Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Recovery Act (42 USC 321 et seq .), and the Ocean Dumping Act (33 USC 1411 et
seq .) are the most important laws for the management of plastic materials recycling
enacted at the federal level in the USA. Laws speciic to states and cities contain
regulations that overlap with the provisions found in the federal laws. Almost all
the cities have environmental regulations, which include the provisions for municipal
solid waste management and industry speciic recycling regulations.
The Society of the Plastics Industry, the major national trade association representing
the plastics industry worked with Environment Protection Agency of the USA and
characterised the process operations in the plastics industry and identiied the potential
sources of pellet losses to the environment. The following are the major initiatives
suggested to the plastics industry for adoption, to contain the plastic pellet disposal
in the environment [62] in the US:
• Adoptthe1991PelletRetentionEnvironmentalCodeandthe1992Processor's
Pledge − a commitment to total containment of plastic pellets and which
encourages source reduction activities to prevent releases and suggests ways to
recapture spilled pellets.
• Educateemployeesandtrainthemtominimisepelletspillageandloss.
• Installandinstitutepelletcontainmentsystemsoruseportablecontainment
apparatus and activities during routine plant operations.
• Recyclespilledpellets.
• Improvethequalityandfrequencyofpelletspillclean-upprocedures.
• Usepunctureresistantpackagingandminimisetheuseofvalvedbags.
• Inspectshippingvehicles(e.g.,railhoppercars,bulktrucksandfreighttrucks)
before and after loading and ofloading of pellets.
• Inspectshippingcontainersbeforeandafterloadingandofloadingofpellets.
5.5 Impact of the Policies and Legal Framework on Plastic Disposal
In most countries, the root causes of littering, such as indiscriminate use and disposal
and lack of effective waste management system were not adequately addressed.
The ban on bags less than 20 μm (reportedly) did not appear to have helped in reducing
the littering of beaches. Success appears to have been achieved in discouraging coloured
bag use in food packing. Enforcement of the rules and regulations was found to be
dificult as the task of controlling thickness is logistically complicated.
 
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