Plastics Recycling – Economic & Ecological Options

Vol. 7 • Issue 4 • Oct. – Dec. 2006For private circulation only

Plastics Recycling –Economic & Ecological Options

Office Bearers• • •

President,Governing Council

Mr. K. G. Ramanathan

• • •

Chairman, Executive CommitteeMr. M. P. Taparia

• • •

Executive Secretary /Member, Executive Committee

Mr. Sujit Banerji

• • •

Treasurer /Member, Executive Committee

Mr. Rajiv Tolat

• • •

NGO - ProjectsMember, Governing Council

Mr. Vijay Merchant

• • •

Convenor – CommunicationsMr. P. P. Kharas

In this Issue

Readers are welcome to send their suggestions, contributions, articles, case studies,and new developments for publication in the Newsletter to the ICPE address.

Reproduction of material from this Newsletter is welcome, with prior permission.

MumbaiKushesh Mansion, 2nd Floor, 22, Cawasji Patel Street and

48/54, Janmabhoomi Marg (Ghoga Street), Fort, Mumbai - 400 001.Tel.: +91-22-2282 0491 / 0496 • Fax: +91-22-2282 0451 • E-mail: [email protected]

Website: www.icpenviro.org • www.envis-icpe.com • www.icpeenvis.nic.in

New Delhi1009, Vijaya Building, 10th Floor, 17 Barakhamba Road, New Delhi - 110 001.

Tel.: 011-2332 6377 • Fax: 011-2332 6376 • E-mail: [email protected]

For more information on Eco-Echoes and about the contents, please contactMr. T. K. Bandopadhyay, Technical Manager, ICPE, Mumbai.

Cover StoryPlastics Recycling –Economic & Ecological Options 3

InitiativeSchool Programmes 7

UpdateSolid Waste Management(Segregation) Projects inMumbai Wards 9

EventsICPE Participation inIndplas ’06 10

Plasto 2006 12

News ItemAnti-littering Awareness &Demonstration Campaign 14

National Workshop ofENVIS Centres 15

Proactive Campaign onPlastic Recycling 15

Questions & Answers in theRajya Sabha and Lok Sabha ofIndian Parliament on Plasticsand the Environment 16

FeatureCentre Moots e-waste Policy 18

International NewsRecycling of Plastics –Initiatives in New Zealand 19

27th-30th April, 2007Hitex Exhibition Centre,Hyderabad

7th National Exhibition &Seminarnow withInternational Participation

6th - 10th December, 2007Bombay Exhibition Centre,NSE Complex, Goregaon (East),Mumbai, India

Organiser:The All India PlasticsManufacturers’ Association

The No. 1Trade Fair forPlastics andRubber –Worldwide

K 200724th-31st October, 2007Düsseldorf, Germany

K is the world’s largest and lead-ing trade fair for plastics andrubber industries and is heldevery 3 years. Over 3000exhibitors from more than 50nations will be showcasing theirmachinery, products and servicesat K 2007.

For information, contact:E-mail:[email protected]: www9.k-online.de

21-24 February, 2008Chennai Trade Centre, Chennai

For more info:Chennai Plastics Manufacturers& Merchants Association –Chennai (CHEPMMA)website: www.plastecindia.com

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Recycling of plastics is known tobe in practice since the initialdays when the industry startedmore than 100 years ago. Themain driving force in the initialstage was mainlyeconomics. The plasticswaste was too valuable aproduct those days tothrow away as the basicraw material was tooexpensive.

The situation has sincechanged. All roundbenefits of plasticsmaterials made it a first,or sometimes, the onlychoice for designingvarious products of shortor long time application.This has led tophenomenal increase inthe consumption ofplastics worldwide in the recentyears.

The increased use of plasticsproducts, about 50% of which gofor packaging applications aloneand hence are discardedimmediately after using the

Plastics Recycling –Economic & Ecological Options

content has increased thequantity of plastics in the solidwaste stream to a great extent.Recycling has now assumedgreat importance in the context

of solid waste management. Ofcourse, the point about notthrowing away value in plasticswaste is still relevant.

Recycling of plastics, unlike inthe initial days, has the option ofselecting its input leaving a large

chunk of plastics waste, whichare difficult for recycling, fordisposal in the landfills or simplyallowed to remain in thesurroundings, especially in the

third world or developingcountries.

The new technologies andeconomics have come toplay an important role inplastics recycling. Whenwe talk about recycling, itprincipally refers toRecovery, which is dividedinto Material Recyclingand Energy Recovery.Material Recycling isagain divided intoMechanical and FeedstockRecycling. The choicebetween MechanicalRecycling, FeedstockRecycling or Energy

Recovery will depend on thetypes of plastics waste and therelative ease / difficulty in totalor partial segregation from otherplastics and / or other wastematerials.

