Part 1

• Introduction
• What Are The Issues / Problems
• What Are The Solutions

 Introduction

What do we understand by Plastics?

• Wrapping (film, containers, plastic bags, refuse sacks).
• Products (bottles, bins, clothing, % content in vehicles, toys, flower pots etc).

There are Two main groups

FILM }   Resins            Diverse Waste Stream Content
RIGID }  Laminates      Who is responsible ?
             Foams etc

Marketing Vs Plastic Consumption

What Are The Issues / Problems

• Lack of Policy (National)
  - Education
  - Markets
• Cost – Collection Vs Return (LA) there tends to be a negative return to Local Authorities
• Collection Vs Return (unitary) there tends to be a positive return to Unitary authorities
• The General Cost of Recycling
• Labelling is not Clear on Products that can or can’t be recycled
• Contamination
• Planning problems. You have to take the public with you.
• Material Specification
• Weight of material
• Material Perception/Science
• Material Science
  - Complex
  - Lack of materials knowledge

What are the Solutions

• Disregard cost (traditional) impossible
• Identify markets thereby tailoring collections to meet demand
• Absence of cost benefit analysis information. Is what we are doing economically viable. Raising the question, ‘Should we be valuing the environment in monetary terms?’
• Develop & promote local recycling very much in keeping with the ‘proximity principle’
• Export = highest income, but who really benefits?
• Economic development ‘local’
• Local authority support (through the good & bad times)
• Long term contracts
• Planning consents made easier
• Procurement policies revisited
• Identify consumers of materials collected
• Disposal cost Vs recycling how can we make recycling more attractive financially
• Reduce distance material is transported

How do we implement these solutions?

• Redefine the ‘word’ waste
• Reduce/remove red tape
• Refine collected materials
• Instil confidence of other waste disposal routes

Part 2

So, How do we close the loop?

3 practical proposals to deliver local solutions/markets:

• Plastic incorporated. How?
• What is the potential market ?
• Contact industry – find out what they are using
• Communication-Information sharing
• Common purchasing policy
• Resource pooling
• Community involvement (best value)
• Planning
• Perception
• Policy
• Local industry waste audit
• Influence local industry
• How
  - Local authorities not geared up to this.
• Bank Waste
• Industrial Guides
• How do we break the short-term view?
• Are we obligated by local national politics?

• Treat waste as a sustainable economic development process.
• Create A formal ‘waste board’
• Local authorities should make industry aware that they are collecting a viable resource that is available for use
• Find out what industries are making out of plastic.
  - e.g. light weight plastic pallets (too heavy at the moment)
  - identify some good products
  - need for information & research
• Alternative approaches
  - Secondary markets
  - Green produce
  - Product champions
• Communications
• Waste policy (central government)
• Partnerships
• Product publications
• Extend commonalties in policy
• Communication with raw material manufacturers/suppliers

• Municipal waste
• Local commercial waste
• Local industry needs/raw materials

2. Identify opportunities for :

• secondary markets/products
• purchasing policies
• pump priming/stimulating markets
• ‘champion’ products/markets

3. Improve communication/collaboration