Recycling of plastics - research shows the climate benefits 

The following summarizes the results from a number of research papers where manufacturing with recycled plastics is compared with manufacturing with virgin materials as well as comparing with other waste treatment methods. The reports have been carried out by CIT Ekologik (Chalmers Industrial Technology), by the Research Group on the Environment Strategic Studies at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm and by the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) on behalf of the British organization WRAP (The Waste & Resources Action Program). The reports contain, in turn, results of a large number of life-cycle analysis which have been carried out in Sweden and in other European countries and in USA and Australia. Despite the different assumptions made with respect to energy, transport distances, etc., the reports show with remarkably broad consensus that recycling has a huge potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The reports and studies summarized here have been implemented during the period 2000 - 2006. The results are assessed to be still relevant to the circumstances of today. .

WRAP: Environmental benefits of recycling.

The Waste & Resources Action Program (WRAP), which was created as part of the British Government's waste strategy, introduced in autumn 2006 a report said to be the most comprehensive international review of life cycle analysis carried out in the recovery area. The report studied 55 life-cycle analysis, with a total of 200 different scenarios, carried out in a dozen European countries, including Sweden, USA and Australia. The Technical University of Denmark undertook the study commissioned by WRAP. The report concludes that the results clearly show that recycling results in lower greenhouse gas emissions than other waste treatment methods. The quantitative results concerning the reduction of greenhouse gases are also translated to British conditions. At the current rate of recovery, found that UK emissions of greenhouse gases are 10 - 15 million tons less per year, compared to the recycled materials instead had gone to incineration with energy recovery or put in landfill. A comparison between recycling and incineration, average climate benefits of plastic: 2 tons of carbon dioxide per ton of recycled plastic.

CIT Ekologik: Recycling of plastics - a summary analysis.

 
CIT Ekologik (Chalmers Industrial Technology, Gothenburg) carried out in 2004 an analysis of environmental data on recycled plastics (HDPE) 28. The study compares energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in the direct incineration of plastic packaging with a scenario where the packaging is recycled only once and then goes to incineration. The results show that greenhouse gas emissions is about 1.5 to 1.8 tons less per ton plastic in the case where plastic is recycled once before it is incinerated. The lower figure corresponds to an efficiency in the recovery of 53 percent and higher efficiency to be 75 percent. The scenario for production from virgin material covered all processes and transport, use of crude oil to manufacture a package. The scenario for manufacturing from recycled material covered transport, the work to collect the used package, all processes of recycling and the manufacture of a new package. Emissions from electricity generation have been taken into account and based on the average Swedish electricity consumption.

FMS / KTH: Robust and flexible strategies for exploitation of energy from waste.

The Research on the Environment Strategic Studies (FMS) at the Royal Institute of Technology presented the 2005 report, "Robust and flexible strategies for exploitation of energy from waste". The report summarizes the results of a multi-year project funded by the Energy Authority, where energy use from waste was studied. The report's overall conclusion is that increased recycling of plastics, paper, metals and glass, leads to significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.