Plastics Recycling

Recovery

EnergyRecovery

MaterialRecycling

FeedstockMechanical

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When there is no Stateintervention, plastics arerecycled only when the sum of allthe costs for collection, sortingand treatment does not exceedthe marginal profit. If, however,the State or the Society setsecological priorities, for exampleconservation of resource orspace in landfills, this may meandealing with volume of waste thatis uneconomical from thecommercial point of view of asingle operator. This may makeit necessary to levy wastedisposal charges, which have tobe charged either collectively orindividually. In principle, thesystem corresponds to a situationin which disposal charges haveto be paid both for landfill andincineration.

While determining economicboundary conditions of plasticsrecycling, it is necessary to makea distinction between:

• Mechanical Recycling to thesame or similar applications

• Mechanical Recycling to newareas of applications

• Feedstock Recycling to formdifferent products

– conversion to monomer

– fuel

– reducing agent in blastfurnace for the production ofiron

– gasification

– liquefaction

• Incineration and energyrecovery

– cement kilns

– incineration for powergeneration

Cost of Mechanical Recycling

Mechanical Recycling includes awide variety of processingtechniques and a broad range ofprocessing methods. Sincerecycled plastics materialsreturn to the plastics market,where they partly replace virginmaterial, the price of recycledplastics is oriented to the priceof primary material, with acertain reduction due to qualitystandard. The reduction is

normally around 50% to 60% ofvirgin material. MechanicalRecycling is worthwhile lowerthe necessary technical input.Pure grade production scrap mayonly have to be reground andrecompounded, mixed plasticshave to be mechanicallyseparated and, if contaminated,also elaborately washed andcleaned. All these steps increasethe cost depending on the degreeof contamination. A comparisonof cost variation in MechanicalRecycling has been put as:• 0.50 point scale for homoge-

neous clean waste.

• 1.00 point scale for homoge-neous contaminated waste,and

• 1.50 point scale for heteroge-neous contaminated waste.

Worldwide, MechanicalRecycling is the most preferredand accepted method of PlasticsRecycling.

Cost of Feedstock Recycling

The quality of waste, which canbe used in this recycling system,is different from that required byMechanical Recycling. WhereasMechanical Recycling requireshomogeneous, clean and drywaste before processing stage(mostly extrusion), complicatedmixtures of plastics waste can berecovered by Feedstock Recycl-ing without problem as long asthe waste can be mechanicallyfed to the system and the wasteis free from some contamination/hazardous substances, to avoid

Wastes

Cleaning

ThermalProcesses

CatalyticPyrolysis

Thermalcracking Hydrocracking

Liquefaction GasificationPower

generation

Hydrocarbons Gas Residue CO H2 By product

Distilation

Oils Gas Residue

Chemicalfeedstock

Chemicalfeedstock

ChemicalfeedstockFuels Cracking

Cracking Fuel gas Ammoniumchloride

HCL

Residue

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complications in specific systems.The cost of Feedstock Recyclingeven in the best case of large-scale plants may be similar (ashigh as) to the cost forincineration and energyrecovery.

Successful examples areavailable today utilizing wasteplastics as a reducing agent inthe blast furnaces. NKK KeihinWorks in Japan are already using40,000 tons of plastics waste in

blast furnace along with coal asreducing agent to manufacturepig iron. As per report, thecompany has plan to use1 million tons of plastics wasteannually as raw material forblast furnace by 2010.Stahlwerke Bremen, Germany

also used plastics waste for steelproduction. Though someadditional cost is incurred forpreparing the plastics waste forinjecting into the blast furnace,there is a benefit of lesser use ofcarbon for the reduction reactiondue to the hydrogen available inthe plastics waste (apart fromcarbon). This is important todayfrom the Global Warming pointof view and the operator in adeveloping country is able tocash on the Carbon Credit. ICPE

is discussing the option withmajor steel manufacturers inIndia.

The recovery of plastics for useas fuel is an attractive option.This has been suggested as ameans of disposing of plasticswaste especially the mixed andmultilayered / laminated plasticswaste, which are normallydifficult or costlier forMechanical Recycling. Inprinciple the calorific value ofplastics, which in the case ofpolyethylene is as high as that ofcrude oil, can be fully recoveredby burning. However, the usefulenergy that can be used is limitedby several factors and is muchless than its calorific value.Studies have shown that ifpolyethylene is burnt in anincinerator and the heat energygenerated is used to producesteam for further use for centralheating system or for otherpurpose, from the original 45 MJof energy in the input polymer,only 15 MJ or 33% is availablefor heating, whereas 80%recovery has been reported inthe case of fuel.

An Indian scientist of Nagpur hassuccessfully demonstrated theproduction of industrial fuel fromplastics waste including

commingled plastics waste incommercial scale. The companyis doing well as per the financialreport available from the banker,which financed the project.

