The European Association of Plastics Recycling and Recovery Organization (EPRO) has recently backed claims of the possibility that ALL plastic packaging could be recycled by 2020. That means no more plastic in landfills which is an incredibly ambitious hope. The number of plastic that ends up in landfills across the globe each day is astronomical.

Right now in Europe, approximately 66% of plastic packaging is recycled with one-third of plastic packaging still going to landfill.

EPRO said in a statement: “A recovery rate of 100 per cent in 2020 for both plastic packaging and all other plastic waste is still possible; it is all about willingness and working together across the plastics supply chain to set the scene and move the agenda forward.”

Could this initiative also help the economy? “A strategy of 100% recovery of plastic waste might also contribute to an economic recovery of Europe and thus more jobs.”

In EPRO’s report, the following 16 nations recycled more than 30% of its plastic packaging waste in 2010: Sweden, Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Belgium, Austria, Norway, Netherlands, Slovakia, Switzerland, Italy, Latvia, Slovenia, Poland, UK and Lithuania.

At the other end of the list, countries recycling less than 22.5 per cent of their post-consumer plastic packaging were: Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Greece and Malta.

Bottle schools are schools built from “waste” plastic soda bottles & other inorganic trash. Entire communities work together, young & old, to make the dream of education reality.

A non-profit organization called Hug It Forward is the catalyst uniting these communities in Guatemala where  kids are being taught environmental education and adults learn different types of skilled labor. The result is a wonderful facility, which is a symbol of unity, to educate present and future generations. So far, 10 bottle schools have been built around Guatemala.

The first project in Granados, Guatemala, over 5,000 plastic bottles were used to build two classrooms, containing 2053lbs of trash and using 9720lbs of cement. 297 children and youth currently attend the school, which serves a municipality of 13,860 people throughout 95.75 square miles.

By building with “waste” materials, leveraging the volunteer labor of the community, and by ensuring that 100% of donations are spent on projects (no money is taken for overhead or salaries), Hug It Forward can build a two-classroom school for around $12,000.

Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or products that cannot be recycled into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value. This is a fairly new term in our increasingly eco-conscious world. Upcycling embraces uniqueness and creativity because upcycled products are truly one of a kind.

One of the pioneers of upcycling is TerraCycle. They are taking wasteful materials such as drink pouches, chip bags, and tooth brushes and making them into a variety of neat consumer products. TerraCycle’s products are available through a number of retailers including Wal-Mart and Target as well as online.

The goal of TerraCycle is to help eliminate waste. They run their own collection programs at many major retailers, theatres, stadiums, and restaurants. In fact, you can sign up on their website to donate certain waste items to TerraCycle and they’ll pay the shipping to get it from you and donate money to a charity of your choice. Find out more about How TerraCycle Works.

These products are very fun. Take a look at some examples below and check out TerraCycle on Facebook and Twitter.

Despite a growing population, packaging waste is declining rapidly in Europe. An analysis of data from 1998 to 2008 shows that the decline in packaging waste is driven by high recycling levels and other forms of packaging recovery. In 2008, 17 million metric tons of packaging were sent for final disposal. This represents a reduction of 57% from 1998.

The objective for reducing packaging waste in Europe was set out by the European Organization for Packaging and the Environment. Their goal over the studied time period was a packaging waste reduction of 55% so you can imagine they were happy to find that the strategy worked and the goal was reached.

The report contradicts a strong perception that packaging has led to a mass of waste throughout Europe and confirms that packaging waste accounts for 3% of Europe’s total waste.

The Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) is an industry working group that is committed to creating and implementing an environmental vision for packaging. Their mission is to advocate and communicate a robust vision for making packaging more environmentally friendly. They also support innovative and functional packaging materials that promote economic and environmental health. SPC has been working on a new project and they are preparing to launch a voluntary labeling pilot program for packaging this fall that intends to increase recycling and make it easier to understand. The hope is to eliminate confusion that is caused by some labels. SPC will allow members to use this new labeling program on their products, and plan on opening the program to others. The overall goal of this program is for it to become a universal label.

