Plastic Recycling

Resources, Conservation and Recycling 28 (2000) 253–263 www.elsevier.com/locate/resconrec

Plastics recycling and waste management in the US P.M. Subramanian * S .P.M . Technologies, 110 Cameron Dri 6e, Hockessin, DE 19707 , USA

Abstract

The increasing awareness of the environment has contributed to concerns regarding our life styles and our indiscriminate disposal of wastes. During the last decade, we have been trying to address this complex problem, more aggressively. Discussed here briefly, are our efforts in the United States in addressing the issue of solid wastes and in particular, plastic wastes wastes.. These These effort effortss have have begun begun to show show promis promising ing result results. s. The munic municipa ipall solid solid waste waste (MSW) produced annually, has begun to decrease, e.g. from 211.5 million tons in 1995 to 209.7 million tons in 1996. Recycling rates and composting rates are increasing. Disposal in landfills is decreasing (from 60.9 to 55.5% in 1996). Waste disposal by combustion is also increasing. This is primarily due to the increased efficiencies of the new incinerators and their ability for the removal of particulates and harmful gases. Plastics are a small but a significant component of the waste stream. It is encouraging to note that the amount of plastics being recycled has grown significantly. In 1997, about 317 million kg of high density polyethylene (HDPE (HDPE)) bottl bottles es and 294 mil millio lion n kg of polye polyethy thylen lenee tereph terephtha thalat latee (PET) (PET) bottle bottless were were recycl recycled. ed. Recycl Recycling ing of durab durable le goods goods,, such such as autom automoti otive ve parts parts,, carpet carpets, s, electr electron onic ic and and applianc appliancee housing housingss and parts parts are being being explored. explored. Environm Environmenta entall compatib compatibility ility and recyclability clability are being being considere considered d during during the designing designing of new parts. Life cycle analyses analyses and management are also being studied as tools for decision making. © 2000 ACEEE Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Keywords: Environme Environment; nt; Plastics Plastics recycling; recycling; Waste management; management; Municipal waste; Integrated Integrated waste management; management; Waste-to-en Waste-to-energy; ergy; Incineratio Incineration; n; Landfill; Landfill; Life cycle analysis analysis

* Tel.: + 1-302-2394953 1-302-2394953;; fax: + 1-302-2390444. 0921-3449/00/$ - see front matter © 2000 ACEEE Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S0921-3449(99)00049-X

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P.M . Subramanian / Resources, Conser6ation and Recycling 28 (2000) 253–263

1. Introduction

The pursuit of a higher quality of life is a continuing goal for the people of this world. This has contributed to the increased consumption of goods and services. A consequence of such consumption is the production of increased pollution and large amounts of wastes. The goal of any sustainable growth should be that the efficiency of energy utilization in every step of the system, from the production of the goods to the disposal of the wastes, be maximized. The interdependence of each of these steps on the others in the total chain, necessitates that we address the problems, in totality. This is an enormous and complex task. In this talk, we will focus only on the solid wastes produced and its management, and specially discuss plastics in the solid solid waste waste stream, stream, in the United United States States.. An integra integrated ted waste waste manageme management nt approa proach ch will will be cons consid idere ered d invo involvi lving ng effic efficien ientt use use of ma mate teria rials, ls, recyc recyclin ling g and and disposal.

