http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/recycling-labelling-confusion-1.4614975
[links and images in on-line article]
Why products marked 'recyclable' sometimes aren't
Confusion abounds over symbols, marketing rules and variations from city
to city
Emily Chung · CBC News ·
Posted: Apr 12, 2018 4:00 AM ET | Last Updated: April 12
The recycling symbol is something many of us look for when deciding
whether or not to toss something in the blue bin, be it a takeout
container, a coffee cup lid or the packing material from your latest
online shopping delivery.
But that iconic symbol of arrows chasing each other around a triangle —
or even the word "recyclable" — doesn't necessarily mean the item will
be accepted by your local recycling program.
That's because while most materials can technically be recycled with the
right technology and enough investment, individual recycling programs
may choose not to recycle them or be unable to recycle them for various
reasons.
The end result? Those so-called recyclables end up as "contamination" in
the recycling stream, damaging useable materials and increasing costs.
That makes it tough for eco-minded consumers like Joanna Mestre, of
Belleville, Ont. "For those who are trying to make a difference and do
the right thing, it's just really frustrating to find out, 'What? I'm
not doing the right thing?'" she says.
Some of the items she orders online are shipped with those air-filled
plastic pillows to protect them, and she always assumed she could put
them in her blue bin. She's right — her municipality does accept them.
But many other curbside recycling programs in Canada do not — something
the makers of the packaging are aware of. A website printed on the
packaging lists stores where they can be dropped off for recycling.
'A great disconnect'
Those in the waste management industry, like the City of Toronto's Jim
McKay, are well aware consumers are confused.
"There's a great disconnect between what a municipality will accept and
what manufacturers and retailers are putting onto the market and saying
[is] recyclable," said McKay, the city's general manager of solid waste
management. "And I think it's causing frustration."
Toronto accepts a large variety of recyclable materials compared to many
municipalities, with some notable exceptions:
Black plastic takeout containers, even though many have a symbol on
the bottom suggesting they're recyclable. The technology at the city's
sorting plant can't identify black plastics because they're the same
colour as the belt. (They're sometimes accepted in programs that do more
manual sorting).
Paper coffee cups, because the city can't find a buyer for them —
the whole point of recycling.
"We collect recycling to sell it back," McKay said in an email. "The
market determines what we can sell and how much we can sell."
Recycling symbol guidelines
There are rules about false or misleading claims under Canada's
Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, and the
Textile Labelling Act that should theoretically apply to statements
about recyclability and recycling symbols. In partnership with the
Canadian Standards Association, the Competition Bureau has developed a
set of guidelines for the use of the recycling symbol.
They state that packaging should only be labelled with an "unqualified"
claim of recyclability such as the recycling symbol, known as the Mobius
loop, with no accompanying words, if more than 50 per cent of Canadians
have convenient access to recycling for that material.
In other cases, claims of recyclability need to "indicate the limitation
of facilities." For example, a label might say "This container is
recyclable through the blue box program in Southern Ontario and at
recycling depots in Winnipeg and Edmonton." Or, if something is
recyclable through a private recycling program, it might say "Recyclable
— contact your local dealer for details."
But there is some ambiguity about what's allowed and what's not.
For example, stand-up pouches used to package everything from dog food
to shredded cheese to frozen peas are generally not recyclable in blue
box programs, although some can be recycled through a U.S.-based company
called Terracycle.
One recently purchased package of shredded cheese in a stand-up pouch
had the Mobius loop and the words "recyclable where facilities exist."
The guidelines say that kind of language is "discouraged" but don't
outright say it isn't allowed.
Rachel Morier, director of sustainability for an industry group called
the PAC Packaging Consortium, says it's challenging for companies that
label products and packaging to make all their information about
recycling as accurate as possible in a landscape where recycling
programs vary so much across the country and are constantly evolving.
What they come up with, she says, represents their best guess and their
best hope for the material.
"There's no deceptive intention behind it," she said.
She added that while accuracy is in everyone's best interest, smaller
and medium-sized businesses may not have the resources to know what kind
of labelling is appropriate for their packages.
2 kinds of symbols
But there's another catch — there are actually two kinds of recycling
symbols. The Mobius loop, in which the three arrows are twisted or
folded over, is the one covered by the guidelines.
The other kind, which consists of three flat arrows forming a triangle
with a number in the middle, is called a resin identification code.
Its intended purpose is only to differentiate between types of plastics;
it's not meant as an environmental claim, so it can legally appear on
packaging and products that are almost never recyclable.
The guidelines suggest that "in order to avoid confusion," they should
not be placed near the product name or logo but somewhere less visible.
Mestre admits that she, like many others, associated the plastic resin
codes with recycling.
"My initial instinct is yeah, that's recyclable," she said. "Now that I
think about it, I do remember reading that, yes, it's not necessarily
recyclable. You have to know what numbers are and aren't. There's a lot
to it."
Anyone who feels they've been misled by confusing or inappropriately
used recycling symbols can file a complaint with the Competition Bureau,
which will investigate. If there is evidence that any laws have been
violated, companies may face penalties such as fines.
Finally, if you're wondering what to do with air-filled plastic packing
pillows if they're not recyclable where you live, Mestre suggests
reusing them, as she does, to ship gifts and other items to family members.
