The recycling of post-consumer plastic bags and wraps reached nearly 972 million pounds in 2010, according to a recent report.

This represents a 14 percent increase over 2009 and a 50 percent increase since 2005, according to the report developed by Moore Recycling Associates Inc. on behalf of the American Chemistry Council (ACC).

While the ACC called the findings a victory for plastic bag recycling, some environmental groups disagreed.

“By every measure, the recycling of single-use plastic bags is a failure,” said Mark Murray, executive director of Californians Against Waste (CAW).

The group said the report shows promising growth in the recycling of “shrink wrap” and other plastic film – typically collected in the commercial sector – but doesn’t present ground-breaking numbers when it comes to plastic bag recovery.

However, the ACC noted that the data in the report does not support this conclusion, but rather that more plastic is being, and can be, recycled overall. “Focusing only on retail bags can have an adverse effect,” said Keith Christman, Managing Director of Plastics Markets for ACC. He suggested it is limiting to consumers and allows for missed opportunities to recycle other plastics.

“All measurable data shows strong growth in bag and film recycling,” said Christman. “It’s unfortunate that anyone would see that as a negative.”

READ: Japanese Inventor Turns Plastic Bags Into Oil

In the ACC study, plastic bags and wraps are combined into a category known as “plastic film.” According to the report, recycling of plastic bags alone increased by 27 percent between 2009 and 2010.

The ACC report estimates that bags make up 40 to 55 percent of the commingled bales collected at retail locations. But activists said that bags represent less than 6 percent of mixed plastic film from retail collection, citing a recent California study.

However, California is currently the only state that monitors plastic bag and film recycling. So, data showing the specific number of bags recycled in other states is unavailable for a comprehensive comparison. In California, the recycling rate for regulated plastic carryout bags is about 3 percent, leading many cities to explore bag bans to cut back on waste.

READ: More Cities Explore Plastic Bag Bans

The ACC does agree with the CAW about one thing: they both want to see the numbers improve.

In an effort to continue to recycle more plastics and film, the ACC formed its new Flexible Film Recycling Group (FFRG) – which includes members representing the full plastics film industry, from resin suppliers to film manufacturers, brand owners and recyclers. Founding members include Avanguard, Dow Chemical, ExxonMobil, SC Johnson, Sealed Air and Trex, the ACC said.

“The FFRG looks forward to working with all parts of the polyethylene film value chain to make it even simpler to recover and recycle this valuable plastic material,” said Steve Russell, ACC vice president of plastics. One of the ways the group will be doing this is adding more locations for consumers to recycle plastic bags and film.

Plastic bags and wraps recovered for recycling are used to make plastic and composite lumber for outdoor decks and fencing, home building products, garden products, crates, piping and new film packaging like plastic bags, the ACC said.

“Since 2005, the recycling of plastic bags and film has increased 15 percent faster than other materials,” said ACC’s Christman. “It’s one of the most exciting areas of recycling today.”

READ: Students Help Haitians Build Homes From Plastic Waste

Editor’s Note: This article was updated to include additional quotations from the American Chemistry Council on Feb. 8.

But other companies are finding that dealing with waste smartly can add to their business portfolio and generate new revenue streams. What was once thrown away can now even become transformed into a consulting business. The following are eight companies that find profit in trash, either from collecting or incorporating recycled and upcycled materials into their products.

Green Power-Player #4: GM produces eco rides like the Chevy Volt, but did you know the company also makes $1 billion per year selling scrap? Photo: General Motors

1. DHL

Within its Envirosolutions division in the United Kingdom, DHL not only makes money accumulating and recycling waste, but also advises companies on how they can more effectively and sustainably package their products.

Customers can access DHL’s packaging knowledge database and gain details on more than 4 million different types of packaging. But Envirosolutions also works closely with a bevy of clients from a large British pub chain (hauling away recyclables) to British Airways (reprocessing food waste). The company is also a master of efficiency: trucks that make deliveries to clients do not leave empty, but instead carry away used cardboard and shrink wrap to recycling facilities.

