Connecticut unveils initiative to boost plastic film recycling

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has introduced an initiative that is geared toward increasing the recycling of low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) and medium- and high-density polyethylene (MDPE and HDPE) film.

“If you collect plastic bags and plastic film separately it has value,” says Sherill Baldwin, coordinator of Connecticut’s Wrap Program, which will be launched this month. “It’s amazing how much material can be recycled.”

The state agency notes that 40 cities and towns have signed on as “municipal champions” to promote the program.

Many people, she says, have the misconception that only plastic grocery bags can be placed in the bins. Actually, grocery bags comprise only about 25 percent of all recyclable plastic film, with much of the rest of it ending up in the trash and burned in incinerators or erroneously added to curbside recycling collections along with newspapers, glass and plastic bottles, she adds. When plastic film is added to the mixed recycling stream, it can foul the process, she says.

Assisting Connecticut with the film recycling initiative is the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) Flexible Film Recycling Group (FFRG). 

The FFRG says that while more than 18,000 grocery and retail stores in the country collect flexible plastic wraps and bags for recycling, consumer awareness remains low.

Supporting the lack of understanding about the viability of film recycling, a recent survey of Connecticut residents found that only half are aware that certain plastic items should be brought to grocery or retail stores for proper recycling. The recycling campaign that is starting in Connecticut is designed to change this perception. As part of the campaign, the state is touting the Website www.plasticfilmrecycling.org.

At the launch event, speakers pointed out that although plastic wraps and bags are widely collected for recycling at more than 175 grocery and retail stores in Connecticut, residents should not place these materials in curbside recycling bins because they can cause significant problems with machinery at the community recycling facility. “When plastic bags or wraps are put in curbside bins, it makes recycling more difficult, time consuming, and expensive, which winds up costing all of us more money,” says Rob Klee, Connecticut DEEP Commissioner.

The Connecticut campaign is part of WRAP (Wrap Recycling Action Program), a public-private partnership that promotes recycling of plastic wraps and bags. The partnership includes the FFRG, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the U.S Environmental Protection Agency, GreenBlue/the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, the Association of Plastics Recyclers, brand companies, retailers, states and cities.