Plastic Recycling is a Lie

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Plastic consumption has quadrupled in the past 30 years, and is expected to triple in the next 30. Meanwhile, global plastic recycling rates have failed to reach two digits. Less than 10% of all the plastic ever produced has been recycled. 

While many of us are doing our part to save the planet and dutifully putting our plastics in recycling bins — it is nearly all one big charade. Why? Because recycling bins do not take your recyclables to fancy facilities to actually recycle them. In fact, just 5% of U.S. plastic waste is properly recycled. Globally, the plastic recycling rate is slightly higher at 9% but both of these numbers indicate that the effort you take to carefully sort your recyclables from your trash is almost for naught because most of our plastic ends up in either landfill or the environment. 

The carefully constructed promise of recycling is nearly all a lie manufactured by the plastic industry. The dream of recycling was invented by them to distract us from the very real issues of plastic pollution. Which is why California’s attorney general has opened an investigation accusing Big Oil of perpetuating the myth that recycling can solve the plastic crisis through its decades-long disinformation campaign. 

California’s attorney general claims that the fossil fuel industry has benefited financially from misleading the public by promoting the idea that plastic could be recycled, thus manipulating the public into buying products containing or utilizing plastics. 

Big Oil was aware that recycling was not a realistic solution back in 1974, when an industry insider revealed there was no economically viable way to recycle most plastics. So how did the lie of recycling take hold? Before we get to that, we have to understand Big Oil and its role in plastics. 

Plastics, Big Oil, and the Recycling Lie

Big Oil is the name attributed to the West’s largest oil companies — the same oil industry that is invested in plastics, which are largely made from petrochemicals. The fossil fuel industry makes $400 billion a year producing plastic. With energy demands shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy, it is an industry that recognizes and has communicated repeatedly to its shareholders that future profits will increasingly come from the production of plastics. In its simplest form, plastic equals profits. 

But in the late 1980s, public opinion began to shift and polls showed an increasing percentage of the general public believed plastics were harmful to the environment and public health. This widespread concern caused Big Oil to start spending hundreds of millions to sell the idea that the majority of plastic could in fact be recycled. So began a massive disinformation campaign which even included the building of recycling centers, ready to deal with the new plastic recycling boom. Many of these plants closed in less than five years. 

In 2019, the oil industry launched a billion dollar campaign, The Alliance to End Plastic Waste, that cynically promoted recycling and clean up efforts, instead of calling for a limit on plastic production and finding plastic alternatives. It helped shift the blame for plastic waste off the producer and onto the consumer. 

Misappropriation of the Recycling Symbol

Coinciding with these ad campaigns and the lie of an expanding recycling industry, came the birth of the Resin Identification Codes (RICs) – also created by the plastic industry. RICs are the numbers, 1 through 7, imprinted on the bottom of plastic products that communicate to consumers the composition of the plastic. It was a brilliant piece of marketing because the industry realized that the average person would see these RIC numbers as proof there was a vast and viable recycling industry out there to be supported. It duped us into believing that plastic is recyclable. 

In truth while, 30% of number 1 and 2 plastics are recycled, numbers 3 through 7 are much more difficult to be repurposed. In fact, numbers 6 and 7 are virtually impossible to recycle. 

The RICs symbol was adapted from the Möbius strip-inspired recycling logo consisting of  three arrows. The three arrow logo was actually conceived of to promote genuine recycling. But the RIC numbers are purely there to trick the public into thinking recycling is achievable and therefore working. Because the three arrow recycling symbol was never trademarked, it has been hijacked by the industry backed RIC number system and become a tool for the lobbyists working for Big Oil.

Lobbyists for Big Oil

The fossil fuel industry has incredibly effective lobbyists that work against any kind of plastic bans at the federal, state, and local levels. Over 1,500 of these lobbyists work simultaneously with cities, universities, and environmental groups which are fighting against the fossil fuel industry. Many of the cities that employ these double agent lobbyists are some of the worst affected by climate change.

The lobbying sector is largely unregulated and likes to keep their client’s details private. So, an environmental group could be working with a lobbyist, who is also contracted to work with a member of Big Oil at the same time. However, because there are so few legal restrictions regarding this lobbying scenario, the lobbyist is not required to declare this duality. 

Not All Recycling is a Lie

Although the world struggles to recycle plastic, other materials like aluminum, paper, and glass are recycled successfully. Aluminum is one of the most recycled and recyclable materials used today. Recycled aluminum saves producers 95% of the energy needed to produce new aluminum. Nearly 75% of all aluminum ever produced is still in use today in the U.S alone. 

