LESS IS LESS NERC’s Fall 2014 Conference: The New Era of Recycling NOVEMBER 6, 2014
Making Sense of the Mix: The Changing Waste and Recycling Stream Dylan de Thomas Resource Recycling, Inc . NERC’s Fall 2014 Conference: The New Era of Recycling Nov. 6, 2014
MANAGEMENT TRENDS 160 140 120 MSW (million tons) 100 Recycled 80 Composted Combusted 60 Landfilled 40 20 0 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 Year
RECOVERY RATES
MSW GENERATION RATES
WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN: • 2010: 250.5 million tons (actual) • 2010: +8.1 million tons (population) • 2010: +77.0 million tons (previous decades)
WHY LESS WASTE? • Recycling/composting? • Recession? • Evolving ton? • Source reduction? • “Zero” waste?
WASTE & THE ECONOMY
RAW MATERIALS
2012 GENERATION BY PRODUCT TYPE EPA MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE IN THE UNITED STATES: 2012 FACTS AND FIGURES
THE EVOLVING TON • Less paper • More plastic • Electronics • Future products?
PAPER: 2000 - 2012 • 19,120,000 tons less • 22% decrease • Mostly printed paper • Online shopping
OTHER • Metals: more • Textiles: more • Wood: more • Food waste: more • Yard waste: more • Glass: less
ELECTRONICS
The Evolution of Materials Use 1 5
Change in Paper and Packaging in 2012 since 1990 Declining prevalence Increasing prevalence 6% % Change from 1990 4% 2% 0% -2% -4% -6% -8% 1 6 SOURCE: Resource Recycling Systems, 2014
The Evolution of Packaging/ The Evolving Ton • Light-weighting • Increasing recycled content • Projected increase in flex film packaging • Flexible packaging expected to grow 3.5% annually in the next few years
The Evolution of Packaging Glass bottle, metal cap to PET bottle, PP cap Glass jars, metal cap to PET jar, PP cap
The Evolution of Packaging Glass bottle, metal cap to HDPE bottle, PP cap HDPE Bottle, PP Cap to multi-layer, flexible film pouch
The Evolution of Packaging
Environmental Drivers Fueling the Shift Flexible Film Pouches & Packaging Flexible Packaging Association www.flexpack.org
Environmental Drivers Fueling the Shift • Environmental drivers • Cost savings • Logistics • Food waste minimization
ORGANICS • Edible food • Animal feed • Anaerobic digestion • Residential/commercial collection
ORGANICS
ORGANICS
SOURCE REDUCTION
ZERO WASTE = ?
ZW: SMART CAPITALISM • “Cost” becomes an “asset” • Input/output control • Profit motivated • Internal rewards
ZW COMPANIES: 2014 • Dr Pepper • Nestles • SC Johnson • Unilever • Dove Body Wash • Hormel • New York State • EasyJet • Original Unvertpackt • Franz Bakery • Eaton • Phoenix Open (WM) • Sidel • Southwest Airlines • Kimberly Clark • GM • Hanson • American Anthropology Association
ZW SUBSTANCE 2014 • “Lightest 2-liter bottle in the industry” • Reduced 44% of waste per ton of product since 2010 • Reduced global manufacturing waste by 62 as a ratio to production. • 200 sites now zero waste to landfill (>75%) • 15% less plastic (will share new technology) • Cut packaging by 4.72 million pounds: 37 packaging reduction projects • Agencies cut paper use by 43%, save $11.1 million in four years • Paperless airplane • Waste-free supermarket • 98% landfill free • 39 manufacturing facilities landfill free • 100% landfill free through recycling, composting, energy from waste • Plastic beer bottle with standard “champagne” base • Upcycle used leather seat coverings into new products • Club KC: circular economy: collect recyclable fibre in exchange for finished products • Composting food waste from cafeterias at global HQ • Supplier of heavy building materials cut landfill waste by 35.3% • Paper-free review process
ZERO WASTE • No waste or • Less waste to dispose?
What MRFs Have to Do With It
Before the MRF -- Collection • Growing collection innovation • Increasing materials captured in S-S • Wet/Dry collection growing – The next step in collection? • The “other stuff”
Single-Stream MRFs in the U.S. • Map
Growth of Single-Stream Source: Government Advisory Associates, Inc., 2013
What MRFs Have to Do With It • Retrofitting and reconfiguring • Mega-MRFs/ Regionalization • Hub & spoke • More S-S in the East • Plastics Recycling Facilities (PRFs) • Sortation • More mechanized, new technology
Cleaning Up “Dirty” MRFs? • “All in One Bin”? • Sorting MSW (at “Dirty” MRFs) • Montgomery, AL; San Jose, CA; Medina County, OH; Indianapolis (?); Houston (??) • Quality is an “ongoing concern” • Global markets also demanding higher quality • No “post-Green Fence” reality
FUTURE: RECYCLING/COMPOSTING • More mandatory recycling: commercial and multi-family • More “dirty” MRFs? • More food waste diversion • More AD? • C&D recycling • More education
HDPE Milk Jug Bale Prices 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
Aluminum Can Prices 120 100 80 60 40 20 0
PET Bale Prices 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0
Recovered Paper Prices (18 grades; weighted average) 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0
Old Newspaper Prices 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0
Ferrous Scrap Prices (No. 1 heavy melting steel) 600 500 400 300 200 100 0
The Road Forward … • Other recovery – Developing technology (PTO) and markets – “One cog in an inter-connected system” • Recovery is a priority – More material is needed – Expanding collection programs – “If you bale it, they will come” – Education
The Road Forward
FUTURE: OVERALL • Less waste? • Less disposal? • Evolving material mix • Continued zero waste by industry
Thank You! Dylan de Thomas Editorial Director Resource Recycling, Inc. dylan@resource-recycling.com www.resource-recycling.com Special thanks to my co-researcher and co-writer -- Amy Roth, Green Spectrum Consulting
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Chaz Miller 202-364-3742 www.environmentalistseveryday.org cmiller@wasterecycling.org 49
Recommend
More recommend
