In the three decades since Canada pioneered blue box recycling, similar systems have become familiar sights in cities throughout the developed world. But the rise of recycling disguises an awkward truth: only 10 per cent of the plastic produced globally is put back into use. Even in a rich nation like Canada, where all but the most isolated communities can recycle, plastics are recovered at a much lower rate than materials like paper and metal.
Now technology is rising to meet the challenge posed by the enormous heap of plastic discarded into the environment every year, as well as materials that are collected but end up in landfill because they can’t be recycled economically.
Fish swimming through oceans of plastic
How big a predicament is plastic? Scientists estimate that up to 12 million metric tons of plastic is swept into oceans every year, a problem highlighted by the recent discovery of two vast garbage patches in the once-pristine Arctic Ocean to go along with those already polluting the Pacific.
The recycling of plastic is improving so slowly in part “because there isn’t an easy rule for people to follow,” says Ashley Wallis, a program manager with Environmental Defence, the Canadian non-profit agency.
One problem is that so many varieties of plastic are in use; another is the fact that municipalities have different rules. For example, Toronto residents can recycle white plastic forks but not black ones, while in neighbouring Mississauga, both types go in the trash because they’re too small for that city’s sorting machinery.
Recycling can be like a spiral of declining value
Recycling programs are picky because not all plastics can be treated the same. While some, such as water bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, are relatively easy to recycle, others, such as ketchup bottles, contain multiple layers of plastic that are much more difficult to process.
In many cases, instead of material fit for new products, recyclers end up with a gloop containing contaminants that affect its colour, clarity and other physical properties. Cleanliness can also be an issue. For example, very few Ziploc bags are recycled. Those that are — just 0.2 per cent — are collected via grocery-store drop-off boxes because those found in curbside bins are generally too dirty to make a valuable product.
To read the full story, visit https://www.thestar.com/business/2017/09/19/can-technology-save-us-as-we-drown-in-plastic-waste.html.