2. Municipal solid waste (MSW)

Most of the consumer generated solid wastes, as well as a significant part of the industrially produced wastes in this country, are disposed of by landfilling. However, during the last decade, our environmental awareness has increased, questions have been raised regarding the viability of such indiscriminate disposal practices. As a result result,, substa substanti ntial al progre progress ss has been made made in better better management management of the waste strea streams ms and and more more effic efficien ientt util utiliza izati tion on of the the land land resou resourc rces. es. The The tota totall MSW MSW produced in the US has declined. Per capita generation of such wastes has also decli decline ned d and recyc recyclin ling g and and comp compos osti ting ng activi activiti ties es have have grow grown n (Tab (Table le 1). 1). The The quantities of discarded packaging and durable goods have been reduced (Table 2) [1]. Significant amounts of wastes are being recycled and /or composted (Table 3). Disposal of solid wastes by combustion has also increased. This is the result of the greater efficiencies efficiencies of the newer waste-to-energ waste-to-energy y (WTE) plants which are engineered engineered for complete combustion of the organic wastes and capture and removal of noxious gases gases and and part particl icles es.. The APC APC [2] Dinge Dingerr [3], [3], Gr Green eenbe berg rg [4] and and Port Porter er [5] [5] have have prov provid ided ed sever several al over overvie views ws of the the solid solid wast wastee pict pictur ure. e. The The US Envir Environ onme ment ntal al Protection Agency (EPA)s most recent figures [6] show that both the total and per capit capita a wast wastee gener generat atio ion n rate ratess have have actual actually ly decli decline ned. d. US EPA EPA is pred predict ictin ing g a Table 1 Municipal solid waste in the US

Total MSW (million tons) Per capita generation (kg) Per capita discards (kg) Recovery–recycling, composting (%)

199 3

1994

1995

1 99 6

206 2 .0 1.59 21

209 2.0 1.54 24

211.5 2 .0 1.49 26

209.7 1.95 1.45 27


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Table 2 Composition of materials discarded in the MSW* Weight (%)

1995

19 96

Paper and paper products Glass

31 .3 6.2

31.1 6.0

4 .7 1 .2 0.3 6.3

4.8 1.3 0.3 6.4

11.5 3.5 4.2 6.4 1.9 13.6 13.3 2 .0

12.3 3.7 4.4 6.8 1.9 14.0 11.3 2.1

Metals Ferrous Aluminum Other non-ferrous Total metals

Plastics Rubber and leather Textiles Wood Other Food wastes Yard trimmings Miscellaneous inorganic wastes * Discarded after recovery by recycling, composting.

relatively stable per capita waste generation rate through the year 2000 as waste reduction efforts continue to have an effect [2]. Today, Today, over 19 000 communiti communities es are involve involved d in some form form of recycling. recycling. A total total 78% of the US population have access to recycling programs [3]. Rathje [7,8] and others [2] point out that contrary to popular belief, plastics are not the most most prevale prevalent nt material material in landfill landfillss — paper paper and paper paper products products account account for the largest percentage of a landfill’s contents. Food items and yard wastes are the next next largest largest compon component ents. s. Among Among the other other individ individual ual compon component entss plasti plastics cs constitute the largest fraction (Table 2). The amounts amounts of materia materials ls dispos disposed ed in landfil landfills, ls, recycled recycled or compost composted ed or disdisposed by combustion are given in Table 3.

Table 3 Management of MSW in the US 1 9 88 Landfill (%) Recycling/composting (%) Combustion (%)

13

1 99 0

1994

19 96

17

60.9 23 .6 15.5

5 5 .5 27.3 17.2

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3. Landfills

As show shown n in Tabl Tablee 3, most most of the the wast wastee prod produc ucts ts are being being disp dispos osed ed of by landfilling. During the 1980s, there was a perceived crisis over a lack of landfill space which led to fears that America would soon run out of room for its garbage. Images of garbage barges floating up and down our coasts were ingrained into our minds. While it is true that there were some localized landfill shortages in the 1980s, a shor shorta tage ge never never occu occurr rred ed,, nati nation onwi wide de.. While While the the tota totall numb number er of landfi landfills lls is decreasing, total landfill capacity is actually steadily increasing. Between 1990 and 1996, there has been a 17% decrease in waste being landfilled. National recovery levels reached 27% in 1996 and landfilled wastes declined from 83% of all MSW in 1986 to 55.4% in 1996. It has been calculated that at the current rate of waste generation, all of America’s garbage for the next 1000 years will fit into a single landfill measuring 120 feet deep and 44 miles square [2]. Modern landfills are designed to safely entomb wastes so that their uncontrolled degradation does not endanger groundwater with pollutants. Such landfills could, in many cases, be used after they are capped, to construct parks, golf courses and even airports.

