subject: The Plastic Recycling Process [print this page] Recently, I became interested in the recycling process as a result of carrying Enduroturfs new recycled synthetic turf, which is made primarily from recycled plastic. I think of fake grass in general as pretty environmentally friendly already, to be honest. Synthetic grass installation saves tremendously on domestic or commercial water consumption, something which is very important in our desert climate, and also means the absence of potentially toxic pesticides and other chemicals needed to keep lawns looking fresh and green.
The idea of taking all this environmentalism one step further in actually incorporating recycled plastic as a manufacturing technique really intrigued me, though. I found a lot of interesting data I thought I would share with you.
The Scoop on PET
The new recycled synthetic turf from Enduroturf uses the equivalent of 25 plastic bottles per square metre of lawn. PET (Polyethylene Terephtalate) plastic, denoted by the number 1 within the recycling symbol, is the clear plastic which is most often seen for holding beverages, sauces, or for hinged produce containers. Of all the PET plastic produced, 80 percent is used for packaging of various types. The water bottle business alone contributes approximately 60,000 tonnes of greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere annually. This is the same amount of pollution as 13,000 cars on the road. This figure alone should be inspiration for Australians to recycle their plastic and prevent some of that toxic waste from occurring. Yet, studies show that the recycle rate for these plastics is only around 42 percent. Of water and beverage bottles specifically, the recycle rate is even lower: just 23 percent.
Recycling vs. Landfill
Between 2009 and 2010, the total plastic consumption across Australia totaled just over 1.5 million tonnes. The packaging consumption during the same time period accounted for over 500,000 tonnes of this amount, only 34.8 percent of which was recycled. So what happens to the other 65.2 percent of waste? It goes right into landfills. And plastic is not biodegradable, so it just adds up in huge piles of waste.
Although recycling rates have increased dramatically in recent years (98 percent of Australian households state that they recycle, while 86 percent say they reuse their waste), this statistic doesnt indicate just how much waste is actually recycled. Theres a big difference in recycling from time to time or making a dedicated effort to reduce waste by reusing or recycling waste.
In 2006 through 2007, Australians generated just over 2000 kg of waste per person annually. This makes a total of nearly 44 million tonnes of waste in that time period. Just under a third of this waste came from domestic sources, just over one third from the industrial/commercial sector, and the majority (38 percent) came from the construction and demolition industry.
Wasting Not
When you start looking at the big picture, it gets a little scary thinking about the ever-growing landfills. Im a huge fan of recycling at home and at work, and thats one of the reasons Im so excited about Enduroturfs new product. If we can transform some of those millions of tonnes of waste into a bright green synthetic grass installation, Im all for it. Not only does synthetic grass keep plastic out of our landfills, it brings a little more beauty into our world.
