Plastic bottle recycling rates increase in Canada - report
The report said 43% of the bottle recovery was polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and 25% was high density polyethylene (HDPE).
The 2010 data represents an increase of 17.6m kilograms (13%) for bottles and an increase of 1.8m kilograms (6%) for non-bottle rigid plastic from 2009.
More material collected
The report, prepared by Moore Recycling Associates, said the growth was a result of more material being collected and an increase in companies providing recycling information but added because it was a voluntary survey not all recipients responded.
PET bottle data was supplied by NAPCOR (National Association for PET Container Resources).
The amount of postconsumer plastic material recovered in Canada for recycling rose to 217m kilograms, representing an increase of 15% from 2009.
The results of the survey, in its second year, are derived from more than 500 companies who handled recycled plastics in North America.
Post-consumer bottles recovered by resin increased by 13% because of an increase in collection, made up of 62.4% of PET, 23.1% of HDPE coloured bottles and 12.5% of HDPE natural bottles.
Geographic outlook
82% of the material reported was reclaimed in Canada or the US, 16% was exported overseas and the report said the remaining 2% was unknown.
It added the data showed the majority of the material collected is staying in Canada for reclamation and remanufacture.
Rigid plastic recovered by resin in kilograms included 95,523,691 of PET, 63,902,026 of HDPE, 9,596 of polypropylene (PP), 816,262,880 of low density polyethylene (LDPE), 1,395,617 of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and 1,172,610 of polystyrene (PS).
The majority of the increase for HDPE bottles (12.7m kilograms) is due to increased purchases by domestic reclaimers, said the report.
Plastic packaging collected included plastic bottles, non-bottle rigid plastics such as deli and dairy containers, bakery, fruit containers, and plastic film, bags and outer wrap.
Carol Hochu, president and CEO of the CPIA, said: “We are elated that around 70% of the plastic packaging collected, was recycled in Canada.
“This amounts to more than 149 million kilograms. We are building a recycling industry in Canada, re-using valuable plastic materials and creating jobs to grow the economy.”
