NAPCOR Can Help For more information on ipet recycling and assistance with starting a recycling program, NAPCOR has a wealth of useful resources - including public education and promotional materials as well as guidance on program planning, technical issues, and marketing recyclables. Find your state on the map and contact the regional director to learn more. NAPCOR s Regional Offices Western Region Don Kneass, Western Regional Director & Vice President of Regional Affairs 1421 34th Avenue, Suite 206 Seattle, WA 98122 phone (206) 219-1500 fax (206) 219-1499 email DonKneass@napcor.com Central Region Tim Warren, Central Regional Director P.O Box 337 Wildwood, MO 63040 phone (636) 273-4191 fax (636) 273-4192 email TWarren@napcor.com Eastern Region Sandi Childs, Eastern Regional Director 56 College Street, Suite 204 Asheville, NC 28801 phone (828) 236-9006 fax (828) 236-2009 email SChilds@napcor.com National Headquarters Office 2105 Water Ridge Parkway, Suite 570 Charlotte, NC 28217 phone (704) 423-9400 fax (704) 423-9500 email information@napcor.com web www.napcor.com Santa Fe Office E. Gifford Stack Director, ipet Container Programs 97 Chisholm Trail Santa Fe, NM 87501 phone (505) 820-0747 fax (505) 984-1909 email EGStack@napcor.com 36
resources for ipet recycling This chapter provides various resources you may find helpful in developing an ipet recycling program at your venue. NAPCOR Can Help NAPCOR Tools Graphics, Clip Art & Sample Signage Resources on the Web Markets for Recycled ipet Where Does Recycled PET Go? How to Conduct a Simple Waste Sort 37
NAPCOR Tools NAPCOR can provide a range of materials for free or at cost, including the following items. PETE s Big Bins for collecting recyclables (cost depends on quantity ordered) PETE s Pack, an educational kit about PET plastic and recycling PET and recycling icons, graphics, clip art, and photos Kits for staging your own recycled PET fashion show Publications and other information on plastics recycling Technical assistance Graphics, Clip Art & Sample Signage Electronic versions of these icons are available from NAPCOR s website, www.napcor.com, or contact NAPCOR for camera-ready copies. Check back often as new graphic materials are designed and posted. 38
Resources on the Web American Plastics Council (APC) www.plastics.org or www.plasticsresource.com Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR) www.plasticsrecycling.org College & University Recycling Council (CURC) www.earthsystems.org/curc International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) www.bottledwater.org National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR) www.napcor.com National Recycling Coalition (NRC) www.nrc-recycle.org National Soft Drink Association (NSDA) www.nsda.org PET Container Recycling Europe (PETCORE) www.petcore.org PET Power www.petpower.nl/rawmaterial/ Recycler s World www.recycle.net Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) www.4spe.org Markets for Recycled ipet Because markets for recyclable materials are changing constantly, please refer to the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR) website for the latest information on markets for recycled ipet. Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers 1300 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 800 Arlington, VA 22209 phone (703) 253-0605 fax (703) 253-0606 web www.plasticsrecycling.org In cooperation with Canada s Environment and Plastics Industry Council (EPIC), the American Plastics Council maintains a market database of buyers and sellers of recycled plastics in the U.S. and Canada. Their list currently includes more than 1650 plastics recycling companies in North America. American Plastics Council 1300 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 800 Arlington, VA 22209 phone (800) 2-HELP-90 web www.plasticsresource.com/market 39
Where Does Recycled PET Go? In designing an educational program about PET recycling, you may wish to include information on what happens to PET when it is recycled. This section describes the markets and uses for recycled PET. Reclaimed PET plastic resin from ipet bottles can be recycled into a number of new products. As you might suspect, some recycled PET is used in the production of new food and beverage containers, while other PET is used to make carpeting and clothing. In 1999, 20 reclamation plants produced 611 million pounds of clean PET flake that was used in the manufacture of new PET bottles, fiber, film, sheet, strapping, and compounds. The following pie chart shows how recycled PET was distributed among various end uses in 1999. After collection in various recycling programs, post-consumer PET bottles go through a comprehensive recycling process before entering the end market for any of these new uses. This process includes contaminant separation, usually employing a combination of optical and density separation technology. Shredded flakes of PET are washed and dried, before the resin is melted down and sent through a melt filtration process to remove any remaining impurities. Many markets will blend post-consumer resins (PCR) with virgin plastic resins to minimize the impact of any physical differences in the recycled material. Today, nearly 60 percent of the total PET bottles recycled in the United States are made into polyester fiber. Recycled PET fiber can be used in a wide range of products, ranging from T-shirts to fiberfill for sleeping bags. If you d like to know where recycled PET goes, consider the following the facts: 12 ipet bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, one square foot of carpeting or enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Half of all polyester carpet manufactured in the U.S. is made from recycled plastic bottles. It takes 60 ipet bottles to make a sweater. 40
How to Conduct a Simple Waste Sort Determining the amount of ipet at your facility can be an educational project for a recycling coordinator, recycling committee, or volunteer group. Some universities have turned waste sorting projects into learning activities or special events, such as for Earth Day or America Recycles Day. Organizing a waste sort can be relatively simple, and these trash bashes provide great hands-on experience for participants. 1. Collect bags of waste from throughout your facility. Try to obtain a representative sample from different trash cans. (To make the job less messy for your sorters, you should avoid kitchen or restroom waste for this exercise.) 2. Assemble bags of clean garbage to be sorted at an appropriate site. 3. Provide enough separate containers to hold the material you will be sorting. 4.Provide the participants with protective gear, including coveralls, gloves, and eyewear. 5. Weigh the bags of material prior to sorting. 6. Empty the bags into containers to estimate the total volume of the waste. 7. Sort the material into recyclables and garbage using a chart similar to the following one. You can tailor the categories to suit your facility. For example, you may wish to categorize ipet bottles by color (clear, green, blue, amber, etc.). 8. Weigh the recyclables as well as the remaining waste. Weighing the materials more than once can reduce measuring error. 41