4. Plastics and plastic wastes

Plast Plastics ics have have beco become me an inte integr gral al part part of our our lives lives.. The The amoun amounts ts of plas plasti tics cs consumed annually have been growing steadily (Table 4). Its low density, strength, user-f user-frien riendly dly design design and fabrica fabricatio tion n capabil capabilitie itiess and low cost, cost, are the drivers drivers to such growth. Besides its wide use in packaging, automotive and industrial applications, they are extensively used in medical delivery systems, artificial implants and other healthcare healthcare applications, applications, water desalination and removal of bacteria bacteria etc. Usage of plastics, in preservation and distribution of food, housing and appliances are too many to mention here. Specially designed plastics, have been an integral part of the commun communicat ication ion and electro electronic nicss indust industry ry — be it in the manufactu manufacturing ring of chips chips or printed circuit boards, or housings for computers. They are also integral compoTable 4 Growth of plastics in MSW Year

Plastics in MSW (%)

1 96 0 1 97 0 1 98 0 1 99 0 1 99 2 1 99 4 1995 1996

0.5 2.6 5.0 9.8 1 0 .6 1 1 .2 11.5 12.3


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Table 5 Plastics in municipal solid waste (1996, 1000 tons) Durable goods Non-durable goods Bags, sacks and wraps Soft drinks, milk etc. containers Other containers

6260 53 5 0 3220 1350 1 2 80

nents in the preparation and delivery of alternative energy systems such as fuel cells, batteries and even solar power. Given Given such such perv pervasi asiven venes ess, s, it is little little wond wonder er that that plas plasti tics cs cont contri ribu bute te to an incr increa easi sing ng volu volume me in the the soli solid d wast wastee stre stream am.. In the the MSW, MSW, in 1996 1996,, plas plasti tics cs amounted to about 12%, by weight [1]. Table 5 describes the amounts of plastics (thousand tons) in the solid waste. The waste waste plasti plastics cs collect collected ed from from the solid wastes wastes stream stream is a contam contaminat inated, ed, assorted mixture of a variety of plastics. This makes their identification, separation and purification, very challenging. In the plastic plasticss waste waste stream, stream, polyet polyethyle hylene ne forms forms the largest largest fracti fraction, on, which which is followed by PET. Lesser amounts of a variety of other plastics can also be found in the plastics waste stream (Table 6).

5. Integrated plastics waste management

Any attempt to manage such large quantities of a diverse, contaminated mixture of plastics in an energy efficient and environmentally benign manner, needs to be consid considere ered d using using an integra integrated ted approa approach. ch. This would would requir requiree that that we examine examine critically the various steps in the life of the plastics such as the raw materials for their their manufa manufactu cture, re, the manufa manufactu cturing ring process processes, es, design design and fabrica fabricatio tion n of the finishe finished d produc products, ts, possib possible le reuse reuse of those those items, items, and the proper proper dispos disposal al of the wastes etc., in totality. Such an integrated waste management concept comprises of reduction,  Source reduction,  reuse,  recycling, Table 6 Types and quantities of plastics in municipal solid waste (1000 tons) Polyethyleneterephthalate (PET) High density polyethylene (HDPE) Low density polyethylene (LDPE/HDPE) Polypropylene (PP) Polystyrene (PS) Other

1 7 00 4 12 0 5010 25 80 1 9 90 3130

258  


landfill, waste-to-energy conversion

6. Source reduction–conserving energy

It has been reported that only about 4% of the United States energy consumption are used in the production of all plastics [2]. Franklin Associates Ltd., a leading practitioner in life cycle studies, has conducted research to compare the life cycle energy impact of plastics and alternative materials. One study compared the energy requir required ed to manufac manufactur ture, e, use and dispos disposee of common common packagin packaging g items items with with the most likely non-plastic non-plastic alternatives. alternatives. Franklin found that by using plastic packaging, product manufacturers save enough energy each year to power a city of 1 million homes for roughly 3.5 years [2]. Rathje [9] has analyzed, carrying capacity ratios of different packaging materials. Glass has a value of 1.9 indicating that to carry 1.9 ounce of juice, one needs 1 ounce of glass. Plastics has a value of 34 meaning that 34 ounces of juice could be carried in 1 ounce of plastic. Paper has a value of 6.9 and for aluminum the value is 21.8.