Cost of Incineration and EnergyRecovery

After collection of the portionsthat can be recycled bymechanical recycling, thereremains numerous very small,heavily contaminated articles orcross-linked products orproducts contaminated withhazardous substances. The bestway of reutilizing these portionsis to incinerate them instead ofdumping them diffusely onlandfills. This recovers theircalorific values. Separateincineration in high-efficiencyplants is possible if sufficientamounts are produced orcollected separately. Incinerationplants to handle hazardoussubstances / plastics wastecontaminated with hazardoussubstances are designedseparately, mainly for disposalpurpose. Heavily contaminatedplastics waste collected fromdomestic waste stream can beutilized by energy recovery fromwaste incineration plants. Cost ofthis system of recovery isconsidered highest among all thealternatives.

NKK Keihin Works

Stahlwerke Bremen

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When considering incinerationas an option, it is to beremembered that wasteincineration plants are notoperated with the aim ofproducing energy. The mainpurpose is and remains to reducethe volume of waste to aconsiderable degree by meansof incineration in anenv i ronmen ta l l y - f r i end l ymanner. It is, however, logical tocombine energy recovery withincineration whenever possibleconsistent with environmentalrequirements. Plastics wastecontains calorific valueequivalent to fuel. The wasteincineration plant Frankfurt /Main uses about 6-7% plasticswaste along with normal MSW,generating 27 MW of electricity.

Incinerator design and operationdepends upon the type of wasteto be incinerated. Non-adherence to these two basicprinciples caused serious failuresof various incineration activitiesin the 80’s raising doubt aboutthe effectiveness of this processitself. However, subsequentadoption of proper design andappropriate operation aftercareful analysis of the waste,have again brought back thereliability of incineration as oneof the best options of hazardouswaste treatment.

Whichever form of recycling ischosen the whole process cansucceed only if an efficient solidwaste collection mechanism isput in place at the first instance.The task again becomes mucheasier with segregation of wasteat source. Massive publicawareness programmes with thehelp of NGOs and concernedcitizen groups backed by a soundmunicipal waste collection andtransportation mechanism is ofurgent necessity. The plasticsindustry particularly the users of

plastics materials such asretailers and packers will haveto share part of the burden increating such sound solid wastecollection and disposalinfrastructure. The citizens’ co-operation is vital in the successof this whole programme of solidwaste management. We need tore-emphasise the virtues of the4 R’s, viz., Reduce, Reuse,Recycle and Recover.

From the overall environmentalbenefit point of view, recycling,in spite of its costs, is preferableto other disposal methods likelandfill. There is a need forGovernment intervention /support for encouragingrecycling. This may include:

• Providing basic infrastructurelike Land, Power and Water atsubsidized rate at identifiedareas, which may be calledRecycling Parks in each bigcity. Bigger cities may havemore than one such park.

• Common Effluent TreatmentPlants in such parks.

• Tax benefits to recycling units.• Duty relief for import of high

technology recycling plant.• Mandate for purchase of re-

cycled products for specificnon-critical applications inGovernment Departments,Educational Institutes, etc.

• Subsidy for purchase of spe-cific recycled products likeschool benches, railway plat-form benches, etc.

From the part of industry, moreefforts are needed for developingbetter machines and technologyfor recycling in the similarfashion as it is done for thedevelopment of virgin plasticsprocessing machines. Productdesigners of many plasticsproducts can assist in designingthe product in such a way that itcan be dismantled for ease ofrecycling. Automobile Battery,

Hybrid Steering Wheel and manyother automobile componentsare examples of such products.It is thus desired that the firsttime to think of recycling is notwhen waste productaccumulates, but right at thestart of the designing /development process.

Investment in this sector willyield rich dividends in the comingdays. Worldwide, RecyclingIndustry is attaining more andmore attention from theentrepreneurs and investors. Itis reported that world’s richestwoman is a recycler from China(US $ 3.4 billions). This sets thefuture trends in PlasticsRecycling as an Industry.

A sincere and scientific approachto plastics waste managementand recycling by all thestakeholders, viz., industry,consumers and the Governmentcan achieve the goal ofsustainable growth withoutdamaging environment.

(Based on studies by ICPE andpublished material by variousinternational institutions/organizations.)

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School Programmes

Lady Sri Ram (LSR) College,New Delhi

An awareness programme was conducted at LadySri Ram (LSR) College on November 1, 2006. Theprogramme was conducted in the seminar hall ofthe “Prakriti” Eco-society.

The students were briefed on the variousapplications of plastics, its benefits and wastemanagement and recycling of plastics. This wasfollowed by screening of the film ‘Living in the Ageof Plastics’. Thereafter, a quiz contest was held andprizes were distributed for the top 3 entries.Mementos of ICPE were awarded to the best10 entries. Copies of the booklets ‘Point-CounterPoint & Frequently Asked Questions’ and somelatest editions of Eco-Echoes newsletter weredistributed. Educative panels of ICPE were alsoexhibited in the seminar hall.

ICPE officials with the prize winners at LSR College.

