Bale prices have been trending downward this summer.

Pricing for bales of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) bottles are softening as supplies of these materials increase, according to sources whom Recycling Today contacted in mid-July.

 A contact with an HDPE reprocessor based in California says plenty of supply is available, noting that volumes began increasing over the last two months. He adds that little export activity off the West Coast also has contributed to the “abundance” of scrap available.

The HDPE reprocessor says his company has reached the point where it is turning potential suppliers away as it’s reluctant to build inventory with the possibility of a recession looming.

A PET reprocessor with operations in the Southeast and Northeast says PET bale prices also are softening as supply increases, which is traditional in the summer months. However, the reprocessor notes that a major buyer of PET bales also is out of the market because of unplanned maintenance and therefore not purchasing material.

“In line with bales, flake pricing is beginning to reduce, though rPET (recycled PET) pellet pricing is still elevated due to the tightness and increased prices in virgin PET,” the reprocessor adds.

The PET reprocessor also points to the effects of rising inflation, which reached 9.1 percent year over year in June, the largest 12-month increase since 1981, according to The Economics Daily produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics within the U.S. Department of Labor. “The market is seeing the first signs of pressure on consumer finances, impacting the fiber market [and] leading to lower volumes of rPET usage,” the reprocessor says.

“The rPET market dynamics moving through Q2 have remained relatively stable, bearing in mind the rapid rise in prices we saw during Q1,” the PET reprocessor continues. “We have seen much more volatility in virgin PET than rPET during Q2.”

The HDPE reprocessor says natural bottle bales are selling in the range of 45 cents to 48 cents per pound as of mid-July, while mixed-color bales are between 15 cents and 17 cents per pound. He says the decline in pricing started gradually but has been more substantial recently, ranging from 15 percent to 20 percent.

With prices declining and the potential for a recession, the HDPE reprocessor says companies are “fearful” of holding too many bales in inventory.

He describes sales of his company’s recycled HDPE as being “fairly robust,” though he worries that could change if the advance estimate for gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter, which the Bureau of Economic Analysis in the U.S. Department of Commerce is scheduled to release July 28, reveals a decline.

While a recession is defined as a period of sustained weak or negative growth in GDP that is accompanied by a significant rise in the unemployment rate, the HDPE reproccessor says the “lack of employees is the biggest elephant in the room,” noting that many companies are struggling to fill open positions.

On the bright side, he says freight rates "are definitely going in the right direction," adding that compared with December of last year, long-haul trucking rates have decreased by 35 percent to 45 percent, while short-haul rates have declined by 15 percent to 20 percent. 

The goal is to prevent 1 million metric tons of waste going to landfill annually.

Ineos Olefins & Polymers Europe has invested in multilayer, blown line technology with machine direction orientation (MDO) supplied by Hosokawa Alpine, an equipment manufacturer based in Augsburg, Germany. The company says the technology will enable it to work with converters, brands and retailers to develop easy, more recyclable flexible packaging film.  

The investment also creates the potential to prevent about 1 million tons of waste per year from being sent to landfill or incineration.  

Using the multilayer, blown line technology with MDO, Ineos and partners will work together to develop, design and produce polyethylene and polypropylene-based flexible packaging film using fewer polymers, increasing the recyclability of the product.  

Ineos says flexible packaging films are a low carbon solution for transporting food and other goods and they increase food shelf life, helping consumers manage household bills. However, today’s multimaterial products combine polymers from different chemical families, making them difficult to recycle.  

MDO heats and stretches polymer films to improve their physical and barrier properties, enabling them to be used in different product applications. Ineos says it is the only raw material supplier to have invested in an inline MDO-multilayer line from Hosokawa Alpine.   

The line will be installed in Ineos’ research and development labs in Brussels, Belgium, in 2023. There Ineos will develop mono-material flexible film packaging products. Ineos says it will leverage this capability and its expertise in resin design to work alongside partners on new generations of resins engineered for flexible packaging products.  

