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LESS IS LESS NERCs Fall 2014 Conference: The New Era of Recycling - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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LESS IS LESS NERCs 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 . NERCs Fall 2014 Conference: The New Era of

  1. LESS IS LESS NERC’s Fall 2014 Conference: The New Era of Recycling NOVEMBER 6, 2014

  2. 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

  3. 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

  4. RECOVERY RATES

  5. MSW GENERATION RATES

  6. WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN: • 2010: 250.5 million tons (actual) • 2010: +8.1 million tons (population) • 2010: +77.0 million tons (previous decades)

  7. WHY LESS WASTE? • Recycling/composting? • Recession? • Evolving ton? • Source reduction? • “Zero” waste?

  8. WASTE & THE ECONOMY

  9. RAW MATERIALS

  10. 2012 GENERATION BY PRODUCT TYPE EPA MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE IN THE UNITED STATES: 2012 FACTS AND FIGURES

  11. THE EVOLVING TON • Less paper • More plastic • Electronics • Future products?

  12. PAPER: 2000 - 2012 • 19,120,000 tons less • 22% decrease • Mostly printed paper • Online shopping

  13. OTHER • Metals: more • Textiles: more • Wood: more • Food waste: more • Yard waste: more • Glass: less

  14. ELECTRONICS

  15. The Evolution of Materials Use 1 5

  16. 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

  17. 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

  18. The Evolution of Packaging Glass bottle, metal cap to PET bottle, PP cap Glass jars, metal cap to PET jar, PP cap

  19. The Evolution of Packaging Glass bottle, metal cap to HDPE bottle, PP cap HDPE Bottle, PP Cap to multi-layer, flexible film pouch

  20. The Evolution of Packaging

  21. Environmental Drivers Fueling the Shift Flexible Film Pouches & Packaging Flexible Packaging Association www.flexpack.org

  22. Environmental Drivers Fueling the Shift • Environmental drivers • Cost savings • Logistics • Food waste minimization

  23. ORGANICS • Edible food • Animal feed • Anaerobic digestion • Residential/commercial collection

  24. ORGANICS

  25. ORGANICS

  26. SOURCE REDUCTION

  27. ZERO WASTE = ?

  28. ZW: SMART CAPITALISM • “Cost” becomes an “asset” • Input/output control • Profit motivated • Internal rewards

  29. 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

  30. 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

  31. ZERO WASTE • No waste or • Less waste to dispose?

  32. What MRFs Have to Do With It

  33. 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”

  34. Single-Stream MRFs in the U.S. • Map

  35. Growth of Single-Stream Source: Government Advisory Associates, Inc., 2013

  36. 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

  37. 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

  38. FUTURE: RECYCLING/COMPOSTING • More mandatory recycling: commercial and multi-family • More “dirty” MRFs? • More food waste diversion • More AD? • C&D recycling • More education

  39. HDPE Milk Jug Bale Prices 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

  40. Aluminum Can Prices 120 100 80 60 40 20 0

  41. PET Bale Prices 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

  42. Recovered Paper Prices (18 grades; weighted average) 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0

  43. Old Newspaper Prices 200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0

  44. Ferrous Scrap Prices (No. 1 heavy melting steel) 600 500 400 300 200 100 0

  45. 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

  46. The Road Forward

  47. FUTURE: OVERALL • Less waste? • Less disposal? • Evolving material mix • Continued zero waste by industry

  48. 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

  49. FOR MORE INFORMATION: Chaz Miller 202-364-3742 www.environmentalistseveryday.org cmiller@wasterecycling.org 49

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