The students showed keen interest in theprogramme and were thankful for updating themon the latest developments in plastics wastemanagement. Mrs. Anjani Kochak, the Chief Mentorof Prakriti invited ICPE to participate in the ‘PrakritiWeek’ and Film Festival to be conducted at LSRCollege early next year.

Students at the ICPE stall at Green Fair 2006.

The “Garbage Monster” made up of used newspapers,tetrapacks, aluminium foil, paper cartons, disposableplastics, used ropes, etc., to promote bin culture andanti-littering.

Modern School,Vasant Vihar, New Delhi

ICPE participated and conducted an awarenessprogramme in the Annual Green Fair 2006organised by Modern School on the 22nd November,2006.

The educational panels of ICPE and the bannerwere displayed. Copies of the awareness booklets‘It’s My World’ and ‘Point-Counter Point &Frequently Asked Questions’ were distributedamong the school children. Copies of recent editionsof newsletter – Eco-Echoes were displayed and

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handed over to the teachers, school faculty andinterested parents. The film – ‘Living in the Age ofPlastics’, Cartoon film for children of ICPE and theICPE film on plastics recycling were being shownin continuous loop. Some of the publications of ICPEand folders made of recycled plastics were alsodisplayed. A visitors’ book was provided for theteachers, students and parents to write down theircomments. The visitors were very appreciative ofICPE’s efforts in waste management and anti-littering and the good display of educative material.

The school had displayed a “Garbage Monster”made up of used newspapers, tetrapacks,

aluminium foil, paper cartons, disposable plastics,used ropes, etc., to promote bin culture and anti-littering.

The Principal, Mrs. Goldy Malhotra and the chiefco-ordinator of Green Fair 2006 – Mr. ArjunKashyap invited ICPE to conduct an awarenessprogramme at their school for standard VIII andIX early next year.

Ms. Geetha Murali also attended the programmeand lent a helping hand in carrying out theactivities.

Ramnarain Ruia College,Matunga, Mumbai

Centre for Slum Studies, a project run by theCollege, organized a ‘Waste Day’ on 22ndDecember, 2006 in collaboration with BMC andICPE, where the students in different groups wereencouraged to collect plastics waste from theirhouses and localities and deposit the same at acentralized place within the college premises. Theprizes were distributed to top 3 groups whocollected the most quantity of the waste. ICPE

organized for waste dealer, who collected thePlastics Waste from the college for onwardforwarding to the Recyclers.

The exercise created awareness among thestudents who realized the value of the plasticswaste. ICPE sponsored the project by donatingRs.5000 to the college.

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Solid Waste Management(Segregation) Projects in Mumbai Wards

A comparative assessment of the segregationactivities in selected Mumbai Wards for the last3 years was provided in the Activity Report

Weight (kg) Value (Rs.)

2003

2004

2005

2006

Plastics2,17,161

Non-Plastics4,06,483


Plastics14,19,759

Plastics2,46,323



Plastics18,39,997

Plastics2,47,606



Plastics18,67,152

Plastics3,54,083



Plastics

60 Rag Pickers

80 Rag Pickers

Average earning per Rag Picker Rs. 5,066/- p.m.

Average earning per Rag Picker Rs. 4,582/- p.m.

26,81,733

submitted during last EC/GC Meeting held on 2ndSeptember, 2006. The segregation figure for theyear 2006 is given below:

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ICPE Participation inIndplas ’06

Kolkata – November 24-27, 2006

Indplas ’06 – InternationalExhibition on Plastics washeld from 24th to 27thNovember, 2006 at Kolkata.

The exhibition was jointlyorganized by IndianPlastics Federation (IPF)and Plastindia Foundation(PIF) and was supported byplastic industries at thelocal and national level.

The exhibition was inaugurated by Hon’ble Mr.Lakhan Seth, MP and Chairman – HaldiaDevelopment Authority. Dr. Sabyasachi Sen, IAS,Principal Secretary, Department of Commerce andIndustries, Govt. of West Bengal was the Chief Guestand Mr. Kamal P. Nanavaty, President, RelianceIndustries Ltd. – Polymer and Cracker Division andMr. S. K. Bhowmik, Managing Director, HaldiaPetrochemicals Ltd., were the Guests of Honour.

ICPE was allotted aCovered Space of around2800 sq.ft. free of cost. Aspecial enclosure wascreated within the stall byICPE for screeningAwareness Films. Thisbecame the main attractionof ICPE Stall. ICPEStall emphasized theimportance of Recycling ofPlastics depicting selected

panels of Recycling Pavilion of Plastindia 2006.Various samples of recycled plastics were alsodisplayed.

