Plastics Division : Publications

Publications

Featured Item

Resin Review 2009
The Resin Review is an authoritative resource for comprehensive statistical measurements of the North American plastic resins industry. The 2009 edition contains detailed resin data tables from 1998-2008 on Domestic Production, Sales and Captive (internal) Use by End-use Application, Sales Distribution by Major Market, Industry Capacities, and Capacity Utilization Rates. View the Table of Contents. (Order Online)

General Publications
This includes a broad range of information focusing on plastic benefits, plastics packaging, material comparison studies, lists of recycled products and their manufacturers, and more!

download	2008 National Post-Consumer Plastics Bottle Recycling Report The 2008 edition of the United States National Post-Consumer Plastics Bottle Recycling Report is the 19th annual report on plastic bottle recycling. This study is a cooperative effort between the Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council (ACC) and the Association of Postconsumer Plastics Recyclers (APR), the goal of which is to quantify the amount of high density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP) bottles recycled, as well as the rate of recycling.
download	2007 United States National Post-Consumer Report on Non-Bottle Rigid Plastics Recycling This is the first annual report on pounds of post consumer non-bottle rigid plastics (including packaging and non-packaging) recovered for recycling in the United States. Research for this report was conducted by Moore Recycling Associates, Inc. of Sonoma, CA for the Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council (ACC).
download	2007 National Post-Consumer Recycled Plastic Bag and Film Report The 2007 National Post-Consumer Recycled Plastic Bag and Film Report is the third annual U.S. report on pounds of plastic bags and film recovered for recycling. The report includes data gathered from both domestic and export post-consumer plastic film markets. Research for this report was conducted by Moore Recycling Associates, Inc. of Sonoma, CA for the Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council (ACC).
online	Modern Materials Magazine Provides Architects, builders and owners with the latest information in materials and composite technologies used in the construction market. In insulation, pipes, windows, trim, flooring, roofing and much more Modern Materials is your source for innovation and energy performance in the built environment.

Environmental Benefits
These publications contain more detailed environmental information, focusing on energy use, recycling, waste impact, source reduction, etc.

download »Full Report »Executive Summary	Innovations for Greenhouse Gas Reductions: A Life Cycle Quantification of Carbon Abatement Solutions Enabled by the Chemical Industry Conducted by global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, this study used a life cycle carbon dioxide-equivilent (CO₂e) emissions analysis to assess the global chemical industry’s greenhouse gas emissions through the life cycle of chemical products and the applications they enable. Analyses were performed for over 100 individual product applications. The study confirms a key role for the chemical industry in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and highlights the important role of plastic products, such as building insulation, packaging, auto parts, and pipe.
download	Brochure: Take a Closer Look at Today's Polystyrene Packaging - Safe, Affordable and Environmentally Responsible
download	Plastics: An Energy Efficient Choice Compares the energy used in producing plastic packaging and common non-plastic alternatives.
download	Understanding Plastic Film A white paper that provides an understanding of what film is, its wide range of applications and contributions to resource conservation.
online only	Five Major Myths of Garbage & Why They're Wrong A reprint of a Smithsonian article by William Rathje and Cullen Murphy adapted from their book "Rubbish! The Archaeology of Garbage."
online	The Best Kept Secret The Solid Waste Association of North America's perspective on integrated solid waste systems in America today.
online	A Study of Packaging Efficiency as it Relates to Waste Prevention (2007) This study from the ULS Report provides clear and compelling examples of the value of source reduction as a strategy for developing and evaluating sustainable packaging.
download	Plastics' Energy and Greenhouse Gas Savings Using Housewrap This study is an analysis of the energy savings and related reduction in greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the use of an exterior barrier to airflow applied to single family houses.
download	Plastics' Energy and Greenhouse Gas Savings Using Refrigerator and Freezer Insulation This document is a case study that examines the greenhouse gas emissions implications of using plastic foam insulation in refrigerators and freezers.