2. eBay

Give eBay credit for its aggressive electronics recycling program. Long known as the company that helps you empty your closets and find treasures in your basement, its Instant Sale program tackles the problem of tangled electronic waste supply chains. Users can mail in that unwanted iPhone or laptop and rest assured that any forgotten naughty texts or pictures will be erased before resale.

EBay also makes its fair share of revenues from all the used packaging, equipment and yes, even horse manure for your garden. Its breadth of waste management solutions, dare we say, give the company Waste Management a run for its money.

READ: eBay Debuts E-waste Trade-in Program

3. Ford

From its base in Motor City, Ford Motor Company works with partners like REPREVE to divert items like plastic bottles from landfills. The fabrics that REPREVE manufactures from these bottles will end up in the electric model of the Ford Focus.

As many as 2 million bottles will be collected at two large trade shows in January and will be combined with other post-industrial waste to create polyester. An average of 22 PET bottles will end up in each Focus Electric that will soon roll off the company’s assembly lines. With the American auto industry revitalized, look for other companies to take Ford’s lead in making money from having parts and interiors manufactured from recycled materials.

READ: Ford’s New Cars Cut Water Use, Recycle Bottles

4. GM

While Ford boasts about using recycled materials, GM shines as an avid recycling machine. The once-again world’s largest automaker makes $20,000 a month off of cardboard recycling, a pittance on its balance sheet but impressive nonetheless.

A much bigger number is the $1 billion per year that GM generates from selling scrap. Its 92 percent recycling rate is not a liability, but a profitable asset.

READ: Chevy’s New Eco Labels Show Cars’ Impact

5. Ingram Micro

The world’s largest technology distributor with operations on six continents, this $36 billion company is now starting to tackle the mounting problem of e-waste. Partnering with a major information technology recycler, Ingram Micro just launched a program that will help clients throughout its distribution networks dispose of obsolete technology safely and prevent it from entering landfills.

6. Nucor

The largest steel producer in North America has its origins in building small furnaces near junkyards across the United States and now stakes a claim as one of the world’s largest scrap recyclers. About one ton of steel per second are recycled at Nucor facilities, including 9 million cars annually.

7. UPS

The 3,300 UPS stores across the United States offer a one-stop repair service for customers who want their damaged laptops repaired. Unwanted laptops are refurbished and resold; the rest are sold to e-waste recyclers.

READ: UPS Tests Super-Efficient Truck

8. Valvoline

The motor oil giant, part of a $7 billion conglomerate, is dependent on other companies for its petroleum supplies and is therefore susceptible to price fluctuations. To that end, the company is revamping its supply chain and last year rolled out its new NextGen motor oil product that is 50 percent recycled.

With this NextGen’s acceptance taking hold at huge racing events like NASCAR, watch for more recycled motor oil and similar automotive products to enter the market.

READ: Valvoline Debuts Groundbreaking Re-Refined Oil

1. Upcycled bike chain bracelets

The average bicycle shop produces 25-40 pounds of waste bike chains per month, according to Ben Gould, industrial designer and inventor. But Gould has found a stylish new use for this leftover material, degreasing the chains with biodegradable agents and upcycling them into colorful, accordion-like bracelets.

Gould launched a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter to take his local project to the national level. First, he plans to set up a network of bike shops across the country that will commit to sending him their unwanted bike chains; a portion of Kickstarter donations will be used to pay the cost of shipping this material to Gould.

He’ll also use contributions to build better forging tools so he can process a large volume of bike chains and to electroplate some bracelets in chrome, silver and gold for customers who want “unparalleled bling.”

LEARN MORE HERE

SEE: PHOTOS: Couture Jewelry Made From LEGOs

Photo: Takuya Matsumoto

If you think recycling is a hassle, take a step across the Pacific Ocean to Kamikatsu, Japan. This small town of 2,000 residents on rural Shikoku Island has long taken waste separation to new heights and to what some in town feel is too extreme.