The organizers arranged for visits of schoolchildren especially to ICPE Stall in an organizedmanner. More than 2500 school children fromabout 20 local schools visited ICPE Stall and viewedthe film – ‘Living in the Age of Plastics’. Teacherswho led the school children appreciated the filmand admitted that they could realize many facts

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about plastics and the real problems of MunicipalitySolid Waste Management and its solution. Many ofthe teachers had carried copies of the CD alongwith them for showing to other students in theschool, who could not visit the exhibition. Eachstudent was given the following AwarenessBooklets:

• It’s My World-Imagination for aCleaner Environment

• Point-Counter Point& Frequently AskedQuestions, mostly inBengali and English

• One page pamphlet onTwo- Bin Culture

Adult visitors also viewed the ICPE Film keenly andcollected ICPE booklets. There was good responsefrom the business community, who wanted to takeplastics recycling as business activity.

Presidents of IPF, PIF and AIPMA, who visited ICPEStall, suggested that ICPE shouldarrange for panels inlocal language whileexhibiting in other cities.It was brought to theirnotice that the ‘Point-Counter Point’ bookletswere printed in locallanguage. It was alsoassured that arrangementwould be made to translatethe content of each panel inthe local language at the placeof exhibition.

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The Exhibition was organized by Association forthe Promotion of Plastics (APP) and Pimpri –Chinchwad Plastics Association, supported by theAll India Plastic Manufacturers’ Association,(AIPMA) and Maharashtra Plastic ManufacturersAssociation, (MPMA).

Ms. Mangala Kadam, evinces keen interest in the exhibitchipboard made of multilayer plastics waste. Also seen inthe photograph are Mr. Sujit Banerji (to her right) andMr. Anil Kumbhojkar, Chairman, Plasto 2006 (to her left).

Ms. Mangala Kadam, Mayor of Pimpri & ChinchwadMunicipal Corporation, inaugurating Plasto 2006.Mr. Ajay Desai, AIPMA President is seen extreme left,Mr. Sujit Banerji is seen to her right along with others.

ICPE Participation inPlasto 2006

Pimpri, PuneDecember 21- 24, 2006

ICPE had demonstrated thepanels on Recycling anddistributed the awarenessbooks and newsletters. ICPEprocured pencils made out ofrecycled polystyrene by a Pune-based company, Galaxy Pencilsand distributed those among the school childrenand other visitors.

ICPE’s Awareness Films were screened incontinuous loop in a specially made hall with aseating capacity of around 100 persons. Largenumber of visitors viewed the films with keeninterest. Polymer department students of the localengineering college assisted in managing the ICPEStall (apart from the ICPE Representatives).

ICPE had also sponsored a live demonstration ofRecycling of Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) by a localprocessor, Mane Electrical. The live demonstrationcreated awareness about the recyclability of EPSamong the visitors.

Film Show at ICPE Stall.

ICPE official explaining the benefits of plastics recycling tothe Municipal Commissioner, Pimpri & Chinchwad.

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Mr. Sujit Banerji, President, Polymers and Olefinsand Head-Integrated Research & Technology, RILand Executive Secretary / Member, ExecutiveCommittee, ICPE, was present during theinaugural ceremony of the exhibition anddelivered the keynote address.

Excerpts of Mr. Sujit Banerji’s speech atthe Inaugural Ceremony of Plasto 2006

Average consumption of plastic per person inIndia is hardly 4 kg as compared to 20 kg in theWestern countries. In India, there is an increasingdemand for plastic in automobile sector, agricul-tural sector, etc. Currently there is about 7 milliontonnes of production of plastic goods in India whichwill grow up to 12 to 14 million tonnes innext 5 years and will generate employment for18 million youngsters in the allied industries.

Mr. Sujit Banerji delivering the keynote address at theinaugural ceremony.

The new generation should take the maximumadvantage of the growing opportunities in thePlastic sector.

Right now, USA and China have the maximumconsumption of plastic in the world. However, inthe next few years, India too will consume plasticon a large scale.

With the development of technology for recyclingof waste plastics, there will be maximum use ofplastics in all sectors in the next 15 years.

With systematic planning, there will be market for27 million tonnes of plastic and polymers withinour country itself.

Pune Municipal Corporation have developed a roadon experimental basis by using geotextile fabric onPune-Daund Road and since last four years, therehas not been any damage to this road. Taking thisinto account, this experiment may be carried on atPimpri Chinchwad area also.

Recycling Plastic at Home and Work

As a citizen and consumer, there areseveral things you can do to decreaseplastic waste:• Reduce waste by reviewing your

purchasing options and by findingways to reuse disposable plastic items.

• Participate in your local recyclingprogramme.

• Separate your recyclables from yourtrash.

• Separate your recyclables from eachother in accordance with localprogrammes.

• Prepare your plastic for recyclingby rinsing it and removing the caps,cap rings and base cups from plasticbottles. These accessories maybe made from other types of plasticand by removing them you willhelp reduce processing time andexpense.

• Seek products made from or packagedin recycled-content plastic or otherreadily recyclable material.

Press Meet at Plasto 2006.

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Anti-littering Awareness & Demonstration CampaignKolkata – November 20th-26th, 2006

Week-long city-wide “Anti-Littering Awareness &Demonstration Campaign, first inKolkata, was organized byCentre for Quality ManagementSystem, Jadavpur University,jointly with Indian PlasticsFederation (IPF) and PaschimBanga Viggan Mancha (PBVM).

