The report estimates that 147,400 metric tons of post-consumer rigid plastics were recycled in 2007. However, two-thirds of that material was exported offshore, mostly to China, leaving only 55,000 metric tons for the U.S. and Canada, according to the report, which was released February 24 by the American Chemistry Council in Arlington, Virginia.

“In order for this market to develop, domestic users will require a consistent supply of clean, single-resin market typically in excess of [181,400 metric tons],” said the report. “The recent drop in demand has highlighted the need to expand domestic markets for non-bottle rigid plastics.”

The latest report comes on the heels of the plastic film recycling report, now in its second year, and the industry’s long-standing reports on PET recycling and all-bottle recycling. The all-bottle report includes both PET and high density polyethylene (HDPE) bottles, which account for 99 percent of the plastic bottles that are recycled.

The new report did not attempt to estimate a recycling rate, because rigid non-bottles include such a broad mix of plastic containers and products. Examples include HDPE tubs, polypropylene (PP) cups, plastic hangers, battery cases, crates, pallets, carts and bottle caps.

“Collection was growing until the market collapsed” last fall, said Patty Moore, president of Moore Recycle Associates Inc. in Sonoma, California, in a discussion of the results at the Plastics Recycling Conference, held February 24 to 25 in Orlando. Her firm conducted the research for the report.

Roughly 75 percent of the non-bottle rigid plastics are collected as part of bales. The remaining 25 percent is collected or sorted separately -- items like plastic hangers, battery cases, crates, pallets and carts,

The report said 44 percent of the material collected was HDPE, 38 percent polypropylene, 2 percent PET and 2 percent polystyrene (PS). The rest was classified as “other.”

About 55 percent of the material collected was durable goods such as pallets, crates, 20-liter buckets, carts and electronic housings.

“We have to tell the public in a coordinated voice what we want” for this type of recycling to increase, Moore said. “We need clear and consistent education to consumers about what to put into curbside recycling.”

The report referenced some problems that recyclers face with these materials.

“The rather random nature of the current collection and processing infrastructure in the U.S. has proven to be an obstacle to consistent supply of quality bales,” the report said. “The lack of clear definitions and specifications for different types of baled plastics leads to a wide variety of quality and content in bales.”

Of all the rigid non-bottles collected, Moore said bulky plastics -- large injection molded items such as buckets, crates, tubs, toys, storage bins and lawn furniture, typically made of PP and polyethylene (PE) -- have the most value. “It is a highly valued material, and we should find a way to recycle it.”

The second most highly valued was electronic housings, which are primarily polycarbonate, high impact PS and ABS, she said.

The report estimated the current domestic capacity for use of mixed plastic and commingled bottles and containers at 31,750 metric tons per year. The largest end markets are lumber, railroad ties, garden products and transport packaging.

The report said the market for large non-food PE/PP items was “well in excess of [109,000 metric tons] of domestic capacity,” with most buyers interested in “clean, bulky materials such as buckets, crates, tubs, toys, storage bins and lawn furniture.”

According to the report, 28 of the 100 largest U.S. cities collect non-bottle rigid plastics, most of them on the West Coast. It said material recovery facilities typically sort out PET and HDPE bottles and bale the rest of the plastics.

The information was based on data supplied by 31 post-consumer plastics recyclers, end-users and exporters and a survey that was sent to 81 material recovery facilities in California.