U.S. states encourage chemical recycling of plastics, sparking controversy
Most plastic waste is difficult to degrade naturally, and simply landfilling or incinerating them will damage the environment.
Recently, some states in the United States have begun to encourage chemical recycling of plastics, although this has also caused some controversy.
The Rhode Island state legislature is considering passing a bill that would classify plants that use chemical methods that recycle plastic as manufacturing plants rather than those that process solid waste, which would exempt a series of permits, according to the Associated Press. requirements, the regulatory environment is more relaxed.
However, this has been opposed by local residents and environmentalists.
At present, the common plastic recycling method is the physical method. The main process is to heat and soften the plastic and process it into granules, and then make new products.
During this process, only the shape of the plastic has changed, and the molecules have not changed.
Therefore, this method has relatively large limitations and is not suitable for types such as plastic bags and plastic foam.
The chemical method refers to the decomposition of plastics by high temperature or chemical solvents, and the plastics are changed at the molecular level.
This method can reuse a variety of plastics that are difficult to recover by physical methods, and convert them into products such as fuel oil, natural gas, and asphalt.
The United States began to focus on recycling plastics by chemical methods this year, and about 20 states have introduced incentives.
The Associated Press said that many companies such as Exxon Mobil and Eastman have planned to build large-scale plastic recycling plants in the United States.
