by Mary Eiserman | May 20, 2025 | Recycling
Scientists at a research lab in Japan have produced a paper-based material that could be an ideal replacement for those single-use plastics. A cup made from the transparent material could hold just-boiled water for over 3 hours with no leakage. When the researchers coated the cup with a plant-derived fatty acid salt, it became completely waterproof. To test the degradability of the material in case of accidental release into the ocean, the researchers submerged paperboard sheets at sites located at four different ocean sites of varying depths. The material fully decomposed in 300 days at deep ocean depths. The degradation was even faster in shallower depths because of warmer temperatures.
Close to 2 million metric tons of plastic enters the oceans every year, and much of that plastic is single-use beverage bottles, cups, and straws.
Transparent paperboard could replace single-use plastics
By
Anthropocene Team, April 16, 2025
Summary by Susan McSwain
by Mary Eiserman | Apr 12, 2024 | Recycling
Panelists: AI has a bigger role to play in recycling (resource-recycling.com)
Goals include using AI to try to solve some of the main challenges of the recycling business, particularly when it comes to sorting materials.
Extended producer responsibility legislation and other laws can help, but it may be possible for AI capabilities to create automated sorting processes for increasingly niche types of materials. There are other ideas for streamlining the recycling process, such as assisting in maximizing the efficiency of chemical recycling.
by Mary Eiserman | Jan 7, 2024 | Citizen Activism, Economy, Recycling
Deposit return systems and bottle bills contribute to higher rates of recycling.
Report: Bottle bill states recycle more, provide models (resource-recycling.com)
Nine of the 10 states with the highest recycling rates have deposit return systems, and that bottle bill states also contribute a higher percentage of packaging that is recycled in the U.S.
The 10 states with the highest recycling rates, excluding fibers and flexible plastics, in 2021 were: Maine (65%); Vermont (51%); Massachusetts (48%); Iowa (45%); Oregon (45%); New York (44%); California (41%); Michigan (40%); New Jersey (39%); and Connecticut (39%).
The 10 states with the lowest recycling rates were: West Virginia (2%); Louisiana (4%); Tennessee (5%); Alaska (6%); South Carolina (6%); Mississippi (6%); Oklahoma (8%); Alabama (8%); Texas (8%); and Colorado (11%).
If you would like more fiber for thought;
Research finds recoverable fiber lost to US landfills (resource-recycling.com)
Findings that a larger share of fiber is landfilled than is typically reported suggests an opportunity to increase capture. Data could serve as a wake-up call for the economic opportunity presented by increasing fiber capture rates. “Not only are we throwing away valuable resources, we are paying for it in tipping fees,” Milbrandt said.
