When China’s plastic ban went into effect in January 2018, a recycling center in Boise, Idaho, was forced to reduce the amount of plastic it could accept.
Plastics marked with plastic resin codes 3 through 7 are no longer accepted in store recycling carts, sparking frustration among Boise residents. “Our community is deeply committed to sustainability, so sending these plastics to a landfill was our last option,” explained former Boise Mayor Dave Beater. press release.
Fortunately for Boise residents, the city was awarded a $50,000 grant to establish a local Hefty trash bag collection program that began in April 2018. The original EnergyBag® program, launched in 2014, aimed to divert non-recyclable plastics from landfills by converting them into energy. resource. However, this approach Facing environmental problems, Especially when it comes to incinerating plastics, which can release pollutants and greenhouse gases.
In response to these concerns, Hefty Program rebranded to Hefty ReNew™ in March 2023emphasizes more sustainable practices. The ReNew™ program converts hard-to-recycle plastics, including the controversial process known as pyrolysis and also referred to as “advanced chemical recycling,” into valuable resources such as synthetic diesel fuel, thereby reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Focuses on advanced recycling technology. and minimize environmental impact. Critics argue that pyrolysis can release pollutants, including carcinogens such as benzene and dioxins, and can produce more greenhouse gases than traditional plastic manufacturing methods. There is. Additionally, some studies suggest that pyrolysis is highly dependent on fossil fuels and a significant portion of the product contains minimal recycled material.
Hefty commissioned an independent lifecycle assessment A study conducted in 2022 to assess the environmental impact of the Hefty ReNew™ program found that using program materials as fuel in cement kilns has significant environmental benefits on a variety of factors compared to landfilling. reported that it was found.
What is the Hefty ReNew™ program?
The EnergyBag program allows participating households to various plastic products – Food pouches, plastic utensils, plastic shopping bags, straws, candy wrappers, etc. – put them in special orange bags. Once full, you can tie up the orange bag and place it in a roadside recycling bin. From there, it is taken to a local recycling facility where it is pre-sorted, packaged and shipped to local recycling partners.
In Boise, materials collected for the Hefty ReNew program will be sent to the following organizations: Pyrolysis facility owned by Firstar Inc. Converting plastic waste into energy and recycled composite wood products. This process prevents plastic from ending up in landfills. It also reduces the amount of fossil fuels that have to be extracted from the ground, preserving resource use and ostensibly contributing to a more circular economy.
in 2018 KTVB InterviewColin Hickman, communications manager for the Boise Department of Public Works, reported the program’s success in the first two months. “We recovered approximately 54,000 pounds of non-recyclable plastic, which is an amazing amount of material considering how lightweight plastic is. 54,000 pounds of material that would otherwise have been given a new life and put to good use.”
Where is the program running?
In addition to Boise, the Hefty ReNew™ program operates in the following areas: north chicago, cincinnati, dayton and central ohio, atlanta, Omaha and lincoln, nebraska, Tucson, Arizonaand Chattanooga, Tennessee. Like Boise and Omaha, plastics in Cobb County will be sent to approved end markets. But Omaha’s program criticized by critics Harmful to the environment. Plastics collected in Omaha are not converted into fuel and are incinerated to end their life cycle.
In 2018, Earth911 asked the show’s sponsors, Dow and the company that operates the incinerator, how they responded to the criticism.
“Using hard-to-recycle plastics as fuel helps keep these materials out of landfills and improves pyrolysis technology and related infrastructure,” said Jeff Wooster, global sustainability director at Dow Packaging. “It will serve as a stepping stone until it is further developed and put in place at a viable scale.” Specialty Plastics sponsors Hefty ReNew™ program in response to criticism of Omaha incineration program. “Ultimately, each step brings us closer to increasing chemical recycling and making plastics from recycled chemicals.”
“Despite the questionable nature of plastic incineration,” said Dale Gubbels, president and CEO of Firstar Inc., a material recovery facility that processes energy bag materials. “These plastics, which are difficult to recycle, replace the need for non-renewable fuel sources such as coal coke in cement production. Intermediate end markets that use recovered plastics as fuel, such as cement kilns, Supplementing fuel needs and expanding the usefulness of waste plastics.”
where are things heading?
By moving to the Hefty ReNew™ program, Hefty is addressing existing environmental concerns and contributing to a more circular economy by effectively diverting hard-to-recycle plastics from landfills and turning them into valuable resources. We aim to do so. It claims to have diverted more than 3,000 tons of waste since the program began about 10 years ago. However, the controversy surrounding pyrolysis highlights the importance of continually evaluating and improving recycling technologies to ensure they provide true environmental benefits.
While recycling is not the best thing we can do for the environment, ideally preventing waste from occurring in the first place, it is still preferable to treatment and disposal. Until single-use plastics are banned or consumers stop buying plastics, the Hefty ReNew™ program is a step communities can take to keep plastics out of landfills and oceans.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on August 3, 2018 and has been significantly updated to include information for the December 2024 ReNew program. Feature image credit: Hefty EnergyBag Program.