ICPE participated in the week-long Anti-littering Awareness &Demonstration Campaign inKolkata from 20th-26thNovember, 2006. ICPE hadprovided the basic designs andtext materials for the Hoardingsand Panels showcased during thecampaign.

In his address, the Hon’ble Mayorof Kolkata emphasised theresponsibility of the citizens andcivic bodies for proper WasteManagement. There was nountoward comment againstplastics in general. However, inan answer to the press, headmitted that the Authoritiescould not effectively implementthe 20-micron rule for theplastics carry bags.

In a conversation with the Mayor,he was made aware of the ICPE’sproposed trial for use of all typesof low-end plastics waste inCement Kilns and Blast Furnaceand the opportunity of cleaningup of all plastics waste, whichwas not picked up by the ragpickers. It was mentioned to himthat ICPE was finding it difficultto collect about 200 MTs plasticswaste (low-end) required for thetrial. He offered his cooperationin such a drive for the collectionof low-end plastics waste.

Awareness campaign was launched by Hon’ble Mayor Mr. Bikas RanjanBhattacharyya, Mr. Sudeep Banerjee, Chairman, WBPCB, Mr. Faiz Ahmed Khan,MIC, Solid Waste Management, KMC, are also on the dais.

Our ‘Wealth from Waste’ Campaign.

Awareness Programme.

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Proactive Campaign on Plastic Recycling

A multinational advertising agency TBWA India hadapproached ICPE with a proposal for a joint AdCampaign in print media to propagate awarenesson Plastics Recycling. It was clarified by the adagency that they required ICPE’s association as aresponsible leader in the subject area and theysought ICPE’s technical help for the preparation of

the ad matter. It was further clarified by the agencythat there was no financial implication to ICPE asthe agency, as a part of their corporateresponsibility, would bear all the cost for theAwareness Advertisement.

Technical assistance was provided to the agencyand two such ad campaigns have already beenpublished in the print media under the theme –‘Let’s Recycle’.

The second National Workshop of all the ENVISCentres was organized by the ENVIS Directorateof Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) atSimla during October 12-14, 2006, in associationwith the Himachal Pradesh State Council of Science,Technology & Environment. The panel of experts,appointed by the Ministry evaluated theperformance of each of the 75 ENVIS Centres ofthe country, 30 of which were of GovernmentDepartments/Regulatory bodies. ICPE ENVIS Centreteam comprising Mr. T. K. Bandopadhyay,Coordinator and Mr. Sanjay Punjabi, Senior

National Workshop of ENVIS CentresSimla, Himachal Pradesh, October 12-14, 2006

Programme Officer, made presentation to theExpert Panel. The Members of the expert panelwere satisfied with the progress made by ICPEENVIS Centre. They were specifically impressedwith the number of ‘Hits’ recorded and ‘Queries’attended by ICPE ENVIS Centre. However, there isa need for improvement in the overall design ofthe website to match the quality of the technicalinformation contained in the site. MoEF Directoratewere informed that ICPE ENVIS Centre was on thejob for redesigning of the website.

India recycles 60%of its plastics, compared toworld’s average of 22%

Questions & Answers in the Rajya Sabha andLok Sabha of Indian Parliament onPlastics and the Environment

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RAJYA SABHA

Power Generation from Urban Waste

Unstarred Question No. 2038Answered on 11.12.2006

Shri Dharam Pal Sabharwal :

Will the Minister of New and Renewable Energybe pleased to state:

(a) Whether it is a fact that the drains falling intowns and rural areas are filled up with plasticfuel, polythene wastages and they createproblems to the drainage system;

(b) Whether the Government are considering todevelop hi-tech technology for generation ofenergy from these wastages on national level;

(c) If so, whether Government undertakings, andprivate multinational companies have takeninitiatives in this regard; and

(d) If so, the details thereof and what is theprogress in this regard?

Answer:

Shri Vilas Muttemwar, Minister of State for theMinistry of New and Renewable Energy:

(a) Indiscriminate littering of plastic material alongwith other garbage and the absence oforganised segregation creates problems for thedrainage systems in towns and rural areas.Several initiatives have been taken by theMinistry of Environment & Forest to discouragelittering and to promote proper collection,segregation, reuse and recycling of plastics,including notification of Recycled PlasticsManufacturer and Usages (Amendment) Rule,2003, and Hazardous Wastes (Management &Handling) Amendment Rules, 2003.

(b), (c) & (d)No, Sir. However, a Nagpur-based Professorclaims to have a catalytic process for conversionof plastic waste into liquid fuel. On the basis ofa detailed scrutiny carried out by the ScientificAdvisory Committee of the Ministry ofPetroleum and Natural Gas, the proposal couldnot be recommended for further research and/or funding.

