The second point of that article - that with creative accounting, 10%-recycled material turns into a small batch of "100%-recycled" material and a large pile of

The second point of that article - that with creative accounting, 10%-recycled material turns into a small batch of "100%-recycled" material and a large pile of "0%-recycled" material - is kind of funny. Although it's interesting that we take this fungibility for granted when talking about money, but not plastic pellets. By the way, the "carbon offsets" industry does this and more. It's a general problem with industries that sell warm-and-fuzzy-feelings with no one particularly interested in looking under the hood. Also extends to some charities, etc. Anyway, the first claim of the article - that in the pyrolysis process, not all plastic is turned into plastic - seems... kind of nitpicky? So some of it is turned into fuel or paints - so what? A lot of consumer recycling is actually "downcycling". The glossy newspapers you put in the recycling bin probably don't end up as glossy newspapers - more likely, they end up as cardboard.