Plastics in the UK
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Plastics in the UK economy a guide to polymer use and the opportunities for recycling Waste Watch is a leading environmental organisation promoting sustainable resource management in the UK by campaigning for all areas of society to: reduce resource consumption, maximise resource reuse, and increase the percentage of waste recycled. The work of Waste Watch falls into six areas: research and and information will be gathered together in a common policy, the Wasteline Information Service, education, format to facilitate policy making at corporate, regional communication campaigns, business services, and and national levels. membership. Waste Watch is a national charity established in 1987, supported by members, business, local Recoup Government, central Government‘s Department for Recoup is the UK’s technical centre for post-consumer Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and funding plastics recycling. Recoup’s work improves the via the Landfill Tax Credits Scheme and the National opportunities to recycle plastics - developing and providing Lottery. Waste Watch works with community organisations, practical information, guidance and specialist resources for local and national Government, businesses and the public local government, packaging supply-chain and waste to raise awareness and effect change on waste. management professionals. Projects are funded by members, grants and donations. Recoup’s work helps This report is the result of a partnership between Waste recycling scheme planners, investors and operators in the Watch, Valuplast and Recoup. It is based upon initial data UK to extend household plastics recycling facilities. collection and analysis carried out by Valuplast, and Contact: [email protected] subsequent detailed analysis and reporting by Recoup. www.recoup.org Plastics in the UK economy was written by Andrew Simmons and Sarah Dandy of Recoup, with additional Valuplast data and analysis provided by Brian Smith of Valuplast. Valuplast Ltd is the "not for profit" Plastic Materials The report has been edited by Claudia Kuss-Tenzer and Organisation set up to represent the UK Plastics packaging Cathy Crofts of Waste Watch. industry. Valuplast exists to facilitate the recovery and recycling of all used plastic packaging in the most The report is funded by Biffaward and together with a economical and environmentally sensible way. It acts as a complementary study providing information on the flow crucial link with Government on packaging waste of plastic materials through the economy, forms part of the regulations and implementation. Biffaward Programme on Sustainable Resource Use. The material flows analysis was carried out by Bowman Bowman Process Technology Process Technology and is presented in a report entitled Bowman Process Technology is a consulting company Plastics Mass Balance UK which is included as Appendix specialising in process innovation and analysis for D in this report. Both reports, including additional analyses, environmental improvement. The company has applied are available at a dedicated website skills in waste management and minimisation, (www.plasticsintheuk.org.uk) or can be accessed from the environmental improvement, fugitive emissions, recycling Waste Watch website. and treatment/remediation in a number of sectors, including the chemical and manufacturing industries. Biffaward Programme © Waste Watch & Recoup 2003 Objectives - The aim of this programme is to provide accessible, well-researched information about the flows of different resources through the UK economy based either singly, or on a combination of regions, material streams or industry sectors. Background - Information about material resource flows through the UK economy is of fundamental importance to the cost-effective management of resource flows, Spiral relief in polyester resin especially at the stage when the resources become ‘waste’. by Claude Blin In order to maximise the programme’s full potential, data Claude Blin / Sandretto Plastics will be generated and classified in ways that are consistent Art Museum both with each other, and with the methodologies of the other generators of resource flow and waste management www.plasticsintheuk.org.uk data. In addition to the projects having their own means Whereas every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided in this publication is accurate, the partners give no condition, warranty, expressed or implied of dissemination to their own constituencies, their data about the fitness of the report. Contents Abbreviations and acronyms Executive summary 6 Introduction 11 Plastics in the UK economy 11 Project aims and objectives 13 Packaging sector 14 Household packaging 15 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 15 Legislation and voluntary agreements 16 Practicalities of