Business Recycling Dilemmas: Identifying and Overcoming Challenges, Strategies, and Opportunities
In May 2023, governments will gather to discuss a legally binding solution for commercial waste management, signalling a significant step towards a more sustainable future. This move comes as the world grapples with the challenges of waste management, particularly commercial waste, which has become increasingly pressing.
Recycling plays a crucial role in encouraging businesses to reuse or recycle their products and waste, but there are several obstacles to overcome. For instance, businesses often face materials with specific disposal steps, such as hazardous or damaged waste, and might not know where to recycle such materials.
One country that has taken a bold step is India, which imposed a plastic ban in July 2022 after reaching 14 million tons of annual plastic use. However, the global issue of plastic waste is far from solved. Humans have created 9.2 billion tons of plastic over the decades, but only 2.2 billion tons have been recycled.
The United States, for example, has sent things that were supposed to be recycled, but up to 70% of exported waste wasn't recycled because it didn't meet standards. This issue has led to 187 countries addressing the issue of sending recyclables to other countries as of 2019.
In response to these challenges, a sustainable recycling system is crucial. Such a system would reduce pollution, help the environment, and save resources for businesses. Germany, for instance, recycles around 67% of its waste due to international and local policies.
However, even with the best intentions, recycling can be challenging. Many plastics can't be recycled, and many items sent to recycling facilities might not get recycled. This is where commercial recycling comes in, focusing on how enterprises can turn their unusual waste into something new.
A demolition business, for example, ends up with wood, concrete, and metal after demolishing a house, but it's tough to find somewhere to recycle it. Keeping recycling local instead of shipping waste out of the country saves money for businesses.
In 2021, the Basel Convention will begin regulating shipments of recyclables, which could help address this issue. Office buildings, restaurants, and stores produce varying commercial wastes since it's created by doing business.
To improve commercial recycling systems globally, partnerships between governments and businesses are key. These collaborations can develop scalable collection and recycling infrastructure, standardize regulations and labeling, and align policies with business practices through shared standards and incentives.
For instance, partnerships like the Polystyrene Recycling Alliance with Circular Colorado demonstrate how governments and businesses can jointly create replicable, statewide collection models. Supporting communities in securing grants and building infrastructure increases recycling efficiency for difficult materials like expanded polystyrene (EPS).
Global adoption of international standards, like ISO standards, helps align policy goals with business practices and creates accountability through measurable metrics. This reduces fragmented approaches and ensures consistency across borders, critical for effective recycling.
Legislative measures, such as the U.S. CIRCLE Act and related proposals, offer investment tax credits for recycling infrastructure upgrades, easing the financial burden on local governments and incentivizing private sector investment. Such policies help modernize collection, sorting, and processing, increase recycled material supply, and create jobs, strengthening recycling systems domestically and globally.
Introducing consistent national or international standards for recyclability labeling and digital product passports facilitates consumer understanding, improves sorting accuracy, and enables circular economy practices such as reuse and refurbishment. This, in turn, supports sustained product lifecycle management and recycling.
Engaging municipalities, commercial partners, and communities ensures local needs and challenges are identified and addressed, improving participation and system usability. Outreach and training enhance collection rates and the quality of recyclable materials.
Together, these collaborative strategies enable more efficient, reliable, and scalable commercial recycling systems worldwide by combining government policy frameworks, business innovation, and community participation. By doing so, governments can rely on their own recycling system instead of shipping waste out of the country, benefiting both the environment and the economy.
[1] Circular Colorado: https://circularcolorado.org/ [2] ISO: https://www.iso.org/ [3] CIRCLE Act: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/3602 [4] RAIN Alliance: https://rainalliance.org/ [5] GS1: https://www.gs1.org/
- In the pursuit of a greener and more sustainable future, partnerships between governments and businesses are vital, as seen in the Polystyrene Recycling Alliance with Circular Colorado, a collaborative initiative that develops replicable collection models for hard-to-recycle materials like expanded polystyrene (EPS).
- Adopting international standards, such as ISO standards, helps create accountability in the recycling process, aligning policy goals with business practices and ensuring consistency across borders, Key to developing efficient, reliable, and scalable commercial recycling systems and benefiting both the environment and the economy.