7. Source reduction–efficient use

An important aspect of the integrated waste management approach is to minimize the amount of plastics used. By employing improved manufacturing technologies gies,, wast wastes es prod produc uced ed duri during ng ma manu nufa fact ctur urin ing g proc proces esse sess have have been been redu reduce ced d significantly, by the resin manufacturers and converters. Parts are being designed to have adequate strength, with less weight. Efforts are made to reduce the number of diff differe erent nt type typess of plas plasti tics cs in any any given given asse assemb mbly. ly. Recyc Recycled led plas plasti tics cs are are ofte often n considered as raw materials for manufacture of a variety of parts, particularly in the automotive and industrial areas. Since 1977, the weight of the 2-l plastic soft drink bottle has been reduced from 68 to 51 g, a 25% reduction. That eliminates the need for more than 206 million pounds of PET each year. The 1-gallon plastic milk jug has undergone an even greater reduction, weighing 30% less than it did 20 years ago. For several applications, tions, milk and several several juices juices are being being package packaged d in recyclab recyclable le pouche pouches, s, which which weigh substantially less than the rigid bottles. The lower weights, besides reducing the the amoun amounts ts of wast wastes es prod produce uced, d, redu reduce ce the the cost costss asso associa ciate ted d with with frei freight ght and and handling, as well. The The dura durabi bili lity ty of plas plasti tics cs ofte often n cont contri ribu bute tess to thei theirr reus reusee in a vari variet ety y of secondary applications. According to Duranceau [10], a large number of automotive parts are recovered from discarded vehicles or vehicles involved in an accident. Thes Thesee are dism disman antl tled, ed, repa repaire ired d and and reused reused in many many auto automo moti tive ve repair repairs. s. These These recovered plastic parts contribute to a large reduction in the potential amounts of virgin plastic materials that would have been required otherwise.


259

8. Recycling of plastics

Plastic recycling has grown appreciably during the last few years. Recycling of rigid rigid plas plasti ticc cont contain ainers ers has has grow grown n to about about 1.4 billi billion on poun pounds ds — 704 mil millio lion n pounds of waste HDPE bottles and 649 million pounds of waste PET bottles, in 1997 1997 (Tab (Table le 7). 7). At pres present ent,, ther theree are are more more than than 1700 1700 busin busines esses ses hand handlin ling g and and reclaiming post-consumer plastics. A wide variety of new products, such as singleuse cameras cameras,, park park benche benches, s, sweate sweaters, rs, jeans, jeans, videocas videocasset settes tes,, deterge detergent nt bottle bottless and toys toys are being being made with or packaged packaged in post-c post-cons onsume umerr recycle recycled d plasti plastics. cs. More More than than 1500 1500 comm commerc ercial ially ly avail availab able le prod produc ucts ts are liste listed d in the the Recycl Recycled ed Plas Plasti ticc Products Source Book published by the APC. The produc productio tion n and consum consumpti ption on of virgin virgin plasti plasticc resins resins have been increas increasing ing stead steadily ily.. Tolo Toloke ken n [11] [11] indi indicat cates es that that the the am amou ount nt of plast plastics ics recyc recycled led have have also also increas increased ed simulta simultaneo neousl usly y (4% in 1997), 1997), however however,, the recyclin recycling g rate has declined. declined. This is due to the weaker market demand for recycled resins in an economy where the virgin resins are priced very low — a situation compounded by the low energy costs and the poor global economy, currently (1999). 8 .1. Durable plastics recycling

