Recycling

Introduction

There are four options available at the end of a plastic product's life:

  • mechanical recycling;
  • chemical recycling;
  • energy recovery;
  • and landfill.

24% of plastic packaging is now being diverted through private and public recycling operations. This recycling rate has increased by 46% over the past 5 years. However plastic which is not being recycled typically ends up in the landfill in New Zealand because there are no systems in place for energy recovery.

Concern about plastic products going to landfills is based on the fact that plastic degrades very slowly in these landfills. In fact, modern landfills are designed so that their contents do not degrade. A more fundamental issue is that discarding plastics as rubbish represents a waste of a valuable resource. Plastics are a valuable resource that can be mined/segregated from the total waste stream to create sustainable recycled resins.

Recycling is a way every individual can help the environment every day - and it is easier to do than it has ever been.

Why Bother to Recycle? Recycling:-

  • Conserves resources, including non-renewable raw materials,
  • Reduces the need for landfill space and the costs of landfill
  • Reduces energy consumption because using recycled resins typically means less energy is needed than with virgin plastic
  • Creates new markets and products; which
  • Creates employment opportunities.

 

Benefits of Recycling

The Department of Environment and Climate Change NSW - Australia (formerly the Department of Environment and Conservation NSW ) undertook a recycling study in 2005 to demonstrate the environmental benefits of recycling a range of virgin based products were directly compared to products made using recycled materials.

NSW Benefits of Recycling Report


There are three main streams of plastic recycling in New Zealand:

  1. kerbside collections of household plastics – usually PET (1) and HDPE (2) but increasingly all types of hard plastics
  2. commercial collection of commercial films (shrink and shroud wrap)
  3. In-house plastics recycling by manufacturers.

 

How are plastics recycled in New Zealand?

The material collected by territorial authorities and recycling companies is used for mechanical recycling. This process involves:

  • material collection - plastics are collected for recycling; this may be from a manufacturing site; a commercial operation seeking to dispose of bulk packaging, such as pallet wrap; "drop off" points at schools; or from houses which have a kerbside collection
  • transport to the recycling centre
  • sorting into types that can be re-processed together, and either
  • baling for export or with options now available for recycling in New Zealand
  • cleaning to remove dirt and other contaminants normally this is done by cutting the plastics into small flakes and putting these flakes through a washing and drying process
  • the flakes are then melted and extruded (squirted) into thin lines and then chopped into granules
  • and these granules or pellets can be reused to make new plastic products.

PET (1) is exported in bales to be reprocessed to Australia, China and Asia. Most HDPE (2) and commercial film is being reprocessed here. Click the link below to see the products that recycled plastics can be reused in.

The Plastics Identification Code The Plastics Identification Code

For further information about how plastics are recycled in New Zealand you could take a look at our 2004 Recycling Survey:

Sustainable end of life options for plastics Sustainable end of life options for plastics

The Recycling Operators of New Zealand have produced a series of factsheets on recycling the different plastics in New Zealand.

PET (1) fact sheet PET (1) fact sheet
HDPE (2) fact sheet HDPE (2) fact sheet
LDPE (4) fact sheet LDPE (4) fact sheet
PP (5) fact sheet PP (5) fact sheet
PS (6) fact sheet PS (6) fact sheet
EPS (7) fact sheet EPS (7) fact sheet

For more information on the recycling of other non-plastic materials in New Zealand go to www.ronz.org.nz.


To increase plastic recycling here, Plastics New Zealand encourages its members and the wider industry to:

  • design plastic products to facilitate recycling
  • label products with the Plastic Identification Code to aid sorting and collecting.
  • select packaging materials able to be recycled.
  • use recovered recycled material in their products.
  • promote and educate their customers and the public about the environmental and social benefits of plastic and plastic recycling.
  • Stimulate new markets to ensure an end-use for recyclate.
  • invest in new technologies to support material recycling and new techniques.


Some important things to know:

  • Collecting and sorting plastic (as with any type of product) can cost a lot
  • The quality of recovered plastic is not always as good as new (virgin) plastic so may be worth less, however with improved technology the prices for recycled resin makes this more and more economically viable - for example using the resin from recycled HDPE milk bottles costs $600 per tonne less than using virgin plastic
  • So it's a tough business but we're getting better at it!


You can help by:

  • sorting your plastic carefully
  • checking to see what is able to be collected at kerbside in your area
  • always rinsing and removing lids
  • close the loop - buy products with recycled plastic in them!!

 

Recycling Plastic at Home and Work

We can all do more to decrease plastic waste:

  • Think about what you buy and find ways to reuse disposable plastic items.
  • Participate in your local recycling program
  • Separate your recyclables from your rubbish
  • Separate your recyclables from each other in accordance with local programs, although many councils are moving to mixed collections with all recyclables collected in one bin.
  • Prepare your plastic for recycling by rinsing it and removing the caps, cap rings and base cups from plastic bottles. These accessories may be made from other types of plastic and by removing them you will help reduce processing time and expense
  • Look for products made from or packaged in recycled-content plastic or other readily recyclable material

 How can you tell if a product contains recycled content? Look out for the Envirochoice label.


Other Types of Recycling

Innovative techniques in the energy recovery and materials recovery area are beginning to appear in Europe, the US and Japan. While the relatively small volumes of recyclable material available in this country may make such developments too expensive to establish here, the local industry continues to monitor, investigate and commit resources to seeking a technology, or technologies that would be applicable to the New Zealand situation.

More information on plastic recycling: 


A Word on Litter 

Plastic makes up 8% of New Zealand's rubbish by weight - so why do we see it everywhere? 

Plastic is so light it blows around and it is so durable it lasts for a long time. The very properties that make it good for the environment - lightness and durability - make it a potential litter problem. 

The solution? Here are five rules about plastic litter to help you. 

  1. Pick it up 
  2. Recycle it. There are recycling bins in many public places around the country.
  3. Or put it in a bin 
  4. Be responsible for your neighbourhood 
  5. Think global and act local.