A recent report reveals that, for decades, the plastics industry has been aware that recycling their products is not a viable environmental solution, yet continued to promote it as such. This revelation comes from a study conducted by the Center for Climate Integrity, which highlights the significant challenges in recycling plastics, primarily due to their fossil fuel origins.
According to the report, over 99% of plastics are derived from fossil fuels, and the vast majority are not recyclable in the true sense of becoming entirely new products. Only polyethylene terephthalate and high-density polyethylene plastic containers have a market for recycling, a fact that the Environmental Protection Agency has acknowledged for over 30 years.
While local and city recycling programs do collect various types of plastics, the reality is that most of these materials end up being incinerated or dumped in landfills. The report points out that the difficulty in recycling is compounded by chemical additives and colorings that prevent mixing different types of plastics, along with the degradation of plastics’ quality over time. The costs associated with recycling often exceed those of producing new plastics, further diminishing the feasibility of recycling as a sustainable option.
The Center for Climate Integrity accuses the petrochemical industry of perpetuating the myth of widespread plastic recycling. The industry’s promotion of disposable plastics in the 1950s and 1960s, followed by a shift to advocating recycling in the 1980s in response to backlash against single-use plastics, has contributed to the current misleading perception. Despite understanding the technical and economic barriers to recycling, the industry has not only continued to increase plastic production but also engaged in a campaign to mislead consumers, policymakers, and regulators about the realities of plastic recycling.