Sustainability Summit at Printing United

Sonoco has upgraded its Hartsville wastewater treatment site to significantly reduce carbon emissions. The company began treating wastewater from its paper operations in the 1950’s and in 1987, an anaerobic lagoon was added to improve the system’s efficiency. Anaerobic wastewater treatment is a highly efficient treatment process that uses less energy and produces less sludge than conventional aerobic treatment. The organic matter in the wastewater is converted to carbon dioxide and methane. In addition to the anaerobic treatment, a cover on the lagoon had been capturing the gases and routing them to a flare for destruction. In partnership with renewable natural gas developer GreenGasUSA, new biogas equipment now converts any gaseous methane to pipeline quality renewable natural gas for use in homes and businesses using the existing interstate pipeline system. It’s expected to reduce Sonoco’s greenhouse gas emissions by 8,000 metric tons per year and provide renewable energy to South Carolina.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) today announced that nearly 68% of paper consumed in the United States (67.9%) was recycled in 2022. The paper recycling rate held approximately steady to the 2021 rate and has remained consistently high. In fact, the paper recycling rate has met or exceeded 63% each year since 2009. In 2022, the recycling rate for old corrugated containers (OCC), also known as cardboard, was 93.6%, an increase over last year's rate. Meanwhile, the 3-year average (2020-2022) for OCC was 91.3%.

An estimated 32% of all plastic ends up being dumped after just one use, reveals the 2016 New Plastics Economy report. The EU ban on single-use plastics will take effect in 2021. New, tougher requirements will also be introduced for producers of other plastic product categories. “The much-touted new legislation on single-use plastic products will not solve the huge recycling dilemma. Plastics are already a highly regulated product group. They have to be produced using REACH-compliant chemicals, and there is a staggering amount of legislation on recycling. If the EU directives on packaging were fully implemented in all European countries, there would be no need to dump any plastic at all at landfills,” says Vesa Kärhä, CEO of the Finnish Plastics Industries Federation. In Finland, the collection and recycling of consumer plastics is off to a slow start, but gradually catching up with Europe’s leaders, Switzerland and Sweden. “When you look at Europe’s leading recyclers, they have all observed a total ban on landfilling for a long time. In other words, they have totally outlawed a cheap landfill solution. The European plastic industry recommends the same, too. Naturally, it has to be carried out in a way that gives operators enough time to figure out what can be done about the issue. Recycling and energy plants have to be available,” Kärhä notes.