Posts archived in Recycle

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February 2, 2012

Does Styrofoam Cups More Eco-friendly Than Paper Cups?

Normally, people would guess a paper cup is much more eco-friendly then its evil step sibling. Most people instantly think paper is more eco-conscious because it is recyclable, but truth be told, most paper cups intended for hot beverages are not recyclable. the Styrofoam cup, However, in many cases, a Styrofoam cup is the greener option. Here is a quick overview of the two contenders.

Insulation

paper cup Styrofoam vs. Paper Cups: Which is More Eco Friendly? Just fill up both cups with hot liquid and hold them in your hands. While the paper cup radiates the hot liquid inside the cup, the Styrofoam cup will be cool to touch. How to solve the paper cup problem? Add more paper.  It is obvious a Styrofoam cup insulates much better than paper. While most hot-cup sleeves are made from recycled materials and are recyclable, it is still an added item to a simple Styrofoam cup.

Eco-friendly

If you’re concerned with making the eco-friendly choice between the two, Styrofoam wins on many fronts. A standard paper cup takes more than 20 years to decompose in a landfill environment. This is mostly due to the wax lining on the inside of the cup. The trendy paper cup also takes more energy, raw material and money to make. For example, in comparison to Styrofoam, a paper cup requires 12 times the amount of water, 36 times the amount of electricity and costs double the amount of money to produce.

Cost

The typical paper cup costs around two-and-a-half times the amount of a Styrofoam cup. Aside from the production of the cup, if you add the cardboard sleeve and its production, raw material, energy and shipping needs, you need to throw in an additional 2-3 cents per cup. Modifying or customizing a Styrofoam cup is nearly half the price of customizing a paper cup. The bottom line is that paper cups are more than double the price to produce and require a cardboard sleeve if you want to save your fingertips.

When it boils down, it appears that going with Styrofoam is more eco-friendly compared to a paper cup. There are better ways to drink your hot beverages, such as using a reusable tumbler, coffee mug or other container you wash and use over and over. If you have to use a disposable paper cup, find out if the establishment you are buying your drink from uses biodegradable cups. If they do, that is the way to go. As the cup industry moves away from the traditional method of manufacturing the current unrecyclable paper cup into a more biodegradable version, the battle between Styrofoam and paper cups may take a turn. In a scenario where the paper cup is biodegradable, a paper cup may win.

 

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January 16, 2012

Benefits of Recycling EPS

Benefits of Recyclers:

● Earn money by recycle EPS foam
● Better public impression by going green
● Simple machine, safe operation
● No odor, no waste water
● Energy saving by cold compacting
● Save money by reducing dumpsters

recycle eps
Community Benefits:

● Reduce landfill
● Reduce transportation cost for waste hauling
● Cleaner environment

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January 4, 2012

Waste Recovery and Recycled Content

It is important to note that recycled EPS can be categorized into two types of material:

1. Post Consumer refers to a material or finished product that has served its intended use and has been discarded for disposal or recovery, having completed its life as a consumer item.
2. Post Industrial is recovered industrial and manufacturing materials that are diverted from municipal solid waste for the purpose of collection, recycling, and disposition.

The practice of recycling EPS B&C products can be accomplished by various methods.Manufacturers of EPS will reintroduce postindustrial scrap into the manufacturing process eliminating waste within the plant.The level of scrap is carefully monitored as to avoid compromising the integrity of the product.

Post-construction EPS waste can be reground and mixed with concrete to produce new building products such as Rastra and prefabricated concrete blocks. Adding EPS regrind increases the thermal performance of these applications in addition to providing an alternative to the landfill. An example of post-consumer EPS use can be found in products such as decking and lumber.

Packaging recycling has obtained an annual recycling rate of over 12%. This success is based on the collection of a larger commercial waste stream as compared to other applications of EPS. With regard to recycling on a jobsite, the amount of recoverable EPS insulation is minimal and the economics to recycle a small amount may outweigh potential benefits. Some building projects would have the potential for recycling but they would have to be evaluated on a case-bycase basis.

Expanded polystyrene insulation makes a significant contribution to building and construction needs without adversely affecting the environment. As green building initiatives grow, more education is needed to understand how plastics can enhance our lives and minimize our footprints on the earth.

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December 24, 2011

Steady Increases in Recycling rate of EPS Packaging Material

DENVER, CO — (Marketwire) — 12/13/11 — The recently released 2010 EPS Recycling Rate Report conducted by the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers (AFPR) demonstrates steady growth in the amount of Expanded polystyrene (EPS) packaging recycling : 

EPS recycling ratesince the 1990s. AFPR releases recycling rates every 2 years. Total EPS recycling increased to 71.3 million pounds in 2010. A total of 28% of all post-consumer and post-commercial EPS was recycled in 2010, an increase of 3.5 million pounds over the 19.5% recycling rate in 2008 — one of the highest recycling rates among all plastics products.

