In the last issue of Life in Balance we had a special feature on plastics and one of the issues raised was what was happening to the plastic bag levy. Despite extensive attempts at trying to uncover how the plastic bag levy was being spent and whether it was being used to promote recycling – it remains a nebulous area that we have little clarity on.

That exercise has had a great impact on my willingness to spend 50 cents to pay for the convenience of a shopping bag that I would then end up using as a refuse bag. This means that I used the plastic bag twice, but in the end it was dispatched to the landfill sites along with all the other household waste I generate and it could not be recycled because it was too dirty to clean for the recycler to use.

Since then, the focus on how to reduce my impact on landfill has been an interesting journey, marked with some hilarious conundrums and a few rows with my flat mate as to the questions around hygiene that recycling seems to pose.

But the bigger picture is the one we should be focusing on, this is the picture that shows dwindling resources, excessive landfill stress, general waste and lack of motivation to do something about it. With the latest facts showing opportunities for job creation and the fact that a LOT of the plastic we use is recyclable it is time to re-consider very seriously what we throw away and to urge all the consumer services we are exposed to – to do the same.

Recycling is becoming a viable business and in the trying economic times it is a bit of good news to note that waste can generate income and jobs for a whole new arena of the economy. How we can help is by ensuring that we recycle as much of our plastics as we can and find ingenious ways to re-use what we can’t.

Here are some interesting figures to note about where the market is being generated and it will enable you to begin to see the plastics you encounter with an entirely different value.

- 41 % of all plastic that was recycled in 2009 was low density Polyethylene (PE-LD), typically used in the manufacture of packaging film and stretch wrap, lids, cosmetic tubes and bags, as well as other uses such as irrigation pipes, tanks and cable insulation;
- 19 % of the recycled plastic was High Density Polyethylene (PE-HD), used in milk bottles, fruit juice bottles, drums, tubs, closures, crates and bags;
- 16 % of recycled plastic was Polypropylene (PP), typically used in the manufacture of yoghurt tubs, margarine tubs, ice cream containers, bottle caps and crates, as well as more domestic uses such as coat hangers, battery cases, bumpers, buckets and carpeting;
- 15 % of the recycled plastic was PET, used for the manufacture of carbonated soft drink bottles, mineral water bottles, clear bottles, as well as carpeting;
- 5 % was Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC-P), used for cling film, pouches, cap liners etc.

In essence, the majority of the plastics recycled comes from the post consumer market and what ‘harvesters” (the men and women sorting a city’s rubbish on landfills) collect to re-sell to recyclers. Approximately 34 000 jobs are created from landfill harvesting but it is heinous work. The Plastics Industry however has contributed enormously to the growth of jobs and the statistics show that as plastic recycling grows – so does employment in this sector.

How you and I can help contribute to better recycling is the way we sort our rubbish at home. Clean all your empty plastic containers and separate plastics from bottle and glass and paper. Organic waste should be composted and or fed into a worm bin, with the compost being able to be re-used on your garden at a later stage.

There are many kerbside collection industries that will come and collect your recycling and even if your municipality is not supporting a major recycling initiative in your suburb you can still ensure you do. You will reduce landfill impact and contribute to the economy – just by recycling.

*Download a handy plastics identification chart here and see issue 11 of Life in Balance for more info.

Please send us your ideas for re-using plastic containers – we will publish a selection of the best ideas to keep inspiring us all to make the steps towards becoming more sustainable in our daily lives.