling collection contract expires early next year, local television station KTEN reports. It would like to retain curbside recycling, but that's not guaranteed.

    Contamination is also a concern in my hometown, Ann Arbor, Mich., which recently upgraded its recycling system.

    To cut down on contamination, it will use funds from a $790,000 grant to put "feet on the street" — inspectors who will open residential recycling bins to check that they only contain acceptable items.

    "If the [inspector] sees something in the recycling cart that does not belong there, an orange 'oops' tag will be placed on the cart with clear feedback on how to fix it," the city informed residents. "If material that is not recyclable in your curbside cart is found in the cart on the future visit, the recycling cart will be tagged with a red tag and will not be serviced until the contamination is removed."

    Obviously, it's expensive to have a program like that, but as the case in Denison, Texas, shows, there are also high costs to doing nothing.

     

    A lot of acquisitions

    This week's print issue of Plastics News has Frank Esposito's wrap-up of the world of mergers and acquisitions in plastics for the first half of 2022.

    There's a lot to cover, but the overall theme? This year hasn't been a record-breaker like 2021, but it is proving very, very busy.

    "We thought 2022 would level off a bit, but it stayed elevated in the first quarter. Then in the second quarter, we've seen some decline in foreign deals, but it's still strong," P&M Corporate Finance Managing Director John Hart told Frank. "There's a lot of concern on the horizon because of the impact of inflation and interest rates and the stock market, but as of now, we haven't seen a pullback."

    You can find all of PN's M&A coverage here.

     

    Walmart winners

    There will be more than 300 new products on Walmart store shelves, products that were made, grown or assembled in the U.S.

    The retail chain's ninth annual Open Call in June saw more than 1,000 entrepreneurs come to the headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., to pitch their U.S.-made products to buyers from Walmart and Sam's Club stores.

    More than 330 products were selected by the end of the Open Call and negotiations are underway for another 280 products, Walmart officials said.

    Walmart didn't identify the winning products, but if you know of one, feel free to reach out and share the news.

     

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