Durable plastics, as opposed to most packaging and convenience goods which are discarded after a single use, tend to have a life of 3 or more years. Automobiles, computers, household appliances, carpets and fabrics fall into this category. The use use of plast plastics ics in durab durable le appl applica icati tion onss cont contin inue uess to grow grow as desi design gn engin enginee eers rs,, manufacturers and consumers continue to rely on its performance, low cost and design benefits. The recovery of plastics from such durable goods is complex. Often, they they are integr integrated ated with with several several other other plasti plasticc and non-pl non-plast astic ic compon component ents. s. Their Their sepa separat ratio ion, n, reco recover very y and and puri purific ficat atio ion n requ requir iree sever several al step stepss and and gener generall ally, y, the the volumes of such materials available for recovery are limited. Nevertheless, several efforts are under way exploring the recycling of such products after their lifetime. Manu Manufa fact ctur urers ers of such such prod product uctss have have commi committ tted ed to use use recyc recycled led ma mate teri rials als,, wherever possible, as a part of their total material needs. Business equipment and computer manufacturers, who are currently recovering precious metals from such Table 7 Plastics bottle recycling rates Plastic bottle (million kg)

1996

1 99 7

Change (%)

PET soft drink PET custom Total PET bottles HDPE natural HDPE pigmented Total HDPE bottles All plastic bottles

240 46 286 1 83 1 15 29 7 59 3

246 48 2 95 1 88 1 32 31 9 617

2.7 3 2 .8 2.7 14.9 7.4 4.1

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products, are testing the recovery of plastic housings and other components from them. Automotive companies have major efforts in recycling of plastic components and try to use materials having recycled plastics content. In the US, carpets consume over 2 billion pounds of polymers, mostly nylon 66, nylon 6 or polyesters. Carpet constructions consist of about 50% fibers or face yarn. The backing of the carpets is invariably polypropylene, attached to a layer of highly filled SBR latex. Recovery of the face fiber in a pure form, freed from the backing and the fillers etc., is a complex process. Carpet manufacturers are introducing new techno technology logy to recover recover such such carpet carpet fibers fibers and underla underlay, y, includ including ing prepar preparati ation on of pure monomers and intermediates. Several Several studies studies and pilot program programss in durabl durables es recyclin recycling g are under under way. way. The objec objectiv tivee of thes thesee proje project ctss is a comp compre rehe hens nsive ive inves investi tigat gation ion of the the tech techni nical cal,, econom economic ic and ecologi ecological cal aspect aspectss of such such recycli recycling. ng. Automo Automotiv tivee shredd shredder er residue residue (ASR), (ASR), a major, major, comming commingled led mixture mixture of waste waste produc products ts from from end-of end-of-lif -lifee (EOL) (EOL) automobiles is a subject of extensive investigation regarding its potential use for impact modification of concrete, pyrolysis, or as a fuel in energy plants. Economic modelin modeling g has comple complement mented ed much much of this this experime experimenta ntall researc research. h. They includ includee assessment assessment of system economies for today’s today’s automobile automobile recycling infrastruct infrastructure ure and project the impact of different material and energy recovery options [2]. 8 .2 . Design for recycling

Unti Untill recen recentl tly, y, very very littl littlee atte attent ntion ion had had been been paid paid to make make comp compon onen ents ts and and systems that lend themselves to facile recycling at the end of their use. Combination tionss of plas plasti tic, c, pape paper, r, meta metall and and natu natura rall prod produc ucts ts were were used used in comb combin inat atio ion n without any consideration of the potential difficulties in recycling. For example, the soft drink PET bottle had a polyethylene bottom, polypropylene or aluminum cap and paper labels. Adhesives used in the assembly of the products often, prevent easy easy separ separat atio ion n of attach attached ed plas plastic tic part parts. s. With With the the incr increas easin ing g awar awaren enes esss for for potential recyclability, designers are exploring new designs and material combinations. New simplified soft drink bottle constructions, automotive fascias, bumpers and instrumental panels are examples of such efforts. 8 .3 . Ad 6anced recycling technologies