 

Post-commercial and post-consumer packaging is any material that is recycled after its intended end-use. 2010 marks the highest post-consumer & post-commercial recycling rate for the industry since the inception of the recycling rate report in 1990. The report illustrates that EPS recycling has reached a stable baseline of incremental growth and end-use market developments.

“ACH Foam Technologies alone recycled about 4 million pounds of both post-industrial and post-consumer EPS in 2010,” said Todd Huempfner, VP of Operations. “Considering that EPS is 98% air, this is a huge volume or material.” ACH Foam Technologies has become actively involved in assisting companies with their recycling needs, as reflected by the company’s large volume of recycled material.

“We have taken a holistic approach to servicing our customers by offering our recycling capabilities and serving as a valuable recycling resource. We provide them with information about how to locate a large volume recycler when we are not able to accommodate their needs,” said Erich Brandt, Senior VP Sales & Marketing. “In addition, ACH Foam has been working with AFPR which has put together information for packaging & OEM customers about how to set up their own recycling program.” AFPR has assisted companies such as Ethan Allen, GM, Crate & Barrel, and NASA.

Sanofi pasteur has partnered with AFPR to develop a successful collaborative EPS recycling program. EPS has proved to be an environmental material choice, according to Bill Tarabek, director, U.S. distribution for sanofi pasteur. “Unlike material such as paper, EPS does not degrade and will not leach any substances into groundwater, nor will it form harmful gases. Sanofi pasteur developed a Return and Recycle Program for our customers who prefer to recycle.”

Since January 2008, sanofi pasteur has offered its U.S. customers a prepaid mail-back recycling program that works through its partnership with AFPR. Sanofi pasteur’s customers — physicians and healthcare providers — who receive EPS shippers containing their medical supplies are provided with tape strips and a shipping label. They simply empty the EPS container, tape the lid closed, apply the label and give it to their courier for shipment to a recycler.

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November 15, 2011

An Overview on Recycling polystyrene

By Maryruth Belsey Priebe

With a reputation for being hard to recycle, polystyrene, or PS plastic, is another type you should be worried about if you want to clean-up your waste bin and keep plastics from the environment. Used for foam cups and plates, as packing material, in CD containers, and even toys, PS plastic is everywhere, but recycling options are few and far between. Never fear, however. Ecolife has the best recycling PS tips to get you sorting these plastics out of your rubbish pile and into the recycling stream.

Environmental facts about plastic #6

True, polystyrene is a lightweight plastic that requires less energy to make and transport, but it still comes with a few environmental woes that will make you want to think twice about using it in your everyday life:

  • Aliases: Known alternately as polystyrene, PS, foam, expanded polystyrene (EPS), or by the trademark “Styrofoam.”
  • Consumption rates: PS is one of the only types of plastic going down in terms of consumption – its consumption has been reduced 9% from 1974 to 1999. Recycling rates have also increased a fair bit and close to 30% of all PS packing peanuts are reused rather than recycled or trashed.
  • Pollution: Polystyrene plastics are incredibly lightweight (made of primarily air) which means they’re prone to landing in wild spaces and the ocean where they pose threats to wildlife and natural ecosystems.
  • Human health: There are concerns that styrene from polystyrene food containers can migrate from the foam into the food or beverage, posing health problems for those consuming the product.
  • Decomposition: As with most things in landfills, polystyrene doesn’t generally biodegrade over time. Instead, it just forms a lumpy mess that can form leachate and pollute groundwater as a result.

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October 23, 2011

How to Recycle PS 6 Styrofoam

Styrofoam recyclePS 6 Styrofoam, also known as Polystyrene, commonly takes the form of packing material, arriving in parcels to households across the globe. Unlike paper packing, Polystyrene cannot be thrown away and expected to break down quickly in the earth’s soil. The eco-friendly option is to recycle the Polystyrene.

Instructions

    • 1

      Check the foam for a triangle symbol with a 6 stamped in its middle to identify that the product is Polystyrene. The triangle represents the recycling logo, and the number 6 identifies the product as Polystyrene.

    • 2

      Go to Earth911.com. This is a website that specializes in finding recycling centers for specific products in any given area of the USA. The website is dedicated to the topic of recycling and provides much information on the easiest way to recycle particular products.

    • 3

      Enter “Polystyrene” into the “Find Recycling Centers For…” box at Earth911.com. To the right of that box, enter your location in the “Near…” box. Click the “Search” button to see a list of all the recycling centers near you that accept Polystyrene.

    • 4

      Drive, bike or bus the Polystyrene to the recycling center recommended by Earth911. If this is not an option, the Alliance of Foam Packing Recyclers has a mail-back program for residents of the U.S. At epspackaging.org, one can find a link to the nearest mail-back location where the Polystyrene can be sent. There will be a small cost for postage, but most likely a smaller amount than what would be spent on gas driving to the recycling center.

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