American Chemistry Council Releases Report on Plastic Bag Recycling

A report released by the American Chemistry Council states that plastic bag recycling increased sharply between 2005 and 2006. The report, 2006 National Post-Consumer Recycled Plastic Bag and Film Report, notes that more than 406,000 tons of post consumer plastic bags were recovered in 2006, a 24 percent increase from the previous year’s figure of around 326,000 tons.

The report was conducted by Moore Recycling Associates, Inc., Sonoma, Calif.

Steve Russell, managing director for ACC’s Plastic Division, notes that the ACC is working to promote plastic recycling and drive even higher rates for the future.

"Over the past several years, Trex has processed and used a tremendous amount of recycled plastic and that demand has led us to partner with the public and private sector on innovative recycling programs," said Dave Heglas of TREX, a northern Virginia company that uses recycled plastic bags to manufacture green building materials. "We have recycled over 2.5 billion pounds of plastic over the last 10 years into lumber substitutes for outdoor decks."

The value of recycled plastic is leading to new innovations in the bag industry too. Hilex Poly, a plastic bag manufacturer, established a program that recycles old bags into new ones called Bag-2-Bag®. The program encourages consumers to return their used bags back to the store and then the store and Hilex do the rest. Last year Hilex’s work with consumers and stores recycled the equivalent of 400 million bags and reduced the use of new material by 8 million pounds.

To view the full report click on the following link -- 2006 National Post-Consumer Recycled Plastic Bag and Film Report