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☆ California sues ExxonMobil, alleging a 'campaign of deception' about plastics recycling
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-23 | by ( Evan Bush | Evan Bush Is A Science Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The Summary California’s attorney general is suing ExxonMobil, alleging the company misled consumers into believing that recycling was a viable solution for plastic waste. California’s attorney general sued ExxonMobil on Monday, alleging that the company had waged a “campaign of deception” for decades to mislead consumers and convince them that recycling was a viable solution for plastic waste. I hope this is going to open the floodgates," said Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics, a nationwide project seeking to end plastic pollution. In 1973, industry leaders called those concerned about plastic waste “enemies,” according to internal communications from the Society of the Plastics Industry (now known as the Plastics Industry Association), which are cited in the lawsuit. In the U.S., the plastic recycling rate has never exceeded 9%, the lawsuit says.

Persons: Rob Bonta, Bonta, Judith Enck, Enck, Leehi, “ We’ve, ” Yona, “ Organizations: ExxonMobil, Superior Court of, Beyond Plastics, Exxon, Mobil, Boy Scouts, Society of, Plastics Industry, Plastics Industry Association, Council, Waste Solutions, Cornell University, Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation Locations: Superior Court, Superior Court of California, San Francisco, California, U.S, Antarctica, Everest

☆ California sues ExxonMobil for alleged decades of deception around plastic recycling
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-23 | by ( Angela Dewan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against ExxonMobil on Monday for what the state calls a “decades-long campaign of deception” in which the oil and gas giant allegedly misled the public on the merits of plastic recycling. Bonta is also asking the court to rule ExxonMobil must pay civil penalties, among other payments, for the harm inflicted by plastic pollution in California. “For decades, ExxonMobil has been deceiving the public to convince us that plastic recycling could solve the plastic waste and pollution crisis when they clearly knew this wasn’t possible. Recent reports have shown only around 9% of the world’s plastic is recycled, a figure that’s even lower in the US, around 5 to 6%. Recycling has not kept pace with plastic production, which has doubled over the past 20 years.

Persons: Rob Bonta, ExxonMobil “, Bonta, ” Bonta, “, Judith Enck, ”, Laura Paddison Organizations: CNN, ExxonMobil, San, Court, “, of Justice, ”, Environmental Protection Agency, Beyond Plastics, Bennington College in Locations: California, San Francisco County, Bennington College in Vermont

☆ The plastics industry says chemical recycling could help banish pollution. It’s ‘an illusion,’ critics say
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-30 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —A squat, light-colored building in Tigard, Oregon, was supposed to be part of a game-changing new solution for the global plastics industry. And unlike mechanical recycling, where the quality of the product declines each time, chemical recycling promises virgin-quality plastics. Chemical company Dow says it plans to build multiple chemical recycling facilities in the US and Europe, adding as much as 600,000 tons (1.2 billion pounds) of recycling capacity by 2030. “Mechanical recycling simply uses less energy and chemicals than does chemical recycling, making it overall cheaper and less environmentally impactful,” she said. With that kind of industry pressure, said Congdon, it’s easy to see why chemical recycling may be attractive to policymakers.

Persons: Jennifer Congdon, Congdon, “, ”, Big, Yuri Cortez, Davis Allen, what’s, isn’t, Taylor Uekert, Chaideer Mahyuddin, Mike Kemp, Brightmark, NREL’s Uekert, Allen, ” Congdon Organizations: CNN, Regenyx, Plastics, Getty, Climate Integrity, Companies, Chemical, Dow, Oil, Exxon, American Chemistry Council, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Beyond Plastics, ACC, Center Locations: Tigard , Oregon, Venezuela, AFP, Europe, Asia, Banda Aceh, Indonesia, London, Baytown , Texas, Ashley , Indiana, Macon, Bibb , Georgia, Indiana, The Indiana

☆ U.S. Employers Added 175,000 Jobs in April
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Lydia Depillis | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The American job market may be shifting into a lower gear this spring, a turn that economists have expected for months after a vigorous rebound from the pandemic shock. Employers added 175,000 positions in April, the Labor Department reported Friday, undershooting forecasts. The unemployment rate ticked up to 3.9 percent. “It’s not a bad economy; it’s still a healthy economy,” said Perc Pineda, chief economist at the Plastics Industry Association. We cannot continue robust growth indefinitely considering the limits of our economy.”

Persons: It’s, ”, Perc Pineda, “ Organizations: Labor Department, Plastics Industry Association

☆ The fight over the future of plastics
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Hiroko Tabuchi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Earlier this week in Ottawa, the Vinyl Institute, a major plastic industry group, hosted a reception for delegates who are negotiating what would be the first global treaty to tackle the world’s mounting plastic waste problem. There were cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. And signs with the message that plastics save lives. Scientists have increasingly raised the alarm over the risks that the chemicals used in plastic pose to human health and the environment. Ahead of the latest round of talks, European researchers published a database of more than 16,000 chemicals plastics can contain, many of which have been linked to cancer risks and damage to the human immune system.

Persons: Domenic DeCaria, DeCaria Organizations: Vinyl Institute, Times Locations: Ottawa

☆ America's Plastic Catastrophe: Most Waste Can't Be Recycled
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Taylor Dorrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

It's an urgent question — what do we do with the 40 million tons of plastic waste we produce annually? One year of plastic waste is roughly enough to smother the entirety of Manhattan a meter deep, and it has to go somewhere. For decades, America sent its plastic waste to countries like China and Indonesia. Unlike aluminum or glass, the plastic that can be recycled rarely results in replacing one recycled water bottle with another. By downcycling a tiny portion of plastic waste, companies can genuinely reuse a relatively small share of plastic, while convincing consumers that the industry has created a circular economy of infinitely recycled plastic.

Persons: Kartik Byma, they're, Tim Miller, Susan Freinkel, Nestlé, Lea Suzuki, Larry Thomas, what's, Taylor Dorrell, Biden, that's, Taylor, Miller, Kelley Sayre, Vicky Abou, it's, Mike Bloomberg, Bloomberg, Espen Barth Eide, Norway's, Abou, It's Organizations: Getty, America, Chevron, Exxon, Paper Stock, Plastics Industry Association, Organization for Economic Co, San Francisco, NPR, International Energy Agency, ExxonMobil, Alterra Energy, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Royal Paper Stock, Akron, Buckeye Environmental, Business, Eastman Chemical Co, American Chemistry Council, New, Beyond Plastics, UN, Buckeye Environmental Network Locations: America, Manhattan, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, AFP, Ohio, American, San Francisco, Akron, Taylor Dorrell Akron , Ohio, United States, Oregon, New York City

☆ A Breakthrough in Plastic Recycling Is Coming Up Short
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Hiroko Tabuchi | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

By 2025, Nestle promises not to use any plastic in its products that isn’t recyclable. By that same year, L’Oreal says all of its packaging will be “refillable, reusable, recyclable or compostable.”And by 2030, Procter & Gamble pledges that it will halve its use of virgin plastic resin made from petroleum. To get there, these companies and others are promoting a new generation of recycling plants, called “advanced” or “chemical” recycling, that promise to recycle many more products than can be recycled today. So far, advanced recycling is struggling to deliver on its promise. Nevertheless, the new technology is being hailed by the plastics industry as a solution to an exploding global waste problem.

Persons: Nestle, L’Oreal Organizations: Procter, Gamble

☆ 16,000 plastic chemicals exist, many of them hazardous and unregulated, report says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

And with new plastic chemicals entering the market all the time, it’s been difficult for regulators and policy makers to determine the scope of the problem. Now, for the first time, researchers have pulled together scientific and regulatory data to develop a database of all known chemicals used in plastic production. It’s a staggering number: 16,000 plastic chemicals, with at least 4,200 of those considered to be “highly hazardous” to human health and the environment, according to the authors. Although grouping would capture about 1,000 of the most toxic chemicals in plastics, Wagner said, that still leaves about 2,600 chemicals that still need to be regulated. Missing hazard dataIn addition to the massive number of toxic chemicals, the report found that detailed hazard information is missing for more than 10,000 of the 16,000 chemicals.

Persons: it’s, It’s, “, ”, Martin Wagner, Wagner, Philip Landrigan, Landrigan, Matt Seaholm, ” Kimberly Wise White, ” Wagner, ” Landrigan, Tasha Stoiber, Stoiber, Jane Houlihan Organizations: CNN, Norwegian University of Science, Technology, Program, Global Public Health, Global, Planetary Health, Boston College, – Monaco, Plastics, Human, Plastics Industry Association, American Chemistry Council, International, United Nations Environment, Global Plastics, Environmental, Healthy Locations: Trondheim, United States

☆ U.N. plastic treaty talks grapple with re-use, recycle, reduce debate
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Duncan Miriri | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Some said the number of submissions represented progress, while campaign group Greenpeace said it was "chaos". Greenpeace said a successful deal would require the United States and the European Union to show greater leadership than they have so far. The International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), a global network of non-governmental organisations, however, said the proposals reflected the robustness of the Nairobi talks. Less than 10% of the plastic waste is recycled, the U.N. Members of the Saudi delegation at the talks declined to talk to Reuters, while Russian delegates could not immediately be reached for comment.

Persons: INC3, Graham Forbes, IPEN, Duncan Miriri, George Obulutsa, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Greenpeace, Plastics, United Nations, Kenyan, European Union, International Union for Conservation, Nature, European, Saudi, Thomson Locations: NAIROBI, Russia, Saudi Arabia, United States, Nairobi, Switzerland, Uruguay, Canada, Kenya, European Union

☆ U.N. Plastic Treaty Talks Grapple With Re-Use, Recycle, Reduce Debate
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

Persons: Duncan Miriri, INC3, Graham Forbes, IPEN, George Obulutsa, Barbara Lewis Organizations: United Nations, Greenpeace, Kenyan, European Union, International Union for Conservation, Nature, European, Saudi Locations: Duncan Miriri NAIROBI, Russia, Saudi Arabia, United States, Nairobi, Switzerland, Uruguay, Canada, Kenya, European Union

Kenya's President William Ruto called the treaty “the first domino” in a shift away from plastic pollution. The U.N. Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution is charged with developing the first international, legally binding treaty on plastic pollution on land and at sea. Kenya is a global leader in fighting plastic pollution, and in 2017, the country banned the manufacture, sale and use of single-use plastic bags. Nonetheless, he said, it is evident that negotiations have moved beyond plastic waste and into addressing plastic production and toxic chemicals used to make plastic. “The focus is on ending plastic pollution, not plastic production," he said.

Persons: Gustavo Adolfo Meza, Cuadra Velasquez, William Ruto, ” Graham Forbes, ” Eirik Lindebjerg, Björn Beeler, haven't, IPEN, Chris Jahn, Karen McKee, Jahn, ___ McDermott Organizations: United Nations Environment, Global, reconvening, Intergovernmental, UNEP, Greenpeace, World Wildlife Fund, Plastics, Industry, International Council of Chemical Associations, ExxonMobil, Solutions Company, AP Locations: NAIROBI, Kenya, Kenya's, Nairobi, Paris, Punta del Este, Uruguay, Norway, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Iran, China, Russia, United States, Baytown , Texas, Baytown, Providence , Rhode Island

☆ Biomaterials startup Traceless wants to help tackle plastic pollution. It just raised $39 million in debt and equity with this 15-slide pitch deck.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A German startup hoping to help put an end to plastic pollution has just raised 36.6 million euro (around $38.9 million) in a mixture of equity and debt. Hamburg-based Traceless, founded in 2020, has developed a plant-based biomaterial using agricultural waste to replace plastics. The startup material uses the existing natural polymers that are in its raw material, which requires up to 80% less energy to process compared to conventional plastics, Lamp said. Traceless produces its material as small pellets to provide to product manufacturers, which then mould it to their needs. The startup hopes to have replaced 1 million tonnes of plastic by 2030.

Persons: Anne Lamp, compostable, Traceless, Joanna Baare, Baare, Hamburger Sparkasse Organizations: UB Forest Industry, Growth, SWEN Capital Partners, GLS Bank, Planet A Ventures, Tech Locations: Hamburg, Antarctica

☆ Can Plastic Recycling Ever Really Work?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Susan Shain | More About Susan Shain | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The decision to revert the designation came after the Recycling Partnership, another industry-funded group, gave $6.7 million to recycling facilities to expand their acceptance and sorting of polypropylene.The group now estimates that more than half of recycling facilities in the United States accept and sort the material. Paul Nowak, the executive director of How2Recycle’s parent organization, sees this as a success story. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that just 2.7 percent of polypropylene containers and packaging was reprocessed in 2018. While Keefe Harrison, chief executive of the Recycling Partnership, acknowledges that little polypropylene is being turned into new material right now, she argues that more investment in sorting and reprocessing facilities would improve the chances. Polypropylene recycling is at a “tipping point,” she said, noting that Oregon is considering including polypropylene on a forthcoming list of recyclable materials that municipalities are required to collect, sort and sell.

Persons: Paul Nowak, ”, Dell, Keefe Harrison, Matt Seaholm Organizations: Recycling Partnership, Environmental Protection Agency, Partnership, Recycling, Plastics Industry Association Locations: United States, Oregon

☆ How PepsiCo is trying to get Doritos and Cheetos bags into compost bins
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

But more chip bags and snack containers being sold also means more waste from plastic and other packaging materials, something PepsiCo is aiming to take on. "Two years ago, if you think about our multipack packages, there was one plastic [packaging] outside, and each multipack serving," he said. McDonald's recently agreed under pressure from activist shareholders to produce a report on reusable packaging in exchange for having a shareholder vote on the issue rescinded. As far back as 2019, both Coke and Pepsi had already cut ties with a plastics industry association, and issued previous goals related to recyclable, compostable and reusable packaging. Taking what it learned from creating the Off The Eaten Path's packaging, Frito-Lay has introduced other packaging made from 85% renewable plant materials that produce roughly 60% lower greenhouse gas emissions than traditional snack bags.

☆ How Tupperware went from American kitchen icon to the brink of collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

Tupperware was developed by Earl Tupper, who founded a plastics manufacturing company in Leominster, Massachusetts, during the Great Depression. TupperwareTupper was born in New Hampshire in 1907. While he wasn't a great student, he spent a lot of his early life sketching out inventions in a notebook, such as a comb with a belt clip and a fish-powered boat, according to PBS's "American Experience." His inventions didn't lead to financial success, so Tupper started a landscaping business to support himself and, later, his wife and children, per "American Experience." Then, during the Great Depression, he started working in the plastics industry and eventually founded his own company in Leominster, which was a manufacturing hub at the time.

☆ Walmart bans single-use bags in more stores
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN —Walmart will eliminate single-use paper and plastic carryout bags at the register from stores in New York, Connecticut and Colorado this month. The company previously stopped giving out single-use plastic bags in New York and Connecticut and in some areas in Colorado. Plastic-bag bans reduce the number of these bags in stores and encourage customers to bring reusable bags or pay a small fee for paper bags. In New Jersey, a ban on single-use plastic and paper bags has meant grocery delivery services have switched to heavy-duty bags. Reusable bags — cloth totes or thicker, more durable plastic bags — aren’t a perfect solution, either, unless they are actually reused.

☆ Countries split on plastics treaty focus as UN talks close
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( Valerie Volcovici | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The High Ambition Coalition of over 40 countries, including EU members, Switzerland, host Uruguay and Ghana, wants the treaty to be based on mandatory global measures, including curbs on production. That approach contrasts with the country-driven pledges advocated by countries including the United States and Saudi Arabia. Critics say such an approach would weaken a global treaty. Industry representatives at the talks touted the essential role of plastics in daily life, calling for the treaty to focus tackling waste rather than measures to sap production. Environmental group Greenpeace said that without a strong treaty, plastic production could double within the next 10 to 15 years, and triple by 2050.

Tiny fragments of plastic have been found in blood samples, stools and placentas of unborn babies, recent studies have shown. Scientists are trying to understand the health risks of this new phenomenon, but concerns range from the impact on organs to how some plastic additives might disrupt hormonal systems. Jodie Roussell, public affairs lead for packaging and sustainability at Swiss consumer goods giant Nestle (NESN.S), told the panel she hoped the treaty would help establish global quality controls for plastic, especially recycled plastic. Roussell said in lieu of such standards, Nestle has established its own quality controls and a black list for certain materials. International standards would help with "levelling the playing field and ensuring a fair distribution of responsibility across the value chain," Roussell said.

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