Plastics News - Sustainability

Friday, July 04, 2008

Sustainability

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Plastic bag-ban plans popping up across US
MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIF. (July 3, 4:50 p.m. EDT) -- Manhattan Beach has banned the use of petroleum- and bio-based plastic carryout bags, and Rhode Island and New York have bills awaiting governors’ signatures, which would make them the second and third states to mandate plastic bag recycling at larger retailers.

Maker of EcoHangers raises $10 million
NEW YORK (July 2, 2:45 p.m. EDT) -- Hanger Network Inc. has raised $10 million in a second fund-raising round to expand distribution of its EcoHangers made of plastic and paper. The 5-year-old firm claims to have grown 500 percent since 2005.

Australian state proposes bag ban
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA (July 2, 12:05 p.m. EDT) -- Retailers say a proposed ban in the state of South Australia on free high density polyethylene shopping bags would be simply “poor politics.”

Green design can bolster bottom line
CHICAGO (July 1, 5:15 p.m. EDT) -- “Going green” will demand changes in how people live, design products and operate businesses, but also can more than pay for itself. That was the message from a pair of sustainability experts at a "Greenstorming" workshop June 26 in Northbrook.

Recycling bills pending in New York, Rhode Island
NEW YORK (July 1, 1:40 p.m. EDT) -- Plastic bag recycling bills awaiting governors´ signatures would make New York and Rhode Island the second and third states in the U.S. to mandate statewide in-store plastic bag recycling.

Recycling Professionals closes up shop
PORTLAND, ORE. (June 27, 5:10 p.m. EDT) -- A month after saying that the polystyrene food-service recycling business on the West Coast was at “a crisis point,” Larry McIntyre has shuttered his business, ending a 15-year effort to recycle PS from schools.

Ecoproducts saving firms some green
AKRON, OHIO (June 20, 2:20 p.m. EDT) -- Whether they’re downsizing plastic laundry jugs or switching from glass to plastic mayonnaise jars, consumer-products manufacturers and retailers are moving toward sustainability goals with varying degrees of fanfare.

SPI to launch Web-based promotional effort
WASHINGTON (June 13, 4:10 p.m. EDT) -- Stung by product bans, legislative scrutiny and campaigns by groups that question the safety of plastics, the Society of the Plastics Industry Inc. plans to launch next year a multiyear, Internet-based campaign touting plastics´ benefits.

Ohio summit addresses sustainability issues
COLUMBUS, OHIO (June 12, 5 p.m. EDT) -- Ohio´s plastics industry — the third-largest in the nation based on 2006 exports worth $26 billion — is trying to cope with changes associated with sustainability along with the rest of the nation.

SPI´s Carteaux encourages eco-efforts

Carteaux

COLUMBUS, OHIO (June 12, 11:15 a.m. EDT) -- SPI chief Bill Carteaux wants plastics executives to know that the strength of their products — durability and light weight — also are the Achilles´ heel of the plastics industry. “We can continue to stick our head in the sand, from an industry perspective, or we can start to address the [sustainability] issue, he said at the Ohio Polymer Summit in Columbus.

Report outlines Calif.´s ´green-chemistry´ ideas
SACRAMENTO, CALIF. (June 10, 5:15 p.m. EDT) -- California is reviewing 38 recommended approaches and requirements for reducing toxic compounds in the state. The findings may help provide a broad-based model for implementation in California and other locales.

Ford looking toward future with PLA
DETROIT (June 6, 2:15 p.m. EDT) -- Ford Motor Co. is taking a serious look at bio-based and biodegradable plastics, and asking if it will be possible one day to make an auto interior part that not only can be made from natural products, but also will break down and disappear back into the earth after its life is over.

Bag ban becomes boon for Biograde
SHANGHAI (June 5, 5 p.m. EDT) -- The Chinese government’s restrictive policy on plastic shopping bags is forcing some low-end bag makers to close, but it is also boosting some businesses. Biograde Nanjing Pty Ltd. of Nanjing is one of them.

Spain’s CIE building China automotive complex
NANXIANG, CHINA (June 5, 10:10 a.m. EDT) -- Spanish metal and plastic auto parts supplier CIE Automotive SA is stepping up investment in China with a new $12.1 million manufacturing campus near Shanghai. The company said it wants to focus its plastics work in China on high-end projects like in-mold decoration.

Ohio governor pushes biopolymers
COLUMBUS, OHIO (June 4, 12:55 p.m. EDT)-- Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland’s economic stimulus package includes $50 million to encourage the development of bioproducts, such as plastic resins from corn, in a bid to link two of Ohio’s most important industries. Ohio is at a crossroads when it comes to future plant-based materials and energy sources, Strickland said in a speech at the Ohio Polymer Summit.