Glass is another recycling success story. Germany and Switzerland both have approximately a 90% recycling rate for glass. The U.S. has remained relatively stagnant with around a 30% glass recycling rate but the higher numbers in Europe show that productive glass recycling is achievable. Glass recycling also benefits from the fact that it can be done endlessly without a loss in quality. Given these statistics, is it not time to return to using materials like these once again much more prolifically? Materials such as glass and aluminum are truly energy efficient because they can be so easily recycled.

Stop Plastic Production

Today is America Recycles Day, but Americans can’t effectively recycle because of the fossil fuel industry backed lie that our most ubiquitous material, plastics, can be effectively recycled. Big Oil assured us it was ok to continue to buy and use plastics because they were going to be reused, which is not true. We’re inviting you to sign the Global Plastics Treaty petition to call on the United Nations and governments around the world to commit to a 60% reduction of all fossil fuel-based plastic production by 2040. The fight, Planet vs. Plastics, has only just begun — and it’s a fight we cannot afford to lose.

Welcome to part two of The History of Recycling! “The History of Recycling: Part One” explained what recycling is and how it was prioritized and utilized from 1500 BC until plastic was invented in 1907.  Now, Part Two will explore the changes in recycling as plastic increases in popularity and the environmental movement kicks off in the 1970’s.

Plastics Shifts Priorities

The first plastic bottles became available to consumers in 1947.  Plastics were still very expensive until the discovery of polyethylene in the 1950’s.  This new type of plastic allowed manufacturers to make colorful and lightweight designs, permitting brands like Tupperware and Thermos to design reusable products for food storage.  This led to the development of garbage bags and plastic baggies (Pepsico 4/14/2021).  Plastic bags and wrap cannot be recycled in your Blue Bin because we only accept plastic bottles and containers.  When plastic bags or film enter the recycling stream they contaminate other good recyclables and jam the sorting gears at the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF).  Fortunately, due to many advancements in recycling technology, you can recycle these plastic bags and film at your local grocery, retail store or at a dropoff location near you!

As trade expanded during the Industrial Revolution, it was important that the products endure the journey to their new destination, however far that might be.  Therefore, quality packaging and shelf life became a top priority for manufacturers.  Packaging and shelf life became increasingly important around the same time that it became easier for manufacturers to incorporate colorful and lightweight plastic packaging.  Therefore, producers took the opportunity to brand their products through designs on their packaging.  This developed into the branded metal vegetable cans, colorful boxed cereals, clamshells, and meat wrapped in plastic film that we are all familiar with today.

Blister packs like these for medication also became popular at this time.This fried chicken frozen meal is an example of branded and long lasting packaging.

With this production shift towards branded packaging and the widespread use of single-use-disposable plastics, consumers expected to buy products that could easily be thrown away.  By the 1970’s, convenience became the priority when designing products and packaging.  This ushered in the single-use-disposable era of packaging.  Advertisements even encouraged consumers to throw things away rather than considering the benefits of recycling them.

The 1970’s National Environmental Movement Shapes Recycling as We Know it

After World War II, landfilling was the most popular form of waste disposal (Pepsico. “Discover the History of Recycling: America Transforms Their Trash”. 5/19/2021).  Unfortunately, given the commonality of plastics and disposable packaging, landfills were overflowing and running out of space rapidly.  It was clear that the U.S. had a major trash problem and people began to see and understand the environmental dangers of landfills.  This is where recycling comes in as it can remove materials from the waste stream and conserve landfill space.  The very first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970 across the entire country.  The national event shed light on air, water and land pollution as well as the importance of changing our ways to preserve our life on Earth.  You can view the different ways people took action in this 1970’s news clip!

Earth Day 1970 CBS news coverage.

Around the same time as the first Earth Day was formulating, the environmental justice movement took off.  The environmental justice movement addresses the fact that people who live, work and play in America’s most polluted environments are commonly people of color and the poor.  Poor and minority communities began taking action to prevent toxic landfills and industrial plants from entering their neighborhoods.  This movement has grown significantly since its conception and continues to make progress.  Renee Skelton and Vernice Miller from the Natural Resources Defense Council offer additional information on the environmental justice movement in their article “The Environmental Justice Movement”.

Are you interested in learning more about Post-Consumer Plastic Recycling Methods? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!

Protestors block the delivery of toxic PCB waste to a landfill in Afton, North Carolina, 1982.
Ricky Stilley

One of the responses to these environmental movements was to decrease the amount of landfill waste by increasing recycling participation.  Just four years after the first Earth Day celebration, the first recycling mill was built in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.  Also in 1974, the first recycling bin, named “The Tree Saver”, was designed to collect paper and hit curbsides in Missouri (Pepsico. 5/19/22).  This was a great start but it was still difficult for most people to recycle because they would have to sort and transport the materials themselves. 