Another approach to the recycling of plastics wastes involves the generation of monomers and building blocks in high purity, from the plastic wastes, enabling the re-manufacture of the original or new plastics. Such novel recycling (e.g. glycolysis, ammonol ammonolysis ysis,, pyroly pyrolysis, sis, etc.) etc.) repres represent entss a signific significant ant techno technologi logical cal advance advancemen mentt that that could could supple supplement ment existin existing g mechan mechanical ical recycli recycling ng techniq techniques ues.. These These are often often called advanced recycling or feed-stock recycling or chemical recycling [2]. Commercial mercial size plants to make the respec respective tive monomers monomers from from polyest polyesters ers and nylon nylon have been built or are under construction. While several technologies in these areas have been developed, large scale adoptions depend upon their economic viability.


261

Table 8 Energy values of common materials Material

BTU/pound

Plastics Polyethylene Polypropylene Polystyrene

19 900 19 850 17 800

Rubber Newspaper Leather Wood Average MSW Yard wastes Food wastes Fuel oil Wyoming Wyoming coal

1 7 80 0 8000 72 00 67 00 4500 3000 2600 20 900 9600

9. Energy recovery

Another important way to manage solid waste is to recover the energy value of products after their useful life. One such method involves combustion of municipal solid waste (MSW) or garbage in waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities. Modern energy recovery facilities burn solid wastes in special combustion chambers, and use the resulting heat energy to generate steam and electricity. This process can reduce the volume of MSW by as much as 90%. Today, there are 114 energy recovery plants, operating in 32 states throughout the United States, generating enough electricity to meet the power needs of 1.2 million homes and businesses. Boet Boettc tche herr [12] [12] has has point pointed ed out out that that as plas plasti tics cs are are gener generall ally y deri derived ved from from petrol petroleum eum or natura naturall gas, they have have stored stored energy values higher than any other mater material ial commo commonl nly y foun found d in the the wast wastee stre stream. am. The The ener energy gy value valuess of sever several al common materials are given in Table 8. Polyolefins commonly used in packaging can generate twice as much energy as Wyoming coal and almost as much energy as fuel oil. When plastics are processed in modern WTE facilities, they can help other wastes combust more completely, leaving less ash for disposal. Several international and US studies, including a 1995 report completed by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and a study sponsored by the US Conference of Mayors in 1989, have found that there is no evidence to link the incineration of polyvinylchloride containing wastes with increased dioxin emissions. Such combustion processes could be a way of disposing the large volumes of contaminated automotive shredder residues, safely [2]. In 1997, there were 112 energy recovery facilities operating in 31 states throughout out the the Unit United ed Stat States es with with a desig design n capa capacit city y of near nearly ly 101 101 500 tons per day [2].

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9 .1. Life cycle analysis and management

Duri During ng the the last last 20 years years,, publ public ic opin opinio ion n and and envir environ onme ment ntal al dire direct ctive ivess from from governments have led to the evolution of methodologies to measure an industrial system system’s ’s enviro environme nmenta ntall impact impact.. Lowman Lowman,, in his presen presentat tation ion at an automo automobil bilee industry conference [13] mentions that life cycle analysis (LCA) has emerged as a tool tool in the the deve develop lopmen mentt of publi publicc polic policy y and and in desi design gn decis decisio ions ns.. It analy analyzes zes multip multiple le attrib attribute utess of a produc productt or system from cradle to grave. grave. It also has the unique ability to create a quantitative inventory listing of all process inputs and output outputss (includ (including ing environ environment mental al emissio emissions ns and energy energy resour resources ces)) from from which which trade tradeof offf analy analyse sess can be ma made de befor beforee makin making g publ public ic poli policy cy decis decisio ions ns or large large investments in products, or research. In the United States, where landfill space is actually increasing, the EPA is in an information gathering stage, and is becoming more active in the area of life cycle management (LCM). 10. Conclusion

