![]() ![]() This takes care of the contamination problem and creates new options for developing recycled products. So local, decentralised, small-scale recycling or reprocessing infrastructure is the way to go.įit-for-purpose facilities can develop the specialised processing and manufacturing techniques needed to handle soft plastics. Placing recycling facilities closer to communities and transport can save money and reduce emissions. We need to make it economically viable to recycle low-value plastics such as soft plastic packaging. Soft plastics can get tangled or stuck in machinery at recycling or waste-processing facilities, causing inefficiencies and disruptions in the process. Many manufacturers prefer using brand new or "virgin" plastics or recycled rigid plastics instead, such as recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET), leaving limited avenues for recycled soft plastics to find new uses. There's also less demand for recycled soft plastics, compared to other plastics. This causes contamination, reducing the quality of the recycled material. To make matters worse, soft plastics readily absorb residues from food, grease and other substances. This blend of materials makes it difficult to separate and recycle effectively. Plastic packaging is typically made from the petrochemicals polyethylene or polypropylene, and often contains a mix of materials, including various types of plastics and additives for flexibility and durability. Recycling soft plastic packaging is particularly challenging, for several reasons. Why are soft plastics so difficult to recycle? To be a successful and lasting solution, the scheme must be cost-effective and suitably located, with established markets for the recycled products. After treatment, it could become an additive for asphalt roads, a replacement for aggregate in concrete, or a material for making shopping trolleys and baskets. Much like the original REDcycle scheme, the new small-scale trial in Victoria has identified several potential end markets for used soft plastic. This is the main reason REDcycle was unable to process the mountains of soft plastics it had stored around the country. The taskforce assumed responsibility for roughly 11,000 tonnes of soft plastic, formerly managed by REDcycle, across 44 locations across Australia.Īddressing the lack of soft plastics recycling infrastructure in Australia is a top priority. It was established in the wake of REDcycle's demise and is chaired by the federal government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. The taskforce is a coalition of the three major supermarkets: Woolworths, Coles and Aldi. What do we know about the new scheme?Īustralia's Soft Plastics Taskforce is behind the new trial. The new scheme will feed new, purpose-built waste processing facilities so it has much better prospects. REDcycle collapsed under its own weight, stockpiling recyclable material with nowhere to go. So 12 stores won't cut it in the long term.īut starting small is a good idea. Most of it still ends up in landfill or blows into streets and waterways, polluting our rivers and oceans. It's estimated Australia uses more than 70 billion pieces of soft plastic a year. The trial underway in 12 Melbourne supermarkets intends, once again, to provide customers with an in-store option for recycling "scrunchable" food packaging. It's remarkably similar, albeit on a much smaller scale. ![]() After the memorable collapse of Australia's largest soft plastic recycling program REDcycle in late 2022, a new scheme is emerging.
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