Garbage collection centers located throughout the town host 34 different waste bins lined up for just about every type of waste imaginable. Above each yellow or blue bin is a poster that describes what can be disposed in each separate crate. Cans, bottles and cardboard naturally have their own bins. But then the waste separation process becomes even more granular. Aerosol cans have their own distinct bin. So do cigarette lighters, disposable chopsticks, books and textiles.

Light bulbs and batteries must be separated, and glass from goods like mirrors and thermometers must not end up in bin #5, which is for clear glass bottles only. Speaking of glass, residents have to pay
attention as their are six different bins. Even cigarette and other butane lighters have their own special recycling bin.

Do not mix up your plastic bottles because the ones that cooking oil or vinegar must be separated from PET bottles for water or soft drinks. Take those plastic lids off, too – they also have their own bin, which is set near the bottle and can bins so residents can conveniently plunk them into their own little space. As for the stacking of paper products, residents are required to use a tape made from recycled milk cartons instead of plastic or cotton rope.

Much of the trash ends up hauled away by recycling companies that are contracted with the town. But reuse is an important aspect of Kamikatsu’s waste diversion campaign. Unwanted goods, such as tableware and toys, are stacked on shelves so that other locals can take them home if they have a use for them. Local women apply their sewing techniques and churn unwanted textiles into chic handbags, sandals or even dolls. As for food scraps, each home has a composting bin, a requirement of residents since
1991.

Photo: Takuya Matsumoto

All that separation of bottles and jars is not enough, however: the items must be washed before they are disposed, which is one reason why as many as 40 percent of Kamikatsu’s residents have been unhappy with the system in the past. Most residents now accept or are resigned to the system, with the results that children are learning recycling habits at a very early age.

According to town councilman Takuya Matsumoto, this intensive recycling is far more preferable to incineration. While a contract with an incineration plant would save time and money if implemented immediately, Kimikatsu’s leaders believe that the town’s finances, not to mention the local environment, are better off with this current sort, recycle and reuse system.

Kamikatsu’s shift towards its aggressive recycling program began in 1995, when the town only sorted out glass and cans. In 2003, the town passed a “Zero Waste” ordinance, and in 2005, the program expanded to what is now that system of 34 separate waste bins. With the exception of three public holidays a year, residents can bring their trash from the early morning until after midnight, where they can sort their
unwanted trash with the guidance of a city employee.

The city also runs a program that collects waste from elderly residents who are not up to the task of carrying their trash to the recycling center for a small fee. Note how the responsibility for disposing and separating the trash falls on residents: Kamikatsu has no garbage trucks. Volunteers, said Matsumoto in an interview, have an enormous role in ensuring that the town’s recycling program runs smoothly, and their efforts have resulted in a clean place to live with no landfill or incinerators.

The overall goal for Kamikatsu is to achieve zero waste by 2020. With its recycling rate well over 90 percent, this rural hamlet is well on its way.

This month, hundreds of events to trade unwanted clothes, books and media will take place around the globe to celebrate Jan. 21’s World Swap Day. Photo: Flickr/The S.W.A.P. Team

Have a bunch of books or DVDS that need a new home? Or are you looking for a few new budget-friendly pieces of clothing to punch up your wardrobe?

Then get ready for World Swap Day this Saturday, Jan. 21, when hundreds of swaps will take place across the country: from an exchange of children’s clothes and toys in Oakland, Calif., to a women’s clothing trade in Manhattan.

Now in its second year, Swap Day was created by Amy Chase and Melissa Massello, The Swapaholics, two Boston women who turned their shared love of vintage and thrift shopping into a career. In addition to organizing swap events in the Boston area, they have become the official event hostesses for Swap.com, an online swapping marketplace that also lists in-person swap events.

