INTRODUCTION
The need for more plastics recycling
The problem of plastics waste has come to dominate the outlook for the plastics industry. Many polymer producers and technology companies are now turning to chemical recycling as a possible solution
The circularity of plastics has risen rapidly up the agenda for the global plastics industry. It is now the top talking point at any conference, forum and exhibition at which industry companies gather. Campaign groups have tried to highlight the problem of plastic waste in the environment for many years, but it only cut through to the public as a mainstream issue in 2018. The blanket media cov- erage of plastic pollution in oceans and on beach- es has receded since then, but the problem of what to do about waste plastics remains just as strong. The European Union responded quickly with actions to tackle plastic packaging waste, including its Plastics Strategy, setting medium-term targets for reducing plastics waste, and more immediate action to ban plastics in certain single-use items. But it’s not just in Europe that the issue has achieved such prominence. The challenge has been recognised in all regions of the world and many countries have implemented or are planning to implement regulations, notably China’s ban on most plastic waste imports, which was followed by other Asian countries imposing similar import bans. A key approach to the problem is circularity, which encompasses reduction in material usage and the recycling of materials so that loops are created in material production and use, thereby cutting the amount of waste. Multinational brand-
Chemical Recycling – Global Insight 2022
owners have become active in reducing virgin plastics and increasing recycled plastics in packag- ing of their products. Ellen MacArthur Foundation has been at the
forefront of the drive towards a circular economy in plastics packaging, along with other areas such as fashion and food. In November 2021, it published the third annual progress report on its New Plastics Economy Global Commitment. It said signatory businesses, accounting for 20% of all plastic packaging produced globally, have progressed towards their 2025 targets to create a circular economy for plastics. The report was nonetheless critical of compa- nies in terms of reducing packaging: “There is very little evidence of ambitious efforts to reduce the need for single-use packaging in the first place.” Chemical and mechanical recycling can be used for plastics waste that arises in all sorts of industries, including automotive, electronics and others. But it is plastics packaging that is the major focus for many companies in the plastics industry, because of the huge volumes of packaging waste and because this is where social concern is the greatest. Plastics packaging recycling has actually been
increasing in the EU for more than a decade. A study published by Eurostat in October 2021 indicated a 41% EU recycling rate for plastics
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Main image: Mixed plastics waste is the source of
feedstock for many plastics recycling companies
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
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