Recycling and Waste news and discussions

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Recycling and Waste news and discussions

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caltrek
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This is a good idea for a thread. In a local paper, there was also a story about plastic recycling. Turns out that there are actually "seven types of plastic" that "are technically recyclable, whether they are recycled depends on market demand for the plastic and the economic feasibility of the recycling process." In our local area, only the PET (disposable food and beverage containers), HDPE (milk jugs, detergent containers, shampoo bottles, juice cartons, rope, plastic chairs, and toys) and PP (yogurt containers, liner in cereal boxes, disposable plates, cups and utensils) types of plastic are recycled. PVC (music vinyls, PVC pipe, window frames, flooring , and shrink wrap) LDPE (plastic shopping bags, newspaper bags, food wrapping, and packaging foam) and Styrofoam are not recycled but typically still end up in the landfill. So the challenge for the latter is to either stop using them or create a market for the recycling of such items.

Another problem is that much of the plastic that consumers and users might think is recyclable is actually too dirty for such a use. People dump such plastic into recycling bins not realizing that such items will simply be diverted from the plastic recycling waste stream into the local landfill.

Industry folks also have an interesting term: "wishcycling." "Consumers think they're doing the right thing. They see something like a coat hanger and think, "Oh, this is plastic, I'm not putting that in my trash.' but that's not a recyclable product." At least not recyclable in our area. I myself am constantly getting the different types of plastic confused with each other.

As is often the case, what is technologically feasible may not matter if the economics cannot be made to work. Policies such as additional taxes or outright banning may help. In California, a problem has been the seemingly arbitrary nature of banning. "The plastic legislation we are seeing are these one-off bans. People get tired of it, they feel like we're trying to take things away from them because first we ban this then we ban that. The ban language is problematic." Economics can also vary from region to region. Some regions do find relatively local markets for plastics that are not recycled in other regions. So, this further confuses the situation for consumers and for communicating this issue to consumers.
Last edited by caltrek on Thu Dec 16, 2021 5:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Call for global treaty to end production of ‘virgin’ plastic by 2040

Thu 1 Jul 2021 19.00 BST

A binding global treaty is needed to phase out the production of “virgin” or new plastic by 2040, scientists have said.

The solution to the blight of plastic pollution in the oceans and on land would be a worldwide agreement on limits and controls, they say in a special report in the journal Science.

[...]

The scandals of plastic waste exports to developing countries were one example of the failure of mechanical recycling as an answer to the plastic pollution problem, said Kakadellis and Rosetto.

“Technology alone will not and cannot solve the plastic pollution crisis,” said the authors. “No silver-bullet solution exists for the multifaceted nature of plastic pollution. The answer instead lies in a blend of approaches … from a strong regulatory framework and the investment in effective waste collection and management infrastructure to the development of polymer chemistries, life-cycle design, and consumer behaviour.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... ic-by-2040
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Cow Stomach Enzymes Found to Break Down Common Plastics
by Jason Sandefur
July 1, 2021

https://www.courthousenews.com/cow-stom ... -plastics/

Introduction:
(CN) — Plastics touch every aspect of our modern lives, containing and comprising many of the products we depend on every day. Because they’re hard to break down, plastics also poison the planet we depend on for life.

Hoping to solve this dilemma, researchers in Austria have discovered that bacteria from a cow’s stomach can digest certain types of plastics — a breakthrough that could save the planet by reducing plastic waste.

The bacteria in question is found in a cow’s rumen, one of four compartments in its stomach. Since a cow’s diet contains natural plant polyesters, researchers suspected the bacteria a cow uses to break down this diet might have wider uses.

“We suspected that some biological activities could also be used for polyester hydrolysis,” said Dr. Doris Ribitsch of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna.

Hydrolysis is a type of chemical reaction that causes decomposition. Because microorganisms in this natural process already break down similar materials, scientists suspected they might be able to break down plastics as well.
One wonders whether the digesting of plastic by cows affects the quality of their milk?
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Re: Recycling and Waste news and discussions

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wjfox wrote: Thu Jul 01, 2021 8:02 pm Call for global treaty to end production of ‘virgin’ plastic by 2040
That's wayyyy too late.
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EPA Might Finally Regulate the Plastic Industry’s Favorite Kind of ‘Recycling’
by Joseph Winters
October 5, 2021

https://grist.org/regulation/epa-might- ... recycling/

Introduction:
(Grist) One of the fossil fuel and plastic industries’ favorite “solutions” to the plastic pollution crisis may finally be coming under greater scrutiny from the federal government.

Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, formally announced it was considering tighter regulations for pyrolysis and gasification — controversial processes that are associated with “chemical recycling.” Industry advocates have named these processes as key steps toward building a circular economy — one that minimizes waste — but environmental groups have called them an “industry shell game” meant to keep single-use plastics in production.

The problem, according to Denise Patel, regional coordinator for the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, or GAIA, is that most of what the industry calls “chemical recycling” isn’t recycling at all. Rather than turning used plastic into new plastic products, chemical recycling usually involves melting plastic into oil and gas to be burned — the process is sometimes called “plastic to fuel.” Not only does chemical recycling not contribute to a circular economy, Patel said, but it also releases greenhouse gases that exacerbate climate change and hazardous chemicals that harm frontline communities.

“This technology hasn’t been sufficiently regulated by the EPA,” Patel said, adding that oversight is urgently needed to protect public health and the environment.