“This investment is further evidence of our commitment to taking action across the value chain to create a more sustainable future,” says Rob Ingram, CEO of Ineos O&P Europe North. “Flexible packaging films keep our food fresh and safe to eat, but we recognize and share people’s concerns about plastic waste.”  

Other examples of action being taken across the value chain include:  

building Project One, the most environmentally sustainable cracker in Europe and the largest investment in the European chemical sector in a generation;  

conducting a feasibility study into the construction of a 100-megawatt water electrolysis plant for producing green hydrogen at the company’s site in Cologne that could cut carbon dioxide emissions by more than 100,000 metric tons annually; and

launching the Recycl-IN polymer range, which compounds postconsumer recycled plastic with new highly engineered virgin polymers to meet the demand for recycled products that meet high-performance specifications.  

ISRI, NWRA and SWANA say the EPA should consider developing best practices and labeling guidelines to include batteries of all sizes and chemistries, among other things.

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), the Voice of the Recycling Industry™, National Waste and Recycling Association (NWRA), and Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) issued a joint letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan citing best practices for safe recycling and labeling of lithium batteries. The letter is in response to the EPA’s Request for Information on develping best practices for collecting batteries to be recycled and voluntary battery labeling guidelines.  

The three groups say lithium batteries power everything from electronic devices to onboard automobile systems. However, the increased usage poses serious fire risks and safety challenges for consumers and the recycling industry.   

“It is imperative that a clear path is delineated for the responsible recycling of batteries,” says ISRI President Robin Wiener. “By joining together to provide comments to the EPA, our organizations are offering solid solutions to minimize the risks of fire and injury that occur in recycling operations.”   

The letter states fire hazards are increasing as more lithium-ion batteries improperly placed in curbside residential waste or recycling collection containers and bags. Once in the recycling or waste stream, these batteries become fire risks as they get mixed with tons of materials and placed in hot temperatures under significant compression.  

Even when taken to an appropriate battery collection facility, fires remain a risk. The advantage is that a facility will handlethe batteries to minimize the risk of the fire starting and spreading, unlike in a landfill, material recovery facility (MRF), transfer station or collection vehicle. Regardless, this is still an ongoing concern for any facility that collects batteries in bulk, according to the letter.  

Development of guidance for battery collection facility staff to identify batteries by chemistry, separate and handle them appropriately, and how to handle them in case of damage or fire would be useful to help minimize the risk of catastrophic fire. Education for those handling the batteries would be useful for many communities that manage their own battery collection.  

“SWANA is very concerned about the continued uptick in fires at recycling facilities and other disposal sites, often caused by lithium-ion batteries,” says David Biderman, SWANA executive director and CEO. “These fires threaten workers’ lives and operations at these facilities and undercut EPA’s ambitious National Recycling Strategy. We can’t recycle discarded items at a burnt-up MRF.”  

The group says the only way to identify and detect these batteries is visual, so there is no easy method to screen the batteries out of the incoming loads. Commingling with recyclables, consisting of plastic and paper that provides a significant quantity of readily combustible material, magnifies the problem.  

Due to risks batteries have in curbside recycling and in household waste, batteries are best managed at dedicated drop-off sites. For battery collection to be effective, it needs to be convenient and safe, according to the letter. The group suggests the EPA should consider including convenience standards for battery drop-off locations as part of its best practices.  

The letter also points out the need for a strong, ongoing public information campaign to alert consumers on how to properly dispose of batteries.   

While most of these fires stem from the mismanagement of consumer lithium batteries, larger batteries such as those in electric vehicles also pose risks. The organizations recommended that the EPA develop best practices and labeling guidelines to include batteries of all sizes and chemistries. They also advised the EPA to proceed with a parallel track for best practices and labeling of the larger lithium-ion batteries.   

“Our goal is to lower the risk of fires caused by lithium-ion batteries,” says Darrell Smith, NWRA president and CEO. “We appreciate the opportunity to provide comments. We believe our recommendations will help reduce fires caused by these batteries at our recycling facilities.” 