ICPE has since received a query fromthe Ministry of Fertilizers & Chemicals,Department of Chemicals andPetrochemicals for ICPE assessment ofthe development. ICPE has sent feedbackof current activity of the unit to theMinistry, based on the informationsalready disseminated in ICPENewsletters – Eco-Echoes, July-Sept. &Oct.-Dec. 2004 and Apr.-June 2005.

LOK SABHA

Effects of Plastic BagsStarred Question No. 362Answered on 18.12.2006

Smt. Jayaben B. Thakkar :

Will the Minister of Environment and Forests bepleased to state:

(a) Whether the government has assessed theadverse environmental effects of plastic bags;

(b) If so, the details thereof;(c) Whether some States have put a ban on the

use of certain types of plastic bags;(d) If so, the details thereof and the extent of

success achieved in this regard so far;(e) The concrete steps proposed to be taken to ban

the plastic bags all over the country; and(f) The alternative that have been proposed /

suggested for use in place of plastic bags?

Answer:

Shri Namo Narain Meena, Minister of Statein the Ministry of Environment & Forests

(a) to (f):A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

Statement Referred to in Reply to Part (a) to (f)of the Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 362 to beanswered on Monday, the 18th December, 2006regarding “Effects of Plastic Bags” by Smt.Jayaben B. Thakkar, M.P.

(a) & (b)Plastic bags are made of polyethylene (long chainhydrocarbon). Plastics are generally chemicallyinert and so used for the manufacture of a largenumber of consumer items including bags,personal care products, in packaging food stuff,medicine, and child care products, etc. Amonograph entitled “Plastics for Environmentand Sustainable Development” was published in

2003 by the Indian Centre for Plastics in theEnvironment, Mumbai, and the Central Instituteof Plastics Engineering & Technology, Chennai,an autonomous institution of the Ministry ofChemicals & Fertilizers, which comprehensivelyassesses issues concerning Sustainability ofPlastics as materials and their impact on theEnvironment. However, the indiscriminatelittering of plastics and environmentally unsoundrecycling practices have the potential to causeadverse impacts on environment and health.

(c) & (d)The Government of India has notified the PlasticsManufacture and Usage Rules, 1999 amended2003 under the Environment (Protection) Act,1986. As per these rules, manufacture, stocking,distribution, or selling of carry bags made ofvirgin or recycled plastic which are less than 20x 30 cms in size and 20 microns thickness isbanned. These rules also prohibit use of recycledplastic bags for storing, carrying, dispensing orpackaging of food stuffs. Further unitsmanufacturing carry bags or containers madeof virgin and recycled plastics are required toregister with the concerned State PollutionControl Board (SPCB) or Pollution ControlCommittee (PCC).

As per information made available by StatePollution Control Boards, the States likeMaharashtra, Punjab, Chandigarh, Kerala,Meghalaya and Goa have laid down stricternorms that prescribed with regard to thicknessof plastic bags, i.e., 50, 30, 30, 30, 40 and 40microns respectively. The State of HimachalPradesh has banned carry bags made of non-biodegradable material of thickness less than70 microns and size less than 30 x 45 cms.Further the States of Gujarat, Orissa and Goahave banned use of plastic bags in certainreligious and tourist places like Ambaji, Dakor,Somnath in Gujarat, municipal area of Puri andKonark in Orissa and some important touristspots in Goa. The concerned State Governmentsand the Union Territory Administrations aremonitoring the implementation.

(e) & (f)There is no proposal with the Government ofIndia, at present to ban use of plastic bags allover the country, considering the volume ofplastics concerned, size of the plastic industryand non availability of cheaper substitutes.Cloths, jute and bags made of paper whereverapplicable, are considered as alternatives inplace of plastic bags. With a view to identifysuccessful approaches followed by some of theStates for the managements of plastics, theCentral Government is closely watching theemerging situation.

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Please refer to the Box Item in theEco-Echoes, July-September, 2006 in whichthis was mentioned. Details of query andcomplete answer is given here.

With the country’s urbanplanners having a newproblem on their hands –how to tackle vast quanti-ties of e-waste generatedby obsolete electronicdevices and its subsequenthealth and environmentimpact – the Centre isworking on a policy foreffective e-waste manage-ment in the country. TheMinistry of Environmentand Forests (MoEF) andthe Department of InformationTechnology, along with manufac-turers and NGOs, are in the pro-cess of working out a draftproposal for the policy to dealwith huge pile of e-waste, com-prising obsolete computers, serv-ers, main frames, monitors, TVand display devices, telecommu-nication devices like cellularphones, calculators, audio andvideo devices, printers, DVDs,CDs, floppies, refrigerators,microwave ovens, etc., generatedand imported by the countryevery year. The Central PollutionControl Board (CPCB) is also inthe process of conducting anation-wide assessment of

e-waste, a problem that till so farhas gone unnoticed and uncared,to estimate how much is gener-ated and how it is disposed of.

