Recycled PET Used in Domestic US End Market Applications Up : US PET Bottle Recyclig Rate 28.4% in 2016 as Collection Volumes Decline
The recycling rate for PET plastic bottles in the US was 28.4% in 2016, reflecting a decline of 2.4% in collection volumes, according to the latest figures from National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR) and The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR).
The Report on Postconsumer PET Container Recycling Activity in 2016 also found an increase of over 3% in the total volume of PET bottles available for recycling in the US.
“This was a strong year for PET bottle market growth, but another difficult one for the PET recycling industry,“ said Tom Busard, NAPCOR Chairman, Chief Procurement Officer for Plastipak Packaging, Inc., and President of Clean Tech, Plastipak’s recycling affiliate.
“The challenges we saw in 2015 —low virgin resin pricing and uncertain demand in both recycled scrap and RPET end markets continued to impact the industry in 2016,” he continued.
“Despite these obstacles, the volume of PET collected in the United States and utilised by domestic reclaimers stayed consistent with that of 2015, and RPET used in domestic end market applications was up,” concluded Busard.
The recycling rate is derived by using the total volume of recycled PET material purchased by both U.S. processors (reclaimers) and export markets in 2016 — 1,753 million pounds (795,000 metric tonnes) - taken as a percentage of the total volume of PET resin used in U.S. bottles and potentially available for recycling, 6,172 million pounds (2.8 million tonnes).
Of that 1,753 million pounds collected, 1,374 million was purchased and processed by domestic PET reclaimers, with the balance of collected material, 379 million pounds, sold to export markets, including Canada.
This was the lowest export volume reported since 2004, comprising 22% of the total postconsumer PET volumes collected. Exports to Asia and other markets outside North America dropped 11% over 2015, marking the sixth year of off-shore export decline.
“The PET recycling industry has taken some knocks this year, yet continues to demonstrate its strength in terms of consistent domestic material purchases and robust use of RPET in end market sectors,” said Steve Alexander, APR President.
“This is an established, vibrant and resilient industry, but its significant challenges make it increasingly incumbent upon the broader value chain - from collection to end market users— to address key issues, including increasing the quantity and quality of collection, designing bottles for recyclability, and fostering strong end market demand,” he added.
In terms of RPET used in US and Canadian end market applications, total volumes increased by over 5% to 1,501 million pounds (680,000 tonnes) in 2016.
Fibre, bottle and strapping markets all showed growth in 2016, while RPET use in sheet and thermoforms dropped, most likely due to the impacts of low virgin prices on this market segment.
Both NAPCOR and the APR said that they will continue to work to address the industry’s ongoing challenges, with particular focus on how to maximise the capture of PET from the waste stream, improve efficiency in processing and reduce non-PET contamination in recycling streams, and encourage awareness and understanding of APR’s Design for Recyclability Guidelines®.
This is the twelfth year that NAPCOR and the APR have partnered to produce this report and the 22nd year that it’s been issued by NAPCOR in its current format.
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