PET Sales, Recycling, and Wasting
| SOLD | RECYCLED | WASTED | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YEAR | thousand tons | thousand tons | Recycling rate | thousand tons |
| 1991 | 609 | 152 | 24.9% | 457 |
| 1992 | 694 | 201 | 29.0% | 493 |
| 1993 | 757 | 224 | 29.6% | 533 |
| 1994 | 857 | 273 | 31.9% | 584 |
| 1995 | 973 | 322 | 33.1% | 650 |
| 1996 | 1,138 | 316 | 27.8% | 822 |
| 1997 | 1,276 | 325 | 25.4% | 951 |
| 1998 | 1,453 | 355 | 24.4% | 1,098 |
| 1999 | 1,625 | 370 | 22.8% | 1,255 |
| 2000 | 1,722 | 379 | 22.0% | 1,343 |
| 2001 | 1,884 | 417 | 22.1% | 1,466 |
| 2002 | 2,004 | 399 | 19.9% | 1,605 |
| 2003 | 2,146 | 421 | 19.6% | 1,726 |
| 2004 | 2,319 | 502 | 21.6% | 1,817 |
| 2005 | 2,538 | 585 | 23.1% | 1,953 |
| 2006 | 2,713 | 636 | 23.4% | 2,077 |
| 2007 | 2842.0 | 698 | 24.6% | 2,144.0 |
| 2008 | 2683 | 726 | 27.0% | 1,958.0 |
| 2009 | 2575.0 | 722 | 28.0% | 1,853.0 |
Data from American Chemistry Council, NAPCOR
Note the PET recycling rates listed here are inflated, as they include non-PET material (such as polypropylene caps, labels and glue, and other contaminants) that are shipped in the bales of PET to be recycled. See PET Recycling vs. Utilization Rates for a more accurate depiction of the amount of actual PET that gets recycled.
PET bottle sales and wasting in the US
| YEAR | SOLD thousand tons | RECYCLED thousand tons | Recycling rate | WASTED thousand tons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 609 | 152 | 24.9% | 457 |
| 1992 | 694 | 201 | 29.0% | 493 |
| 1993 | 757 | 224 | 29.6% | 533 |
| 1994 | 857 | 273 | 31.9% | 584 |
| 1995 | 973 | 322 | 33.1% | 650 |
| 1996 | 1,138 | 316 | 27.8% | 822 |
| 1997 | 1,276 | 325 | 25.4% | 951 |
| 1998 | 1,453 | 355 | 24.4% | 1,098 |
| 1999 | 1,625 | 370 | 22.8% | 1,255 |
| 2000 | 1,722 | 379 | 22.0% | 1,343 |
| 2001 | 1,884 | 417 | 22.1% | 1,466 |
| 2002 | 2,004 | 399 | 19.9% | 1,605 |
| 2003 | 2,146 | 421 | 19.6% | 1,726 |
| 2004 | 2,319 | 502 | 21.6% | 1,817 |
| 2005 | 2,538 | 585 | 23.1% | 1,953 |
| 2006 | 2,713 | 636 | 23.4% | 2,077 |
| 2007 | 2,842 | 698 | 24.6% | 2,144 |
| 2008 | 2,683 | 726 | 27.0% | 1,958 |
| 2009 | 2,575 | 722 | 28.0% | 1,853 |
| 2010 | 2,675 | 778.5 | 29.1% | 1,896.5 |
| * Includes beverage and non-beverage PET bottles. | ||||
| Sources: Data derived from the American Plastics Council and the American Chemistry Council. | ||||
Estimated yield rates from collected plastic
Plastics recyclers report that in general, material from single-stream MRFs has a yield rate of about 68%–70%, compared to dual-stream systems which usually yield about 75%-78%. Bales of PET from deposit return systems generally have a yield rate of about 85%.
Chart from the 2009 report, Understanding economic and environmental impacts of single-stream collection systems
Plastic Bottle Sales and Wasting in the U.S.
| YEAR | SOLD million tons | RECYCLED million tons | Recycling rate | WASTED million tons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1991 |
1.82 |
0.29 |
15.7% |
1.53 |
|
1992 |
1.97 |
0.40 |
20.5% |
1.56 |
|
1993 |
2.12 |
0.44 |
21.0% |
1.67 |
|
1994 |
2.35 |
0.54 |
22.9% |
1.81 |
|
1995 |
2.26 |
0.63 |
27.9% |
1.63 |
|
1996 |
2.50 |
0.65 |
26.0% |
1.85 |
|
1997 |
2.71 |
0.68 |
25.0% |
2.03 |
|
1998 |
3.01 |
0.72 |
24.0% |
2.29 |
|
1999 |
3.24 |
0.75 |
23.2% |
2.49 |
|
2000 |
3.34 |
0.75 |
22.5% |
2.59 |
|
2001 |
3.50 |
0.79 |
22.6% |
2.71 |
|
2002 |
3.66 |
0.81 |
22.1% |
2.85 |
|
2003 |
3.81 |
0.82 |
21.6% |
2.98 |
|
2004 |
4.06 |
0.95 |
23.4% |
3.11 |
|
2005 |
4.24 |
1.04 |
24.6% |
3.20 |
|
2006 |
4.47 |
1.11 |
24.7% |
3.36 |
| * Includes beverage and non-beverage HDPE and PET bottles. | ||||
| Sources: Data derived from the American Plastics Council and the American Chemistry Council. | ||||
Popular Links
|
|