Centre Moots e-waste Policy

Waste from Electronic & Electri-cal Equipment (WEEE) is gener-ated by manufacturers, distribu-tors, retailers, consumers,reusers and recy-clers and subse-quently also arisesfrom individualhouseholds, gov-ernment, publicand private sectors,foreign embassies,importers and sec-ondary market forold PCs, cell-phones, etc. As perMr. Ravi Aggarwal,Director, Toxics Link, an NGOworking in the area of e-wastein India, more than 1.38 million

PCs are already obsoletetechnology from the busi-ness sector and individualhouseholds and thisnumber will only keepmultiplying in future.Manufacturers andassemblers producearound 1,050 tonnes ofelectronic scrap in a singlecalendar year and theminimum number of

computers procured by anaverage scale scrap dealer is20 to 25 per month and thereare around 40 scrap dealers

specialising in electronicsin Delhi alone. The obso-lescence rate of computersin software companies andthe BPO sector is as highas 30 per cent per year, headds. As per preliminaryestimates of a nation-widestudy sponsored by theMoEF, the CPCB and theGTZ, the WEEE genera-tion, comprising washingmachines, refrigerators,computers and TVs, in

India is estimated to be 1,46,181tonnes and Punjab figures promi-nently in top 10 contributors to

the WEEE, besides AndhraPradesh, Maharashtra, TamilNadu, Uttar Pradesh, WestBengal, Delhi, Gujarat andKarnataka. While this is a suresign of India’s development andits prowess in the IT sector,piling up e-waste and its recy-cling in a very unscientific man-ner is leading to serious healthand environmental impacts.Occupational health hazard toworkers is the major impactof the recycling and recoveryactivity.

Vibha Sharma

The Tribune (Chandigarh)

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Concern about plastics rubbishgoing to landfills is based on thefact that they degrade veryslowly. A more fundamentalissue is that plastics disposalrepresents a waste of a valuable,non-renewable petrochemicalresource.

There are four options availableat the end of a plastic product'slife: mechanical recycling,chemical recycling, energyrecovery and landfill. In NewZealand, landfill is the prevalentdestination for plastic products,with 18% of plastic packagingnow being diverted throughprivate and public recyclingoperations.

Why Bother to Recycle?• resources, including non-

renewable raw materials, areconserved,

• it reduces landfill require-ments and costs,

• the use of recycled materialusually means less energy isneeded than that used to pro-duce virgin plastic,

• it provides new opportunitiesand new products,

• it increases employmentopportunities.

There are three main streamsof plastic recycling in NewZealand:1. kerbside PET (1) and HDPE

(2) collections of householdwaste,

2. commercial collection ofcommercial films (shrink andshroud wrap),

3. in-house plastics recycling bymanufacturers.

How are plastics recycled inNew Zealand?The material collected by terri-torial authorities and recyclingcompanies is used for mechani-cal recycling. This processinvolves:

• material collection – the plas-tics destined for recyclingneed to be collected; this maybe from a manufacturing site,a commercial operation seek-ing to dispose of bulk packag-ing, such as pallet wrap, "dropoff" points at schools, or fromhouses, from a kerbsidecollection,

• transport to the recyclingcentre,

• sorting into types that can bere-processed together, andeither,

• baling for export, or

• cleaning to remove dirt andother contaminants. Normallythis is done by cutting theplastics into small flakes andputting these flakes through awashing and drying process,

• the flakes are then melted andextruded (squirted) into thinlines and then chopped intogranules,

• reuse – the granules, orpellets, can then be used tomake new plastic products.

PET (1) is exported in bales to bereprocessed to Australia, Chinaand Asia. Most HDPE (2)and commercial film is beingreprocessed here.

To increase plastic recyclinghere, Plastics New Zealandencourages:

• advanced design to facilitaterecycling,

• labelling products with thePlastic Identification Code toaid sorting and collecting,

• selecting packaging materialsable to be recycled,

• using recovered recycledmaterial in their products,

• promoting and educatingtheir customers and the pub-lic about the environmentaland social benefits of plasticand plastic recycling,

• stimulation of new markets toensure an end-use forrecyclate,

• investment in new technolo-gies to support material recy-cling and new techniques.

Other Types of RecyclingInnovative techniques in theenergy recovery and materialsrecovery areas are beginning toappear in Europe, the US andJapan. While the relatively smallvolumes of recyclable materialavailable in this country maymake such developments tooexpensive to establish here, thelocal industry continues tomonitor, investigate and commitresources to seeking a technol-ogy, or technologies, that wouldbe applicable to the New Zealandsituation.

(Source: Plastics New Zealand,www.plastics.org.nz)

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Recycling of Plastics –Initiatives in New Zealand

Indian Centre for Plastics in the Environmentwww.icpenviro.org • www.envis-icpe.com • www.icpeenvis.nic.in

Let’s give things another life.Let’s recycle.

Plastics Recycling – Economic & Ecological Options

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