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NPR recently collected some history lots of plastics got some recycling symbols even though most plastics are not recycled for economic reasons: plastics have t

by froh 6y ago

NPR recently collected some history lots of plastics got some recycling symbols even though most plastics are not recycled for economic reasons: plastics have to be unmixed for true recycling. Most food packaging is landfill. https://www.npr.org/2020/09/11/897692090/how-big-oil-misled-the-public-into-believing-plastic-would-be-recycled https://www.npr.org/2020/09/11/897692090/how-big-oil-misled-...

fy20 6y ago
The symbol with three arrows in a triangle and a code does not mean an item is recyclable. The official name is a Resin Identification Code. It lets you identify what material an item is made of, but it does not say whether it can be recycled or not, as that varies depending on local facilities. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resin_identification_code https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resin_identification_code
- froh 6y ago
  TIL resin identification code. Edit: the original stated purpose, according to the linked wikipedia page, was: facilitate recycling... And if it actually will be recycled depends not only on the facility but also on the cost of doing what needs to be done (for separation and transport), and the possibility of what can be done (laminates). However these constraints are not communicated clearly. I'm 52 years old, I live in Germany, where we "recycle" for ages, about 30 years now, and we tell our kids and grannies and everybody in between to separate the trash because "recycling", and we see benches and other sturdy plastics items "made from trash" and still, only 17% of the collected packaging trash is reliably recycled, while the recycling of other plastics (toys, vehicle parts, any plastics that are not packaging) is also intransparent. https://bmbf-plastik.de/en/publication/plastic-atlas-2019-facts-and-figures-about-world-synthetic-polmers https://bmbf-plastik.de/en/publication/plastic-atlas-2019-fa... https://www.tagesschau.de/faktenfinder/kurzerklaert/kurzerklaert-recycling-101.html https://www.tagesschau.de/faktenfinder/kurzerklaert/kurzerkl...

by froh 6y ago

fy20 6y ago

The symbol with three arrows in a triangle and a code does not mean an item is recyclable. The official name is a Resin Identification Code. It lets you identify what material an item is made of, but it does not say whether it can be recycled or not, as that varies depending on local facilities. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resin_identification_code https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resin_identification_code

froh 6y ago
TIL resin identification code. Edit: the original stated purpose, according to the linked wikipedia page, was: facilitate recycling... And if it actually will be recycled depends not only on the facility but also on the cost of doing what needs to be done (for separation and transport), and the possibility of what can be done (laminates). However these constraints are not communicated clearly. I'm 52 years old, I live in Germany, where we "recycle" for ages, about 30 years now, and we tell our kids and grannies and everybody in between to separate the trash because "recycling", and we see benches and other sturdy plastics items "made from trash" and still, only 17% of the collected packaging trash is reliably recycled, while the recycling of other plastics (toys, vehicle parts, any plastics that are not packaging) is also intransparent. https://bmbf-plastik.de/en/publication/plastic-atlas-2019-facts-and-figures-about-world-synthetic-polmers https://bmbf-plastik.de/en/publication/plastic-atlas-2019-fa... https://www.tagesschau.de/faktenfinder/kurzerklaert/kurzerklaert-recycling-101.html https://www.tagesschau.de/faktenfinder/kurzerklaert/kurzerkl...