READ: Guide to Swapping and Selling Clothes Online

This is the first year that Chase and Massello aimed to make their Swap Day go global, and they hope to see more than 500 swap events around the world participating this month. Visit Swap.com’s event directory to find a swap near you, or coordinate your own event, using The Swapaholics’ step-by-step guide to hosting a successful swap.

You can also celebrate World Swap Day by getting rid of your unwanted items on Swap.com: Every listing you post until Jan. 28 is an entry into the marketplace’s List Your Way to $1K Giveaway. A panel of expert swappers will pick the two Swap.com members with the best items to trade, and each will be awarded with a cash prize of $1,000.

Photo: Flickr/blmurch

1. Choose an eco theme

Dinner parties are a great opportunity to stretch those creative legs and come up with a theme that will keep all your friends talking. So, why not choose an eco theme for your next soiree?

Plan a potluck party and ask your guests to bring a meal made from soon-to-be-expired food from their fridges. Or throw a “trashy fashion” party and ask guests to wear an accessory made from trash.

An eco theme not only adds extra fun to your get-together, but it will also get your guests thinking about sustainability. Keep the green conversation going by swapping tips with your friends about reducing waste, saving energy and other eco topics you’re interested in.

READ: 10 Green Tips for a Weekend Party

2. Decorate with nature

Planning a fancy tablescape for your next party? Ditch the pricey flower shops and craft a conversation-starting centerpiece from backyard foliage to cut back on waste.

• Cut bare branches from a tree and place in a vase for a rustic look
• Scatter pinecones and needles across the table for an outdoor feel
• Display freshly-picked herbs in a glass container
• Make an arrangement with holly branches and place in a glass bowl

READ: 5 Low-Waste Air Fresheners for the Home

3. Rethink the favors

Party favors can get pricey, and buying them only adds to the footprint of your dinner party. So, rethink your parting gifts by opting for something homemade or reused instead.

Whip up some tasty pumpkin brittle or banana-nut muffins, and package them in junk mail like Junk Mail Gems blogger Gretchen. Use her simple tutorial to create cute gift bags from your junk mail, and show your guests the beauty of reuse.

Don’t feel like making favors yourself? Use the opportunity to find a new home for some unwanted items in your house. In her fun and alternative entertaining book I Like You, comedian Amy Sedaris suggests putting out a table full of items you’re looking to get rid of for guests to peruse during the party.

Expand on Sedaris’ idea by asking all of your friends to bring giveaways from their homes, and have an after-dinner swap. Each guest will go home with a “new” item, and their old items won’t go to waste.

READ: 8 Ways to Inspire Reuse In Your Community

4. Go local and organic

Produce in the U.S. travels, on average, 1,300 to 2,000 miles from farm to consumer, according to the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service. Produce that has traveled long distances carries a much heavier footprint than local options. These picks also tend to be lacking in flavor and essential nutrients, as produce is often harvested before its time to withstand the long journey.

Choose produce without a passport by shopping at your local farmer’s market, and up the ante by going organic. While many shoppers think that buying local and organic produce costs a fortune, that isn’t always the case. A quick stroll through your local farmer’s market can yield loads of rock-bottom deals, like super-flavorful winter squash for $1 or a basket of apples for less than five bucks.

While you’re at the farmer’s market, take a moment to chat with vendors about their farming practices. Many small framers avoid using pesticides and additives in their produce, but some don’t have the money (or spare time) to go through the process of becoming certified organic. So, some picks may be pesticide-free even though they aren’t labeled “organic.”

And don’t forget to green your beverages! Head to your local grocer, and ask about organic wines from your area. For kids and designated drivers, pick up some homemade juice or cider from the farmer’s market, or give one of our coffee shop-free winter beverages a try.

READ: Your Local Guide to Winter Produce

5. Have a leftover plan

Running out of food is any party host’s worst nightmare. So, most of us tend to prepare more than we need. But don’t let all those leftovers go to waste! One-third of food in America ends up in the trash, adding up to 25 percent of what’s in our landfills, according to Slow Food USA. Fight back against food waste by making a leftover plan ahead of time.

