Opinion: Plastic to Fuel Is a Threat to Md.’s Environment
By Mariah Mackenzie | 4/30/21 | Maryland Matters
In Maryland, reducing plastic waste and finding climate solutions have broad support among Marylanders. From plastic foam and bag bans to clean energy and emissions reduction goals, counties, the state legislature and the Hogan administration are making climate and plastic waste priorities. But as Maryland and the country move away from single-use plastic and choses clean energy over burning coal, oil and gas, the plastics industry has started selling a dangerous new idea to protect their profits.
They call it “chemical recycling” or “advanced recycling” — but it isn’t actually recycling at all.
When we think of recycling, we think of turning would-be waste into new products instead of letting it pile up in our waterways, landfills and incinerators where it pollutes our planet.
The plastics industry claims that new facilities will convert previously non-recyclable plastic waste into new, recycled plastic products. Sounds too good to be true? It is.
In reality, most of these facilities instead convert plastic into fossil fuels and other toxic byproducts. Using different chemical treatments combined with high heat, truckloads of plastic waste are essentially melted or burned, and that creates combinations of liquids, gases, ash and other toxic leftovers — along with fossil fuels which then get burned. Instead of reducing our plastic use, this process creates a new pipeline for waste and an incentive for companies to make more plastic that still ends up as pollution.
It’s bad for the environment and public health and antithetical to our goals of stopping global warming and moving toward zero-waste.