A woman recycling plastics in separate recycling containers at the Santa Monica Recycling Center, California, 1992

Also inspired by the 1970’s environmental movement, Rose Rowan introduced the idea of “recycling trailers”  to improve curbside recycling collection.  The trailers hitched onto the backs of garbage trucks to facilitate the recycling of newspapers alongside regular domestic waste collection. 

As it became easier to obtain new materials and as plastic became more common, products and packaging were based on convenience.  This led to massive amounts of landfill waste with detrimental environmental impacts, which disproportionately impacted poor communities and communities of color.  As these impacts became more present and undeniable, the environmental movement kicked off and recycling began to resemble how we see it today.

Modern Recycling

Modern technology has made recycling collection more efficient than ever.  Cameras in the cab, back, and sides of the truck allow drivers to check blind spots and maneuver safely.  Computers or tablets help workers track progress, send and receive messages and take photos when needed.  Additionally, mechanical arms pick up bins and dump recyclables in the truck.  By automating this step, workers no longer have to get on and off the truck, making their job safer and more efficient (Pepsico. 5/19/22). 

This is one of our very own Refuse trucks in St. Louis!  They are using technology to collect recycling from our blue recycling alley dumpsters!

As recycling gained in popularity and availability, the big blue bin made quite an entrance in America.  The blue color and well recognized recycling mobius ♻ inspired people to hop on the recycling bandwagon.  It’s important to recognize that different cities across the country developed their own recycling bins, designs and colors.  Even today, each state, city or town can have different recycling guidelines.  

The time, effort and space required to sort materials made some people reluctant to recycle.  Moving to single-stream recycling and allowing people to put everything into one bin simplified the process for both households and collection workers.  Be sure to know which bin is for recycling in your town and what is accepted.  Here in St. Louis city, our recycling bins are blue and marked “Recyclables Only.”  Learn what can be recycled in your Blue Bin!

That is why St. Louis sticks with these colors! Brown is for trash, green is for yard waste, and blue is for recycling!

When the U.S. first started sorting recyclable materials, the process was mostly manual and involved workers watching items move around on conveyor belts at the MRF.  Technology has improved throughout the history of recycling, though, and innovative technologies like optical sorters, lasers and magnets have modernized the sorting process.  This technology was created to recognize and sort products by their original shape.  This  means crumpled cans, bottles or cartons can be incorrectly sorted because the technology could confuse it for flat paper or cardboard.   You can read more about the Materials Recovery Facility St. Louis uses in our blog post “Virtual Recycling Facility Tour” and our other blog post “Where Does My Recycling Go?”.

Latest design of a recycling sorting machine. As shown in the image, there are individuals aiding the process.

For a large part of American recycling history, we’ve exported our recycled materials.  Today, we handle more and more of this process domestically.  In fact, 97% of St. Louis’ recyclables are sold domestically with only 3% (mostly paper) sold to Mexico.  

In 1960, just over 6% of municipal solid waste was recycled nationally.  Since then, national recycling rates have increased to over 35% in 2017!  That’s helped decrease the amount of waste going to landfills from 94% in 1960 to 52% of the amount generated in 2017.

Visual depiction of national recycling rates from 1960 to 2017 based off of “When Did Americans Start Recycling” by Shelia Mulrooney Eldred

The City of St. Louis began curbside and alley collection of recyclable materials in 2011. In that first year, just 6.2% of residential waste was recycled.  Today, St. Louis city recycles 10.7% of residential waste. 

Percent of St. Louis residential waste that is recycled from 2011 to 2020 based on tonnage reports from the Refuse Division

Meanwhile, as of 2017, 40% of St. Louis residential waste was recyclable. This means there is more work to do to expand recycling participation and collection.  The ease of single stream recycling and our consistent messaging has helped us get this far.  Stick with the six, bring plastic bags and wraps back to the grocery store, share recycling information and St. Louis will be cleaner and healthier than ever!

Our ancient ancestors saw the value in recycling and the plastics movement showed us the dangers of landfills. The 1970’s environmental movement allowed recycling to make a comeback!  Recycling is an excellent and proven alternative to landfills and for acquiring resources.  Recycling provides jobs, reduces greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, reduces pollution, and helps keep our environment and communities clean and healthy.  Help keep St. Louis clean and take the pledge to recycle! 

Sources

History: When Did Americans Start Recycling?

Missouri Department of Natural Resources: Statewide Waste Composition Study, 2016-2017

Osmosys: The past, present and future of the plastic bottle

Pepsico: Discover the History of Recycling: America Transforms Their Trash

Pepsico: Discover the History of Recycling: How Did We Get Here?

Plastic Expert: Recycling Through The Ages: 1970s

Plastic Packing Technologies, LLC: The Evolution of Food Packaging Design Through the Years

Natural Resources Defense Council: The Environmental Justice Movement

The Evolution of Packaging

University of Colorado Boulder: The Hidden Damage of Landfills

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