Kickstart: There's a lot of news in recycling that has nothing to do with public policy

The big stories on recycling these days seem to center on public policy debates. That makes sense. Obviously the global plastics treaty talks will have a big influence on national, regional and local materials and sustainability issues. California's move to sue ExxonMobil over its claims about recycling also will have a ripple effect for everyone.

Plastics News' Jim Johnson and Steve Toloken have been busy all week covering those stories.

But as the saying goes, all politics is local.

So while courts, companies and negotiators look at the big overarching global trends in plastics, packaging and recycling, down at the level where we all live day to day, recycling programs continue on.

Blue Polymers LLC, a joint venture of materials supplier Ravago Group and solid waste company Republic Services Inc., just broke ground on a 162,000-square-foot facility near Phoenix that will process polyethylene and polypropylene collected by Republic from the consumer recycling stream, PN's Frank Esposito writes.

Blue Polymers expects to have four plants to process recycled plastics nationwide, able to produce 300 million pounds of recycled material each year.

Decking maker Trex Co. Inc. just created a national database of consumer film dropoff sites to make it easier for bags and flexible packaging to be recycled. And Polywood is part of a program to collect high density polyethylene and convert it into benches.

And, just to return to the theme of plastics and politics, recycler PureCycle is working with the League of Women Voters to set up a recycling collection program for campaign signs after the election.

The United Kingdom set a record in 2023, recycling 52.5 percent of its plastic packaging, a 2 percent increase from 2022 when it set its previous record.

That's also the same year it launched a tax on plastic packaging that does have have at least 30 percent recycled content. In 2021, the plastic recycling rate was 44 percent, according to data from the U.K. Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. Those numbers are for mechanical recycling.

Our sister paper Sustainable Plastics writes that the U.K. generated nearly 2.3 million metric tons of plastic packaging waste in 2023 and recycled nearly 1.2 million tonnes.

Want to get a positive message out about STEM and manufacturing jobs to students? Then you better reach out to teachers as well.

Liquid silicone rubber molder R.D. Abbott and NovationSi hosted a "boot camp" at its 127,000-square-foot facility near Akron, Ohio, this summer specifically geared at educators. It was the first year for the leadership initiative, which is geared specifically at STEAM —science, technology, engineering, art and math — educators who want to inform students about jobs in local industries. The 2024 boot camp is just part of a multiyear program backed by Ashland University.

"As a father of three and a manufacturing site leader, it was very encouraging to see the passion and excitement of our partners in the Summit County education system," NovationSi Plant Manager Steve Hersey said in a news release.