Eco labeling has taken some heat recently because it can be confusing and misleading. Some companies that participate in greenwashing use eco labels to make their products appear to be eco-friendly. This has led to consumer confusion and frustration. Consumers want instruction and direction on what is actually recyclable. This pilot labeling program will help give consumers the right information on what to recycle, with the goal of keeping everyone on the same page.

The labels have three classifications: widely recycled, not recyclable, and limited recycling. A black diagonal line will classify the not recyclable label. Limited recycling will have the phrase check locally above the icon and it will identify the material. Plastic bags and films will be classified by store drop off or recycle if clean and dry.

The act of going green is defined as the process of changing one’s lifestyle for the safety and benefit of the environment. People who decide to go green and take on an eco-friendly lifestyle consider the outcomes their decisions have on global warming, pollution, and other environmental concerns. Sounds simple right? Well if you are a business it may be harder than you think. Those who do decide to make their business practices green have the potential to make a big impact in helping save the environment. They also set a positive attitude for their company, differentiate themselves from competitors, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. Going green is an big process to tackle, but the end results are great.

One problem that arises when businesses decide to go green is green washing. Green washing is the practice of companies making unsubstantiated or misleading claims of the environmental benefits of a product or service. Those who rise above this maintain a good company name and brand, while also promoting eco-friendliness.

Here are the top 3 green companies that have made commitments to become sustainable companies:

1. Dell: Dell has made a commitment to transform their packaging by making it safe for the environment. They started by trying out different materials for their packaging. Dell worked with bamboo because it replenishes itself quickly. They also just recently turned to mushrooms as part of their cushioning for their server packaging. Mushrooms are grown, not manufactured, using less energy to produce the packaging. Dell has made many goals in becoming a sustainable company. They plan on reducing waste and making their packaging recyclable. They are constantly looking for ways to reduce their carbon footprint.

2. Wal-Mart: The CEO of Wal-Mart decided a few years ago to make a commitment to becoming more sustainable. They decided to make goals of running their stores on 100% renewable energy, implementing a zero waste system, and redesigning products so they are more eco-friendly. Wal-Mart has been successful in meeting their goals and becoming a more sustainable company. They have drastically reduced its waste, cut down on packaging for the goods they sell, improved fuel efficiency, and monitored their suppliers carbon footprint. Wal-Mart has saved millions of dollars by going green, which has helped their business as well as the environment.

3. Waste Management: When you think of this company, eco-friendly probably is the first words that come to mind. But they are taking initiative to change that. Waste Management is no longer just a garbage company, but an environmental answer resource. They are taking charge and finding advances in technology to reduce waste, increase recycling and reuse, creating safer disposal options, and developing sources of renewable energy. They have also found a way to capture methane from landfills, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions and has generated enough renewable energy to power 1 million homes. They are more than just a garbage company to 20 million customers and are continuing to find ways to protect the environment.

If these 3 companies can take the imitative to go green, so can others. These companies have done a great job at setting examples for other companies to hopefully follow.

After seeing all the success Coca-Cola has had with their PlantBottle, PepsiCo has stepped up to the plate and has developed eco-friendly packaging for their pop. The green bottle they created is made entirely from fully renewable resources and significantly reduces its carbon footprint. The bottle is made from a combination of some materials you would never think could be put together to make a form of packaging. The raw materials include: switch grass, pine bark, and corn husks. Orange peels, potato peels, and oat hulls are on deck for materials to be used in the future.

This innovation from PepsiCo puts recycling up at a whole new level. The materials they are using to make the packaging are actually byproducts from its food business. So if you never believed that things could be recycled and reused to produce something else, there is now proof. The brilliance behind PepsiCo’s eco bottle is that they have combined biological and chemical processes to create a molecular structure that has the same look and feel of the standard bottle PepsiCo uses. The only difference is that the new bottle is fully recyclable and is made from environmentally friendly materials.

A pilot version of PepsiCo’s new packaging will be available in 2012. If successful, they will move directly into full production.