The past decade has seen increased awareness of the environmental issues and general support for exploration and implementation of methods and practices to make our products and processes more environmentally benign. Consequentially, substantial progress has been made in the areas of environmental management. In the case of solid wastes including plastics, significant progress has been made in reducing waste and increasing the quantities being recycled. Chemical recycling to make make monome monomers, rs, in the case of nylon nylon and polyester polyesters, s, has been establ establish ished ed and disposal of very complex and contaminated mixtures of plastics by incineration has been developed. While several new technologies have been developed, the amounts of materials being recycled appear to have reached a plateau. In the absence of additional legislative mandates, further progress in recycling of plastics might be slower, given the relatively high costs of recycling, the low cost of energy, and the low cost cost of landfill landfilling. ing. Yet, Yet, with with a long-t long-term erm perspe perspecti ctive, ve, greater greater dedicat dedication ion to higher environmental quality and life cycle analysis of products, growth of plastics and its recycling could become more important in the future. Acknowledgements

Valuable discussions with Mr John McAuley of Montell and Dr Michael Fisher of the American Plastics Council are hereby acknowledged.

References [1] Franklin Associates Ltd. Characterization of Municipal Municipal Solid Waste: 1997 Update (Prepared for the USEPA). Prairie Village, KS, 1998.


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[2] APC (American (American Plastics Council), Council), 1998. (http: (http://www.Plasticsresource.com/). [3] Dinger PW. Recycling Recycling perspective perspective — as packaging packaging recovery rate’s slow, slow, the new focus is durables durables recycling. In: Modern Plastics Encyclopedia, vol. A 34, 1999. [4] Greenberg Greenberg EG. The solid waste: the once and future issue. In: Packaging Packaging Digest, 1998. [5] Porter W. Waste prevention prevention — is recycling recycling enough? In: Speech during American American Plastics Plastics Council, Harper’s magazine Forum, 1998. (http:// www. Plasticsresource.com/topics/readingroom/speeches/ transcript – harper.html). [6] US EPA Report. Report. Characterizatio Characterization n of Municipal Waste (MSW) in the United States, 1998. (http://www.Plasticsresource.com/topics/disposal/backgrounders/disposal – backgrounder.html). [7] Rathje Rathje W. The Garbage Project, Project, University University of Arizona, Arizona, 1992. [8] Rathje Rathje W, Murphy Murphy C. Five Major Myths about Garbage Garbage and Why They are Wrong. Smithsonian, Smithsonian, 1992. (http://www.Plasticsresource.com/topics/disposal/articles/index.html). [9] Rathje Rathje W. King of the Landfill Hill: Rathje Talks Trash Trash (reported by Roger Renstrom). Renstrom). In: Plastics News, 1999, p. 53. [10] Duranceau Duranceau C, Lindell Lindell T. Automotiv Automotivee Recycling Recycling as Reuse: Reuse: Investigati Investigation on to Establish Establish the Contribu Contribu tion of Reuse as Recycling. Society of Automotive Engineers Publication No. 1430, 1998. [11] Toloken Toloken S. Plastic Plastic bottle recycling rate keeps sliding. sliding. In: Plastics Plastics News, August 24, 1998, p. 1. [12] Boettcher Boettcher F. Environme Environmental ntal compatibility compatibility of polymers polymers in emerging emerging technologies technologies.. In: Subramanian Subramanian PM, Andrews GD, editors. Plastics Recycling. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 1992, pp. pp. 16–25. [13] Lowman Lowman RW. Life cycle assessment assessment and public policy development development for the automotive automotive industry. industry. In: Proceedings of the Total Life Cycle Conference and Exposition, Auburn Hill, MI, April 7–9, 1997. (http://www.Plasticsresource.com/topics/readingroom/speeches/ica – speech.html/).

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