US ACC sets goals to recycle, recover all plastic packaging by 2040

HOUSTON (ICIS)–The American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) Plastics Division has established three goals for the recycling and recovering of all plastic packaging in the US by 2040, the industry group said on Wednesday.

The goals are:

-100% of plastics packaging is re-used, recycled or recovered by 2040;

-100% of plastics packaging is recyclable or recoverable by 2030; and

-100% of US manufacturing sites operated by ACC’s Plastics Division members will participate in Operation Clean Sweep-Blue by 2020, with all of their manufacturing sites across North America involved by 2022.

“We are embracing the drive toward a circular economy for plastics because it helps demonstrate our overarching commitment to sustainable materials management,” said Steve Russell, ACC’s vice president of plastics.

“In setting these goals, our industry is publicly affirming our vision of the future [that] we want for safe, sanitary plastic packaging and our intention to get there quickly.”

The ACC said US plastic resin producers plan to focus on six areas:

-Designing new products for greater efficiency, recycling and reuse;

-Developing new technologies and systems for collecting, sorting, recycling and recovering materials;

-Making it easier for more consumers to participate in recycling and recovery programmes;

-Expanding the types of plastics collected and repurposed;

-Aligning products with key end markets; and

-Expanding awareness that used plastics are valuable resources awaiting their next use.

“Plastics resin producers are accelerating their commitments by building new coalitions and forging new business models that will help optimise a range of environmental, economic and societal outcomes,” said Rick Wagner, global sustainability manager at Chevron Phillips Chemical. “Some of these involve turning used plastics back into their basic building blocks so we can create new plastics.”

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