Canada's plastic packaging recycling rate sees 3% growth in 2014

The Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA) released a new report stating that the country's post-consumer plastic packaging recycling rate achieved a 3% growth in 2014 compared with 2013.

This increase is primarily the result of more plastic packaging collected for recycling, specifically plastic bags and film and high density polyethylene (HDPE) bottles. In total, at least 320.7 million kg of post-consumer plastic were collected in Canada for recycling.

The results are derived from a voluntary survey done by Moore Recycling Associates Inc. and commissioned by CPIA that is sent out to more than 500 companies that handle recycled plastics in North America. These companies are made up of reclaimers, exporters, brokers, material recovery facilities (MRFs) and other handlers of used plastics.

This year's data, along with that of previous years, consistently indicates that material collected in Canada routinely remains in North America rather than moving to overseas markets. "We are proud to report that 78% of the plastic material reported was reclaimed in Canada or the US. This amounts to more than 250 million kilograms," said Carol Hochu, President and CEO of CPIA.

Plastic packaging collected for recycling includes plastic bottles, non-bottle rigid plastics such as deli, dairy, bakery, and produce containers, and flexible film packaging such as plastic bags and overwrap. They are recycled into many new useful items such as fleece jackets, new plastic bottles, pipe, pallets, crates, buckets, decking, and other lawn and garden products.

The reported plastic quantities represent an increase of 800,000kg for bottles and an increase of 7.8 million kg for bags and film, in large part because of plastic bags and film that are collected through curbside recycling programs.

"Canada's plastic recycling infrastructure is well-established and working hard to increase recycling opportunities for everyone. With CPIA's efforts and the entrepreneurship of the Canadian plastics recycling industry, the survey results show the industry is integral to the circular economy," said Krista Friesen, Vice President of Sustainability at CPIA. "While a 3% increase may not seem like much, it is important to remember that we are seeing continued improvement in the lightweighting of packaging, so to realize any increase means that a larger volume of plastics were recovered."

To put the issue of lightweighting in context, the average weight of a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) water bottle has dropped more than 57% in 15 years, from 19g in 2000 to 8g in 2015.