At present, the EPA doesn’t have a consistent definition for chemical recycling or its constituent processes, let alone a comprehensive framework for regulating it at the national level. The EPA’s Clean Air Act guidelines for solid waste incineration set standards for some types of pyrolysis — a process that applies high heat to waste under deoxygenated conditions to produce oil, gas, and char — but not others.
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Natural Protein Offers Greener Way to Extract Rare Earth Elements
by Gail McCormick
October 11, 2021

https://www.futurity.org/rare-earth-ele ... n-2640262/

Introduction:
(Futurity) A new method improves the extraction and separation of rare earth elements—a group of 17 elements critical for technologies such as smartphones and electric car batteries—from unconventional sources.

Researchers have demonstrated how a protein isolated from bacteria can provide a more environmentally friendly way to extract these metals and to separate them from other metals and from each other.

The method could eventually be scaled up to help develop a domestic supply of rare earth metals from industrial waste and electronics due to be recycled.

"In order to meet the increasing demand for rare earth elements for use in emerging clean energy technologies, we need to address several challenges in the supply chain,” says Joseph Cotruvo Jr., assistant professor and professor of chemistry at Penn State, a member of Penn State’s Center for Critical Minerals, and co-corresponding author of the study in ACS Central Science.

“This includes improving the efficiency and alleviating the environmental burden of the extraction and separation processes for these metals. In this study, we demonstrate a promising new method using a natural protein that could be scaled up to extract and separate rare earth elements from low-grade sources, including industrial wastes.”
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Mandatory Composting Coming to California in January Will Change How We Dispose Food
by Melanie Woodrow
December 10, 2021

https://abc7news.com/new-composting-law ... /11317637/

Introduction:
(ABC News Watch) SAN FRANCISCO, CA (KGO) -- Starting January, there's no more tossing food scraps like banana peels or veggies in the trash. Californians will instead be required to put excess food in waste bins. Cities and counties will then turn the waste into compost, creating an energy source.

"This is the biggest change to our trash since we started recycling in the 1980s," said Rachel Wagoner, the Director of CalRecycle.
Wagoner says it's all about removing food waste from landfills which can damage the atmosphere as it decays.

"So every time we put that banana peel in our organic waste and it is turned into compost or a biogas and gets its next life, we are fighting climate change," said Wagoner.

She says it is the single, fastest thing every Californian can do on their end.
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This article is a little dated, but I doubt that it was reported upon earlier in this forum.

Recycled Art! ITI Berhampur Students Create India's Tallest Robot from E-Waste
by Devyani Madaik
November 2, 2021

https://thelogicalindian.com/sustainabi ... aste-31681

Introduction:
(The Logical Indian) The students of Industrial Training Institute of Berhampur, Odisha, have given a new definition to electronic waste management by creating a robot 'ROBO' out of waste. It is considered India's tallest e-waste sculpture, with a height of 30 feet and weighing 3 tonnes.

They used discarded electronic toys, PCB, printers, CD players, VCRs, cartridges, RAM, keyboards, mice, etc., they had collected from across the Berhampur city, Hindustan Times reported.

The students are trainees from the electrician, electronics, and painter department of the institute. The e-waste for the robot was collected from Berhampur city.

Principal Dr Rajat Kumar Panigrahy said the motive behind this innovation was to urge people to reconnect with nature, understand the scientific management of e-waste, and utilise it correctly. The country generates large quantities of electronic waste, which further pollutes air and water.

Many electronics can be repaired and sold as refurbished goods; some can be reused after melting and returning to their raw form. But most of the goods mentioned above outlast their usefulness and become e-waste. They cannot even be disposed of in landfills, as they contain harmful components. Hence, it is important to keep them from the trash.
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Use of Air-Fluidized Aggregates of Black Soldier Fly Larvae to Recycle Food Waste
December 2, 2021

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10 ... 34447/full

Introduction:
(Frontiers in Physics) Every year, humans waste over one billion tons of food, a third of all food production. Such excessive food waste also creates management problems. When left unattended in traditional landfills, rotting food becomes an environmental hazard that can spread diseases and release greenhouse gases. One solution to this issue involves feeding the food waste to insects, which subsequently can be rendered into livestock feed or biofuel. Black soldier fly larvae (Hermetia illucens) have been used extensively for this process because they reduce the house fly population and have high nutritional value. However, raising black soldier fly larvae in denser aggregations than those found in nature creates a number of new challenges, such as the distribution of food, the removal of uneaten food, and the removal of solid and liquid waste produced by the larvae. Furthermore, larval metabolic heat dissipates slowly in dense aggregations, causing them to rise to temperatures lethal to larvae. As a result, it is recommended to grow larvae at area densities lower than five larvae per square centimeter, or equivalently, at heights lower than approximately three times the larval width. This factor limits efficient space utilization in the industry. To feed larvae in denser aggregations, it has been proposed to provide aeration during feeding.
https://www.futurity.org/black-soldier- ... 2677602-2/

Conclusion from a Futurity article on the same subject:
(Futurity) ...important is the potential of these protein-rich insects to reduce the carbon effects of feeding animals. Global food production contributes more than 17 billion metric tons of human-made greenhouse gas emissions every year, according to a study published in September in Nature Food. Animal-based foods produce more than twice the emissions of plant-based food, the study found.

“There’s no sustainable protein source for the animals that we eat,” notes (Hungtang) Ko, (a PhD student in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology). “The black soldier fly larvae could play a role in reducing the environmental impact of feeding these animals.”
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