Offices all over the country have taken an effort to participate in recycling. Many offices use bins for aluminum, plastic, and paper, however some have taken it one step further and ventured into what is called composting. Composting is a biological process where organic materials are broken down and nutrients and minerals are released. This process combines air, water, carbon, and nitrogen that develop a synergy to make the whole process work.

The average employee of a company creates about half a pound of compostable waste each day. This amount is equivalent to the weight of a loaf of bread. Medium to large companies can save and profit from implementing a composting program to counter the level of waste being produced by their employees. There are two composting systems available for businesses to use that cuts out the smell that is usually associated with composting.

The first method is vermicomposting, also known as composting with worms. Although this sounds rather gross, it is actually the most beneficial for composting food waste and is an ecologically safe method to naturally convert many organic wastes. Vermicomposting is the process of having red worms and other decomposer organisms process organic waste and turn it into natural fertilizer. It is very easy and requires few supplies. The second method is to purchase a traditional composting bin or tumbler. The bins or tumblers can maintain relatively high temperatures and act like insulation. They continuously turn which keeps the microbes aerated and active. These bins are relatively inexpensive and easy to use. They also come in may different sizes and shapes that can be suitable for your office environment.

Composting at the office allows the business to take a step towards becoming a sustainable company. Composting is a very eco-friendly process because all organic matter eventually decomposes in nature. This is a win-win for companies who decide to implement such a program. They would be reducing their carbon footprint and helping the environment.

Dell’s focus on sustainability has established the electronics giant as a leader in the green movement. Back in December of 2008, Dell announced a plan to transform computer packaging by adding recycled content (32%). By 2012, Dell hopes to achieve its goal of increasing the recycled content in its packaging by 40%. To do this, the company is implementing a strategy based on three C’s: Cube, Content, and Curbside.

Cube
Reducing the size of product packaging so it is more efficient, from the size of the boxes that hold product components to the number of items that can be moved per shipping pallet. In one example, Dell optimized the packaging for its Inspiron laptop so that the number of computers per pallet increased from 54 to 63.

Content
As previously stated, Dell is ramping up the amount of recycled contents that go into their packaging. For heavier products that require sturdier support, the company has increased the use of recycled foam versus using virgin product. Dell has also increased the use of post-consumer recycled plastics, integrating the equivalent of more than 9.5 million half-gallon milk jugs into its packaging.

Also, Dell has been using bamboo as a strong and compostable alternative to the molded paper pulp, foams, and corrugated cardboard often used in packaging.

Curbside
Ensuring that their packaging is curbside recyclable is that last piece of Dell’s green packaging strategy. Dell increasingly chooses materials that can be tossed in the recycling bin such as post-consumer plastics and molded paper pulp.

Bamboo is still not accepted by many municipal recyclers for curbside pickup however, Dell is working with Georgia Pacific, Unisource Global Services, and Environmental Packaging International in an effort to certify its bamboo packaging for recycling.

Dell outlines the three C’s strategy in their 2010 Corporate Responsibility Summary Report (PDF)

More than 30 companies are testing out a packaging sustainability measurement system that one group hopes becomes a worldwide standard. The system was developed through the Consumer Goods Forum’s Global Packaging Project (GPP), and includes a list of 52 indicators (and how to measure them) like weight, recycling rates, virgin content and shelf life. The indicators are divided into three main sections:

- Environmental (material waste, recycling/composting/reuse rates, recycled or renewable content)
- Economic (total cost of packaging, packaged product wastage)
- Social (packaged product shelf life, product safety, responsible workplace practices).

The GPP has also released a document (PDF) listing every indicator along with each one’s definition, metric, what to measure and what not to measure.

The basics of the system and common packaging principles are explained in the GPP’s first report, “A Global Language for Packaging and Sustainability,” which was designed to deliver a common framework and measurement system that trading partners can use to help them make better, more informed decisions about packaging and sustainability. The report was developed with input from more than 80 manufacturers, retailers, trade associations and packaging industry stakeholders.

Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Walmart, SC Johnson, General Mills, Target and Colgate-Palmolive have agreed to use it to answer questions about the sustainability of different packaging choices. The results of the pilot projects will be compiled and released at the end of this year.