Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • K Show Livestream
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Resin Prices
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
April 29, 2022 02:32 PM

ACC poll shows public support — and skepticism — for chemical recycling

Steve Toloken
Assistant Managing Editor
Plastics News Staff
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Chemical Recycling Poll ACC_i.jpg

    As state legislative fights over chemical recycling pick up around the country, new polling from the American Chemistry Council suggests strong public support among voters in the key battleground of New York.

    Ahead of an industry push to pass legislation in the Empire State, ACC released a public opinion poll of 1,000 registered voters on April 27 that said 80 percent back laws to make it easier to build chemical recycling plants in the state.

    "This poll … makes clear advanced recycling has massive political support from voters all across New York," said Joshua Baca, ACC's vice president of plastics, using the term for chemical recycling favored by some in the industry.

    However, environmental groups that oppose it questioned the poll, and one predicted the industry-backed legislation will not be able to pass in New York before lawmakers adjourn in early June.

    "Had the American Chemistry Council worded their question accurately, we believe they would have gotten very different results," said Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics and a former regional administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency. "The plastics industry is attempting to mislead the public again with claims about the promise of 'chemical recycling' or 'advanced recycling' as a viable way to deal with plastics."

    There's some evidence in the poll that points to public skepticism in line with the environmental groups, including concerns around economic viability and pollution. But ACC says the detailed poll results point to support being stronger than opposition in voters' minds.

    The ACC poll comes as New York, New Jersey and several New England states are considering legislation that would change laws to regulate chemical recycling as manufacturing plants, rather than as solid waste operations. Eighteen states around the country have passed similar laws, including four this year.

    The poll, conducted April 8-18 by Public Opinion Strategies, found that 79 percent of respondents favored advanced recycling and 21 percent opposed, after arguments on both sides were presented.

    Support for advanced recycling

    ACC said the results showed that voters will support politicians who back advanced recycling, with 85 percent saying they're more likely to vote for a candidate who supports the technology.

    The strongest backing came from Democrats, at 91 percent, ACC said.

    The plastics group said it tested messages both in support and opposition to advanced recycling and found that messages in opposition "were not as persuasive as messages in support."

    The poll said the top five messages in support, which it said were convincing to about 80 percent of respondents, included that the technology would divert material from landfills, create hundreds of green-collar jobs and provide a $500 million economic boost annually, if New York state could capture 25 percent of plastics and send them to advanced recycling facilities.

    As well, detailed results said that 80 percent of respondents found it convincing that advanced recycling would "allow us to continue to have the benefits of plastics while significantly reducing its environmental impact" and that plastics are "vital to modern life."

    The poll found some of the highest support — 82 percent — for arguments that advanced recycling could increase plastics recycling rates, reduce litter and pollution, and produce plastics with a fraction of the carbon impact of new plastics.

    "We … know advanced recycling diverts waste from landfills, further lowers the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of plastics and creates jobs," Baca said.

    Signs of skepticism

    However, the results also showed public skepticism, although at lower levels than the support. Between 60-70 percent of the respondents said they found it convincing that advanced recycling amounts to "burning plastics on an industrial scale [and] releases toxic pollution into our air" and that the plastics industry has not been honest about recyclability of its products.

    The poll said that 61 percent of voters were swayed by arguments that the industry is pushing advanced recycling because it wants to quadruple plastics production and that plastics will soon surpass coal as a driver of climate change.

    The arguments against chemical recycling that drew the most support, with 70 percent finding it convincing, were those that questioned the economic viability and whether most of the plastic waste would ultimately be turned into fuels, not new plastic, speeding up global warming.

    ACC said the results do show public concerns, but it said that's partially because it's a relatively new concept and voters are willing to consider both sides.

    The bottom line, it said, was that more voters found arguments in favor of advanced recycling "very convincing" — in a range of 34-42 percent — compared with arguments against, which had stronger agreement down in a range between 22-27 percent.

    "While yes, some voters have concerns, in a fair exchange of arguments, the 'very convincing' results shows that the messaging for the proposal is stronger compared to the messaging against it," ACC said.

    The group said the study design was fair because it tested strong messages on both sides.

    Environmental groups questioned what the poll reveals, with a representative of the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives saying it shows that "voters want to believe that we can wave a magic wand" and solve plastic waste problems.

    "The vast majority of these projects turn plastic … back into a fossil fuel that's then burned, releasing harmful emissions that threaten our climate and public health," said Neil Tangri, GAIA's science and policy director. "The petrochemical industry is simply distracting lawmakers and the public with technological fantasies while they continue to churn out more single-use plastic. … It's time to scale back plastic production."

    Hard-to-recycle materials

    Enck, who ran EPA's regional office for New York, New Jersey and U.S. territories during President Barack Obama's administration, predicted the legislation will face hurdles in New York's state Legislature.

    "I do not expect them to pass," she said. "Neither has passed out of committee."

    Enck said chemical recycling facilities "do not get built without massive taxpayer subsidies," and she said the poll should have asked voters if they support that.

    She pointed to Brightmark LLC's decision earlier in April to end its plans for a $680 million chemical recycling plant in Macon, Ga., which would have required $500 million in local government bonds. That project ran into opposition from Macon's mayor.

    "Americans support true recycling — something that can effectively be done with materials like aluminum and paper that can be turned back into similar products and used again many times," she said.

    But ACC said advanced recycling is key to recycling much more plastic, particularly hard-to-recycle materials like flexible film pouches.

    The group pointed a 2021 study from Closed Loop Partners that estimated that advanced recycling could help double the plastics packaging recycling rate by 2030.

    "Through these cutting-edge technologies, many more types of plastics can be recycled compared to traditional, or mechanical, recycling, which currently has only achieved a plastics recycling rate of about 9 percent," ACC said.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Industry sees Biden bioplastics goal as serious signal
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Biden sets US goal to replace 90% of plastics with biomaterials
    2
    Industry sees Biden bioplastics goal as serious signal
    3
    Report urges treaty to regulate plastics like pharmaceuticals, limit growth
    4
    One injured in explosion at Ineos cumene plant in Texas
    5
    Engineering resin prices close the first quarter with a drop
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • K Show Livestream
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Resin Prices
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified