On November 2, 2016 the industry groups Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) and the American Chemistry Council (ACC) released the “2015 United States national post-consumer plastic bottle recycling report.” Overall, 1.35 million metric tons of post-consumer plastic bottles were collected for recycling in 2015, a decrease of 0.5% compared to 2014. The overall collection rate for plastic bottle recycling in the U.S. decreased from 31.7% in 2014 to 31.1% in 2015. The report also provides numbers for the different plastic materials, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high density polyethylene (HDPE), and polypropylene (PP):
| Collected for recycling | 2015 | compared to 2014 |
|---|---|---|
| PET bottles | 815,106 t | -0.8% |
| HDPE bottles | 518,819 t | -0.5% |
| PP bottles | 14,424 t | +19.5% |
| Total plastic bottles | 1.35 mio t | -0.5% |
| Collection rate | 2015 | 2014 |
|---|---|---|
| PET bottles | 30.1% | 31.0% |
| HDPE bottles | 34.4% | 34.8% |
| PP bottles | 17.9% | 15.0% |
| Total plastic bottles | 31.1% | 31.7% |
Read more
ACC (November 2, 2016). “Plastic bottle recycling in U.S. stays flat in 2015, domestic processing reaches new high.”
Jim Johnson (November 2, 2016). “Plastic bottle recycling dips slightly.” Plastics News
Reference
APR & ACC (2016). “2015 United States national postconsumer plastic bottle recycling report.” (pdf)
