PLASTICS%20RECYCLING%20AND%20THE%20NEED%20FOR%20BIOPOLYMERS - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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PLASTICS%20RECYCLING%20AND%20THE%20NEED%20FOR%20BIOPOLYMERS
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PLASTICS RECYCLING AND THE NEED FOR BIOPOLYMERS. Mrs Almitra ... Let us be proud of India's small ... waste and make dismantling and. recycling easy ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation
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Title: PLASTICS%20RECYCLING%20AND%20THE%20NEED%20FOR%20BIOPOLYMERS
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PLASTICS RECYCLING AND THE NEED FOR BIOPOLYMERS
- Mrs Almitra Patel, Member
- Supreme Court Committee for
- Solid Waste Management
- 50 Kothnur, Bagalur Rd, Bangalore 560077.
- almitrapatel_at_rediffmail.com
2
Let us be proud of Indias small ecological
footprint!
- We use 50-100 gm non-degradable waste per capita
per day in larger cities, - vs
- 1-2 kg per capita per day in the West.
- This is NOT backwardness. We should
- not copy the ways of throwaway cultures.
3
Yet thin-film plastics in our mixed waste is
increasing.
- In 1993, 1-2 by weight reached the dumps.
- In 2003, this rose to even 7-9 in some cities.
- Plastic volumes now exceed the volume of
- compost produced in compost plants, which
- are now mandatory. Plastics must be removed
- to prevent damage to soil porosity and water
- absorption, and the poor germination of seeds.
4
Thin-film plastics on right are more voluminous
than the sieved compost produced.
5
In India, recycling supports 0.5 1 of a
citys population
- MSW Rules 2000 direct Municipalities
- to promote recycling or reuse of
- segregated materials and ensure
- community participation in segregation
- Almost all plastics are recyclable,
- and are collected if it is economically
- worthwhile and give a survival wage.
- But Recyclable is meaningless
- unless Recycling is actually done!
6
What is hard to recycle?
- Carry-bags and film packs were recycled till
collection costs became unviable. - If they can fetch a street price of Rs 5-6 per
kg, they can be very usefully used in asphalt
roads, replacing 8 by weight of bitumen and
giving 250-300 better road life and less
pot-holes.
7
PET bottles are only now being collected and
recycled.
- Dumping of PET bottles from abroad, almost free,
have made local collection unviable. If imports
are stopped, local recycling capacity will turn
to Indian waste and clean up our streets. - Contact jainj_at_rediffmail.com for collection
services in your city.
8
What is NOT currently recyclable?
- The gum on BOPP film labels on PET bottles
- interferes with recycling.
- Micro-sachets are not worth collecting by
picking - we need take-back schemes to capture these.
- Metallised BOPP film is not found suitable
- for use in asphalt / tar roads. If it could be
- densified, it could substitute coal in
- foundries and cement plants, along with
- any other non-recycled polymer wastes.
9
Tetrapacks and other multi-films are hard to
recycle.
- Use of bio-polymer films in all but the
- innermost layer would make Tetrapaks
- more recyclable in paper mills.
- One hardboard plant at Palghar uses
- post-producer waste, but requires huge
- capital cost for replication all-India.
10
Where are bio-polymers most needed?
- Wherever they enter the composting stream
- Garbage bags for food wastes
- Liners for disposable diapers
- Liners for sanitary napkins
- For micro-sachets and pouch packings
- Use-and-throw cups which are now of recyclable
HIPS but too bulky to collect
11
The Electronic Industry urgently needs
biopolymers for easy recycling of e-Waste
- Currently, most e-Waste is secretly burnt
- to recover precious metals from chips etc.
- Dioxins are produced if wires are coated
- with PVC. Substitutes are more expensive.
- We need plastic substrates that dissolve in
- acid/alkali to recover metals without burning.
12
Where NOT to use Biopolymers
- DO NOT try to biodegrade PVC or
- halogen-containing polymers. Dioxins will
- form in contact with organics in soil /water
- Pune insists on costly degradable bags
- for hospital waste which is incinerated
- within a few hours! Allegedly to reduce tar
- formation on the incinerator refractories.
13
We need to study legislation in other countries,
esp the EU
- India needs legislation and market
- strategies to promote Product
- Stewardship, producer responsibility
- and life-cycle analysis to minimise
- waste and make dismantling and
- recycling easy and economical.
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