recycling 17 Review of EIAs 18 Recommendations and priorities for action 20 Commercial and industrial packaging 21 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 21 Legislation and voluntary agreements 21 Practicalities of recycling 22 Review of EIAs 24 Recommendations and priorities for action 24 Automotive sector 26 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 26 Legislation and voluntary agreements 26 Practicalities of recycling 27 Review of EIAs 29 Recommendations and priorities for action 31 Electrical and electronics sector 32 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 32 Legislation and voluntary agreements 34 Practicalities of recycling 35 Review of EIAs 38 Recommendations and priorities for action 39 Building and construction sector 40 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 40 Legislation and voluntary agreements 42 Practicalities of recycling 42 Review of EIAs 44 Recommendations and priorities for action 45 Agricultural sector 46 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 46 Legislation and voluntary agreements 47 Practicalities of recycling 47 Review of EIAs 48 Recommendations and priorities for action 48 Medical sector 49 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 49 Legislation and voluntary agreements 49 Practicalities of recycling 49 Review of EIAs 50 Recommendations and priorities for action 50 Furniture and housewares sector 51 Analysis of plastics waste arisings 51 Legislation and voluntary agreements 51 Practicalities of recycling 51 Review of EIAs 51 Recommendations and priorities for action 51 Conclusions 52 Appendices 55 Appendix A - UK plastics consumption 56 Appendix B - Summary of identification, separation and recycling technologies 59 Appendix C - Recent developments in identification and separation technologies 62 Appendix D - Plastics mass balance UK 64 References 78 Acknowledgments 80 Tables 1 UK consumption of plastics by market sector 11 2 Plastics packaging household waste in the UK 15 3 Plastic packaging entering the commercial and industrial sector, 2001 21 4 Recyclate use in various applications 22 5 Returnable packaging systems 23 6 Recycling and recovery targets for ELV 26 7 Material breakdown of a typical vehicle 27 8 Electrical and electronic waste arisings and breakdown of quantities recycled, 2000 32 9 Equipment and polymer types targeted for recycling 33 10 WEEE draft directive recycling and recovery targets 34 11 Polymer types used in the building and construction sector 40 12 Quantity of potentially recoverable plastics in building and construction sector 41 13 Estimates of agricultural waste arisings (tonnes), 1998 46 14 Polymer types used in the furniture and housewares sector (tonnes) 51 Figures 1 UK plastics consumption (selected polymer types and sectors), 2000 7 2 Flow of plastics materials through the UK economy, 2000 12 3 Percentage of UK consumption of plastics by market sector and polymer type, 2000 13 4 Percentage of main polyethylene film grades from commercial and industrial waste, 2001 21 5 Current methods of processing end-of-life vehicles 28 6 Polymer types used in electrical and electronic equipment 33 7 Current methods of processing end-of-life electrical and electronic equipment 35 8 Constituents of plastics packaging waste in construction (%) 41 9 Plastics waste from construction and demolition 42 10 Waste management practices for silage wrap 47 Abbreviations and acronyms ABS Acrylonitrite Butadiene Styrene NHS National Health Service ACORD Automotive Consortium on Recycling PA Polyamide and Disposal PBB Polybrominated Biphenyls ACP Advisory Committee on Packaging PBDE Polybrominated Biphenylethers APC American Plastics Council PBT Polybutylene Terephthalate APME Association of Plastics Manufacturers PC Polycarbonate in Europe PC/ABS PC and ABS blend ASA Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate PE Polyethylene BPF British Plastics Federation PERN Packaging Export Recovery Note BRE Building Research Establishment PET Polyethylene Terephthalate CA site Civic amenity site PIFA Packaging and Industrial Films CARE Consortium for Automotive Recycling Association CECET Centre for Energy Conservation & PMMA Polymethyl Methacrylate Environmental Technology PO Polyolefins CFC Chlorofluorcarbon POM Polyoxymethylene (Acetal) C & I Commercial and industrial PP Polypropylene CIRIA Construction Industry Research and Information Association PPS Polyphenylene Sulphide CIWM Chartered Institution of Wastes PRN Packaging Recovery Note Management PRoVE Plastic Reprocessing Validation Exercise CN code Combined nomenclature code PS Polystyrene DEFRA Department for the Environment, Food PUR Polyurethane and Rural Affairs PVC Polyvinyl Chloride DTI Department of Trade and Industry R&D Research and Development EA Environment Agency RECOUP Recycling of Used Plastics Ltd EC European Commission RoHS Restriction