Environmental Profile Analyses
Resource & Environmental Profile Analyses (three-part series): Three reports that compare the energy use, environmental emissions and waste impact of plastic and alternative materials.

download studies: »Coffee »Tuna »Milk Containers	Plastic Packaging Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) Studies for Coffee, Tuna and Milk Containers (Franklin Associates, 2008) Plastic packaging is often lighter than packaging made from alternative materials. These three reports quantify the environmental benefits of lighter, or source-reduced, packaging throughout the life cycle of each product in terms of reduced energy use, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and less waste.
download »Full Report »Executive Summary	Cradle-to-Gate Life Cycle Inventory of Nine Plastics Resins and Two Polyurethane Precursors (2007) Produced by Franklin Associates, this report provides an in-depth look at the environmental profiles for the production of major plastic resins and polyurethane precursors.
download	Life Cycle Inventory of Polystyrene Foam, Bleached Paperboard, and Corrugated Paperboard Foodservice Products (March 2006) This peer-reviewed study from Franklin Associates Ltd. provides an extensive and comparative look at the energy and environmental performance of foodservice packaging products made with polystyrene foam, bleached paperboard or corrugated paperboard.
download	Profile Analysis: Polyethylene Paper Sacks Polyethylene and Unbleached Paper Grocery Sacks
download	Profile Analysis: Polyethylene Milk Containers Polyethylene Milk Bottles and Polyethylene Coated Paperboard Milk Cartons

Operation Clean Sweep (OCS)
The Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council (ACC) and SPI are working together on a revitalized OCS program to strengthen efforts to educate and change behavior in the plastics industry with a goal of zero pellet loss.

online	OCS Manual The Operation Clean Sweep (OCS) program and manual contains guidelines to help plastics industry operations managers reduce the loss of pellets to the environment.
download	OCS Brochure

Community Tools
Here, the recycling coordinator and industry employee will most likely find valuable information on solid waste management and tools to promote these programs to communities.

Community

download	Perfecting the Plastics Drop-off A practical guide for designing and reducing contamination in a drop-off program.
download	Sorting Plastic Bottles for Recycling This Guide is intended for existing MRF operators, potential new MRF owners and design engineers. Information presented in this Guide can be used to improve the efficiency of sorting and recovering plastic containers collected from the residential and commercial recyclables streams.
download	MRF Model User's Guide You may wish to go a step further in analyzing the operations at your MRF by taking advantage of the EPIC (Environment and Plastics Industry Council) MRF Model, which was used as an analytical tool during preparation of the Guide. The EPIC MRF Model is a Microsoft Excel 5.0 spreadsheet tool that helps you systematically analyze certain operating and cost parameters at your MRF.
online	Vinyl Siding Recycling A guide that overviews the steps involved in recycling vinyl siding scrap, including market research, collection program development and quality control.

Reclamation

download	Plastic Film Recovery Guide A complete guide for businesses, governments, and recyclers on how to effectively recover plastic film from the waste stream.
download	Plastics Recycling Cost Optimization The report contains detailed discussions and results from implementation and field testing of eleven cost optimization strategies to see if the recommended strategies could actually reduce costs, create jobs and lead to the development of sustainable recycling markets. (Please Note: Download time for this report will be high.)
download	Stretch Wrap Recycling A guide that takes recyclers step-by-step through the design and implementation of a stretch wrap recovery program.

End-Use

online	U. S. and Canadian Recycled Plastic Products Directory The Plastics Division of the American Chemistry Council presents this Recycled Plastic Products Directory to help private and public sector buyers identify products made with recycled plastic.
online	How Green is Your Garden? When you consider this question, don't just think in terms of lawn, plants and shrubs. Think "green," as in resource conservation.

Durables

download	Plastics from Residential Electronics Recycling RPT 2000 A report that provides a comprehensive summary of the role of plastics in consumer electrical and electronic (E&E) equipment from product design through recovery and recycling.
download	An Industry Full of Potential: Consumer Electronics - 2003 Update An Industry Full of Potential: Ten Facts to Know About Plastics from Consumer Electronics - 2003 Update
download	Ten Facts to Know about Plastics from Electronics Abbreviated fact sheet
online	Composition, Properties and Economic Study of Recycled Refrigerators An economic comparison of recycling plastics from post-used refrigerators from the 1970's through today.
download	Designing for the Environment: A Design Guide for Information and Technology Equipment A guide addressing environmental design criteria for design engineers and others involved in manufacturing information and technology equipment.

Education

Currently Not Available	Hands on Plastics ^TM 2 Kit [Note: The HOP2^TM Kit is currently not available. Please check back with us at a later time.]
Currently Not Available	Kid's Safety Poster for School [Note: The Kid's Safety Poster is currently not available. Please check back with us at a later time.]