The voice of plastics recycling The Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers The Voice of Plastics Recycling

The voice of plastics recycling APR THE ASSOCIATION OF POST CONSUMER PLASTIC RECYCLERS SERDC Annual Meeting Memphis, TN October 27, 2011

The voice of plastics recycling APR 95% of Postconsumer Plastic Reclamation capacity in North America

The voice of plastics recycling APR Programs Market Development, Technical Programs Rigids Plastic Recycling Program Education Communication Regulatory/Advocacy

The voice of plastics recycling Industry Key Issues Key issues: –Supply Export Market –Contamination Degradables and Bio-resins Resin Identification Code Labelling

The voice of plastics recycling Communications Communicate to key audiences Blocking and Tackling –Local Recycling Officials –General Public –Elected Officials –Website/KidsRecycling Zone.com Webinars Industry Information Clearinghouse Plastics Recycling Conference

The voice of plastics recycling Key messages Without APR there is no Plastics Recycling Plastics are not sustainable w/o recycling

The voice of plastics recycling Legislative/Regulatory Activity California KT, NY, MA, ME, VT, IA ASTM/SPI Resin Identification Code Wal-Mart, Canada, et al

The voice of plastics recycling Technical Activities Design for Recycling Guidelines PET Critical Guidance Document HDPE Critical Guidance Document Model Bale Specifications Color Measurement Projects

The voice of plastics recycling Technical Programs/Issues Champions For Change Shrink Sleeves Bleeding Labels Labelling –RIC Code –‘Compatible With’ Contamination

The voice of plastics recycling Rigids Recycling Program Nationwide Bale Audit Bale Specificatons Published Recycled Resins Fit for Use Survey Grocery Store Project

The voice of plastics recycling Rigids Recycling Program Some specific resins collected- PS,PP,HDPE,tubs and lids Mixed rigid plastic materials collected haphazardly with loosely defined or no specifications Limited US and Canadian reclamation capacity Most sold export

The voice of plastics recycling 2010 Recycling Rate Report HDPE The total pounds of plastic bottles recycled reached a record high 2,579 million pounds.  The total plastic bottle recycling rate was 28.8%, up from 27.8% in  The annual increase in pounds of plastic bottles recycled was 5.0%.  The 20 year compounded annual growth rate for plastic bottle recycling was 9.2%.

The voice of plastics recycling 2010 Recycling Rate Report PET The amount of post consumer PET bottles collected for recycling and sold in the United States in 2010 was 1,557.2 million pounds Purchased by U.S. Reclaimers Purchased by Export Markets PET bottle component of mixed bales exported This represents a 113 MMlb increase in the amount of bottles collected, resulting in an increase in the overall PET bottle recycling rate to 29.1%.

The voice of plastics recycling 2010 Recycling Rate Report HDPE bottles collected rose by 2.5 million pounds to million pounds. The HDPE bottle recycling rate rose to 29.9% in 2010 from 29.2% in 2009  Exports of United States-collected HDPE bottle material fell to 197 million pounds, 20.0%  Imports of postconsumer HDPE to the United States decreased by 38% to 24.8 million pounds

The voice of plastics recycling 2010 Recycling Rate Report Polypropylene bottle recycling totaled 35.4 million pounds, an increase of 31% over % of the total processed domestically as deliberate PP material As opposed to mixed material flake combined with HDPE

The voice of plastics recycling RPET Issues Bottle growth slowing Bottle collection growing Curbside Volumes decreasing Bale supplies tight More conversion demand than supply End use demand remains strong New Investments Announced

The voice of plastics recycling RPET Applications Carpet Fiber Strapping Garments Fleece Packaging Automotive Anything virgin Pet can do-including bottle- bottle

The voice of plastics recycling RPET Issues 2/3rds of recycled PET into products other than bottles. Must get more bottles collected to have high recycled content in bottles and STILL have material for other uses. 50+% of collected PET leaves country Need domestic buyers healthy because export markets come and go

The voice of plastics recycling R-HDPE HDPE bottle growth stagnant HDPE bottle collection growing More bale demand than supply More reclamation capacity than supply More clean flake demand than supply Market dynamics changing Need new investments

The voice of plastics recycling R-HDPE USES

The voice of plastics recycling PCR operations No clear public policy on PCR use –Mandate on supply, not demand Most orders come month to month, no long term contracts Higher costs for those users augmenting with PCR, i.e., not using as primary feedstock

The voice of plastics recycling Reclaimer issues -Recycled content -Light weighting / downsizing -Bio resins/Degradables -Labelling -LCA’s to understand/quantify sustainability

The voice of plastics recycling What is coming Plastics recycling will rely more on technical innovation to sort, clean, process and convert more polymers from a mixed packaging stream to usable post consumer resins. Investment for innovation will remain difficult to come by without strong market signals

The voice of plastics recycling Future issues Not many bottles in the 3-7 category (about 3-5%) Product Stewardship for all packaging, not just bottles. Collection Infrastructure Intermediate Processing Infrastructure Contracts and Public Education

The voice of plastics recycling APR Supply not growing, but markets are No quick cure-but commitments to purchase give security and help investment Color Sorted Resin has greatest potential for growth and savings for end markets Export demand is expected to double every 4 years Good News is we can all expect to market more post-consumer plastic bottles

The voice of plastics recycling Finally PLASTICSRECYCLING.ORG THANK YOU

The voice of plastics recycling