Domtar will acquire all outstanding shares of Resolute common stock in the transaction, which is expected to close in the first half of next year.

Under the agreement, Resolute will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Domtar, which will acquire all outstanding shares common stock, and both companies will continue to operate independently under their own names.

Domtar, headquartered in Fort Mill, South Carolina, was acquired by British Columbia-based Paper Excellence in December 2021 in a deal valued at about $3 billion, with officials saying at the time the move was to broaden the company’s reach and expand its product range to include air-laid nonwovens and containerboard as well as increased pulp and paper production.

Similarly, Paper Excellence says the Resolute acquisition further expands its reach by building out its forest products portfolio in North America. “This acquisition strengthens the Paper Excellence Group’s core pulp and paper business and diversifies their product offering by adding tissue and wood product segments,” Domtar President and CEO John D. Williams says.

Paper Excellence Vice Chair and Chief Strategy Officer Patrick Loulou says, “Resolute is an ideal fit for our long-term growth strategy. It complements our existing pulp, paper and packaging businesses and adds capabilities in lumber and tissue.”

The deal also outlines a commitment to building a premier North American diversified forest products company and creating long-term grown by supporting Resolute management’s existing growth strategy which focuses on strategic investments in its lumber and pulp businesses while maximizing the value of its paper and tissue businesses. The companies also will conduct a detailed feasibility study for the eventual conversion of Resolute’s Gatineau, Quebec, newsprint mill to the production of packaging paper.

“With this transaction, Resolute will accelerate its growth as it gains access to more tools, capital and opportunities to pursue our ambitions with the combined resources of the Paper Excellence Group,” Resolute President and CEO Remi G. Lalonde says. “Together we will form a stronger and more resilient, diversified forest products company positioned to compete on a truly global scale.”

Paper Excellence reports production of 2.8 million metric tons of pulp and paper through acquisitions of Brazil’s Eldorado Brazil Celulose and British Columbia’s Catalyst Paper in 2019, as well as the Domtar acquisition last year.

According to Resolute, it adds to the Paper Excellence portfolio 1.1 million metric tons of pulp capacity, 116,000 metric tons of tissue capacity, seven paper mills totaling 1.5 million metric tons of capacity and 22 wood products facilities

Domtar continues to move on its Kingsport, Tennessee, conversion project as well, announcing last month it is on track and expected to be complete by the end of this year. The company’s first 100-percent-recycled packaging facility will produce approximately 600,000 tons per year of recycled-content containerboard and will consume 660,000 tons per year of old corrugated containers and mixed paper.

The company says the acquisition expands its carbon neutral capabilities.

Covanta, an environmental services provider based in Morristown, New Jersey, has acquired Miller Environmental Transfer, an environmental services provider based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.   

"Covanta is a natural partner for us as an environmentally focused company," says Todd Ray, president of Miller Environmental Transfer. "We look forward to combining our resources to continue to provide our customers with unmatched zero-waste-to-landfill solutions."   

According to a news release from Covanta, Miller Environmental provides environmental services across the South-Central U.S. The company specializes in various waste services, including transportation and waste treatment for companies seeking sustainable waste services.  

The addition of Miller Environmental's services to Covanta's existing portfolio of environmentally sustainable solutions enables the company to expand its carbon neutral capabilities for customers and optimizes existing assets like its Tulsa Waste-to-Energy facility.  

"We are thrilled to welcome Miller Environmental Transfer to our growing suite of sustainable services," says Azeez Mohammed, president and CEO of Covanta. "Our M&A (mergers and acquisitions) activity is keenly focused on identifying strategic additions that both expand our geographical footprint and existing capabilities, while also presenting valuable opportunities for future business avenues."  

This acquisition is Covanta's first since being acquired by the EQT Infrastructure V fund in 2021. The company says it has plans for continued expansion through both organic greenfield investments and its buy and build acquisition strategy. The company says the goal is to emphasize significant progress as a full-service environmental solutions provider for companies to ensure the most sustainable outcomes for the materials they produce.