Stora Enso plant installs Redwave system

New paper sorting line is installed at Stora Enso’s Ghent, Belgium, mill.

April 17, 2015
RTGE Staff

Equipment & Products Legislation & Regulations Paper

Stora Enso has invested €9 million ($9.6 million) in a new paper recycling sorting line at its Langerbrugge Mill in Ghent, Belgium. The Paper for Recycling (PfR) sorting line from Austria-based Redwave has been installed in a new 5,200-square-meter (56,000-square-feet) building.

Stora Enso’s Langerbrugge mill produces printing and writing paper products made from 100 percent recovered fiber collected within a 300-kilometer radius of Ghent. “We call it the urban forest,” says Chris De Hollander, managing director of the mill. “We get the fiber we need by collecting old paper from the households; no wood is used here to produce paper.”

The Stora Enso Langerbrugge paper mill also has been a 65 percent majority shareholder of Vlar Papier since 2005. Vlar Papier in Belgium is active in the procurement of paper and board through municipal recycling collection programs.

“Operating the two Vlar Papier PfR (Paper for Recycling) sorting lines on our premises ensures that about 40 percent of the Langerbrugge mill’s need for high-quality sorted paper is provided directly to the mill,” says De Hollander. “On a yearly basis, we need 700,000 metric tons of high-quality sorted paper to make 550,000 metric tons of uncoated magazine paper and newsprint. This kind of local sourcing and handling is cost-efficient and sustainable,” he adds.

The new PfR plant has been designed, manufactured, built and commissioned by Redwave as a turnkey project. At the plant, Vlar Papier sorts the inflow of raw material into two fractions: paper and board.

The sorting plant has been designed for an inflow of 36 metric tons per hour with the flexibility to increase to 40 metric tons per hour for specific inflow mixes.

In a news release, Redwave says the PfR system in Ghent includes “advanced control concepts [and] online quality monitoring and plant optimization tools.” The Redwave PMCS (Plant Monitoring and Control System) has been “specially developed to control, monitor and optimize the entire treatment,” says the company.

Also part of the system are “a large primary dosing bunker, a corrugated cardboard screen, fine screens, paper spikes, optical sorting Redwave machines and a recovery line to obtain a maximum paper yield from the combined paper and board input fraction.”

Says De Hollander, “This Paper for Recycling sorting line is the cream of the crop.”

A video clip of the Redwave Stora Enso Ghent installation can be found at www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD7VGjqfrzo.

APR encourages supermarkets to boost rigid plastics recycling

Plastics group says increased recycling of rigid plastics offers significant economic benefits.

April 17, 2015
Recycling Today Staff

Municipal / IC&I Plastics

The Association of Postconsumer Plastics Recyclers (APR), Washington, has called on grocery store chains to increase their internal collection and recycling of rigid plastics. The APR notes that it recently released a study that demonstrates starting or increasing rigid plastics recycling in grocery stores makes economic sense by reducing the costs to landfilling the material and generating revenue through the sale of the commodities.

Supporting this push, in 2013 the APR developed the Grocery Store Recycling Program. The project targets the recovery of HDPE (high-density polyethylene) and polypropylene (PP) trays, pails and covers.

Properly nested bin with bagged lids on top, ready for shipment to a recycling center.

Meanwhile, in 2014, the APR released a case study of multiple rigid plastic recycling programs at grocery stores that showed an average conventional supermarket generates 80 to 150 pounds per week of rigid plastic containers within the bakery, deli, seafood and pharmacy departments. The study identified the economic benefits of recycling rigid plastics in supermarkets, including lower waste disposal costs, as well as potential new revenue from marketing these materials.

“There is tremendous demand for these containers from grocery stores,” says Scott Saunders, general manager of KW Plastics, Troy, Alabama, and chairman of the APR. “Because it is generally clean and already separated, grocers should be able to generate substantial revenue should they make this material available for recycling.”

The case studies reveal that removing 5,000 to 7,000 pounds of bulky rigid plastics from local landfills not only lowers grocer’s annual waste disposal costs, but also can generate new recycling revenue through volume marketing. The studies found that a 1,000-pound bale of recycled rigid plastic can be worth $100 to $200, while cardboard is generally worth $20 to $30.

“Our studies show there is at a minimum of at least 350 million pounds of good, clean material available through stores for recycling,” says Steve Alexander, APR executive director. “That is a great potential source of new material for recyclers, and a new revenue stream for stores. We are excited about the project, and expect to see it grow dramatically in the next few years.”

For more information about the economic benefits of recycling rigid plastics in supermarkets, visit the Grocery Store Recycling Program's website at www.recyclegroceryplastics.org.

LG to receive ISRI’s 2015 Design for Recycling Award

Consumer electronics firm honored for increasing the recyclability of its televisions.

April 17, 2015
Recycling Today Staff

Conferences & Events Electronics

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), Washington, has announced that LG Electronics Inc. is the recipient of its 2015 Design for Recycling (DFR) Award. The electronics company was recognized for its advanced new television products that emphasize recycling throughout their life cycle, ISRI says.

ISRI says its DFR Award is given annually to products designed with recycling in mind. It recognizes proactive steps made by manufacturers that have actively incorporated DFR principles into products and processes.

“ISRI is proud to present the 2015 Design for Recycling Award to LG for prioritizing recyclability in the design and manufacture of its products,” says the organization's President Robin Wiener. “Commitment to sustainability serves as a core principle for LG. The initiatives they have undertaken to increase product recyclability, improve resource efficiency and expand the use of recycled materials within the manufacturing process made LG a perfect selection for this year’s award.”

LG has been recognized specifically for its 4K Ultra HD OLED and LED television sets. The product design for these models includes these recycling-friendly traits: mercury-free display panels; use of recycled and recyclable plastics; inclusion of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and BFR0 (brominated flame retardant-) free components; small and lighter packaging; ease of disassembly and label/seal separation; and standardized materials and connection types.

“A main focus for us at LG is ‘Innovation for a Better Life.’ This means bringing to market cutting-edge products and technologies that enhance consumers’ lives while doing our part to help save the planet,” says William Cho, president and CEO of LG Electronics USA. “LG’s commitment to design for recycling exemplifies our commitment to environmental sustainability, and we are honored to receive this special DFR recognition from the experts at ISRI.”

LG will receive the award April 25 during the 2015 ISRI Convention and Exposition in Vancouver, British Columbia.

ISRI says to be eligible for its DFR Award, products must be designed or redesigned and manufactured to:

contain the maximum amount of materials that are recyclable;
be easily recycled through current or newly designed recycling processes and procedures;
be cost effective to recycle whereby the cost to recycle does not exceed the value of its recycled materials;
be free of hazardous materials that are not recyclable or impede the recycling process;
minimize the time and cost involved to recycle the product;
reduce the use of raw materials by including recycled materials and/or components; and
have a net gain in the overall recyclability of the product while reducing the overall negative impact on the environment.

Previous winners of the award include Dell Inc., Cascades Fine Papers Group, Coca-Cola Recycling Co., Hewlett-Packard, The Herman Miller Co. and Wind Simplicity.

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