Recycling in
Japan seems to be a mandatory practice done by everyone. While I was
researching for successful case studies on Japan’s recycling campaign, a
plethora of information appeared. Amongst all, plastic is recycled most
effectively. The country recycled a whopping 2.1 million tons of plastic waste
in the year 2006, equivalent to 73% of all plastics collected that year
(McCurry, 2011). The government invested a lot on high-tech machineries for
resource recovery (see Video below), and their efforts are beginning to pay
off. Unwanted plastics such as PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles are
converted into plastic pellets that can be woven into fabric (see Diagram 1 and
2). The pellets can also manufacture household items such as boxes, wrappings,
cups, trays, lids and caps (McCurry, 2011). These plastic pellets are even sold
overseas to China, Thailand and Taiwan (Ministry of the Environment,
2012).
Diagram 1: Resource Recovery of Waste Plastics (Source: Ministry of the Environment, 2012)
Video: Illustration of Plastic Recycled into Plastic Pellets
Besides making
plastic pellets, waste plastics are used in thermal recycling where electricity
is generated in the process. This is done at incineration plants whereby hot
gas from burning is used to turn a steam turbine (see Diagram 3).
Digram 3: Thermal Recycling of Waste in Incineration Plant (Source: Plastic Waste Management Institute, 2009)
As of year
2001, 210 waste incinerators in Japan are equipped with boilers, generating
about 10 million kilowatts of energy per year (refer to Table 1). The potential
of generating energy from plastic is promising as plastics have twice the
calories of paper waste. As seen in Diagram 4 below, polyethylene has calories
that are on par with coal and oil. Incinerating waste plastics thus taps on the
hidden stored energy and can reduce the volume of landfill waste.
Table 1: Waste Power Generation in various countries (Source: Plastic Waste Management Institute, 2009)
Diagram 4: Calories of Plastics Compared to other Energy Fuel (Source: Plastic Waste Management Institute, 2009)
It seems like the
government is trying to utilize all waste efficiently but the act of burning
plastics is more harmful than burying it. When plastics are burnt, harmful
gases such as dioxins is released, thereby causing air pollution. In my next
post, I will be discussing on this dioxin issue, so stay tuned!
References
Kirby, Peter Wynn. Troubled Natures. Honolulu:
University of Hawaiʻi Press, 2011. Print.
McCurry, Justin. 'Japan Streets Ahead In Global Plastic
Recycling Race'. the Guardian. N.p., 2011. Web. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/dec/29/japan-leads-field-plastic-recycling
Ministry of the Environment, Government of Japan,. ‘Solid
Waste Management and Recycling Technology of Japan'. N.p., 20012. Web.
Retrieved from http://www.env.go.jp/en/recycle/smcs/attach/swmrt.pdf
Plastic Waste
Management Institute, ‘An Introduction to Plastic Recycling’. N.p., 2009. Web.
Retrieved from https://www.pwmi.or.jp/ei/plastic_recycling_2009.pdf
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