Videos
Good Information – Commonly Recycled Items
Plastic Myth Busting
MYTH: Consumers just need to recycle more!
FACT: Yes, consumer behavior is very important, but only 52% of American households have access to curbside recycling programs. We need to expand equitable access to recycling for all Americans and build trust in the system.
Source: The Recycling Partnership, Paying It Forward
MYTH: Plastics are a major contributor to climate change.
FACT: Plastics typically have a lower carbon footprint than alternatives. A 2022 report from McKinsey found that plastics offer greenhouse gas (GHG) savings in 13 of 14 packaging applications studied compared to alternative materials. The GHG savings ranged from 10-90%.
Source: McKinsey, Climate impact of plastics
MYTH: Plastic recycling is broken.
FACT: According to the EPA, nearly 6.2 billion pounds of plastic were recycled in 2018. This figure provides evidence of a functional recycling ecosystem for plastics. We need to expand recycling access, fix system-wide challenges, support emerging end markets, and design packaging to be recyclable in practice for our recycling system to truly thrive.
Source: EPA Plastics: Material-Specific Data
MYTH: Plastics in healthcare settings are not recyclable.
FACT: 90% of healthcare plastics can be recycled using mechanical or advanced recycling processes. A vast majority of these plastics are free from bio-hazard contamination.
Source: HPRC Advanced Recycling Research
MYTH: There will be more plastic than fish in the sea by 2050.
FACT: We need to address plastic debris in our waters, but this claim is unsubstantiated as an article from BBC illustrates.
Source: BBC, Will there be more fish or plastic in the sea in 2050?
MYTH: Thermoforms are not recycled.
FACT: According to NAPCOR, 142 million pounds of PET Thermoforms were recovered in 2021. That sounds like a lot of material (and it is!) but we need to do better (and we will!).
Source: NAPCOR 2021 PET Recycling Report ($)
