PET Sales, Recycling, and Wasting
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.