Clean out plenty of reusable containers for leftovers before your guests arrive, and save on frustration by making sure all of the lids fit. After dinner, ask each guest to fill up a container of leftovers to take home with them.

Not sure what to do with what’s left? Rethink your leftovers and use them to create a tasty breakfast, lunch or dinner the following day. Try turning that roasted chicken into a tasty soup, making a casserole out of leftover side dishes or whipping up an omelette incorporating your party’s main course.

READ: This App Has Recipes for Your Leftovers

“Most people would think about high-speed Internet or new inventions [when they think of Silicon Valley],” Sew Hoy said.

But the New Zealand-born artist, who frequently works with secondhand materials because she likes their history of use, immediately thought of electronic waste.

Sew Hoy secured local Silicon Valley e-waste from San Jose-based, woman-owned GreenMouse Recycling for the exhibit that runs through Feb. 26.

"6 Brands 6 Species." Photo: San Jose Museum of Art

In “6 Brands 6 Species,” Sew Hoy created a study of keyboard design by different PC manufacturers.

“We usually don’t think about how PCs are designed; it’s usually all about how Macs are designed,” she said.

"6 Brands 6 Species." Photo: Anna Sew Hoy

Sew Hoy said incorporating e-waste into artwork forces people to confront the items we use every day and then dispose of.

“I want people to see how obsolescence is built into the electronics, so they’re made to be used up in a few years,” she said. “When people see the keyboards in the piece, they say, ‘That’s so 2002. That’s so ancient and useless,’ when 2002 is not that long ago.”

READ: What Really Happens to Your E-Waste

"Nothing All Day." Photo: Anna Sew Hoy

When constructing “Nothing All Day,” Sew Hoy was inspired by a DIY sculpture she saw in the office of Evelyn O’Donnell, president of GreenMouse Recycling: a clear umbrella stand stuffed with colorful e-waste.

“I thought the idea of a terrarium of e-waste was interesting,” Sew Hoy said.

SEE: PHOTOS: Eclectic E-Waste Art

"Nothing All Day." Photo: Anna Sew Hoy

Sew Hoy worked with artists at the Bay Area Glass Institute who blew the giant glass bowls to hold the cords, mice, circuit boards and other electronics.

"Globe." Photo: Anna Sew Hoy

Sew Hoy used old jeans from friends and family and phone and DSL cords from GreenMouse to create this version of the globe.

“Although jeans still represent America, denim is now an universal clothing that nearly everyone in the world has,” she said.

Craft #1: Cut your old CDs and DVDs into pieces and use them to glitz up anything - from picture frames to flower pots to this funky mosaic mirror. Photo: Ada B./Cut Out and Keep

1. Mosaic mirror

Your old CDs and DVDs can be cut up and used to add some sparkle to almost anything. After you’ve cut your discs into small pieces, use them to create a mosaic pattern on drab-looking picture frames, flower pots or mirrors.

Not sure how to get started? Check out this handy mosaic mirror tutorial from Cut Out and Keep contributor Days. The crafty blogger simply cut her discs into square-shaped pieces and attached them in a solid pattern to turn a discount-store mirror into a fun and functional decor piece. To tone down the glitz a bit, try a partial mosaic like this one from Cut Out and Keep contributor Ada B.

2. Jazzed-up jewelry

Craving a bit of bling but don’t have the cash for diamonds? Ditch the faux gems, and create flashy and fab jewelry from your old CDs and DVDs instead. Making jewelry from trash may sound like a challenge, but it’s way easier than you’d think. This simple tutorial from Sew and So blogger and Crafting a Greener World contributor Becky Haas will have you looking like a million bucks in no time.

3. DVD case purse

If you’re looking for a conversation-starting clutch for your next night on the town, skip the thrift store dollar bin-diving and make your own from an old DVD case. Craftzine contributor Samantha Baldwin used the case from one of her favorite movies to create a book clutch inspired by the bag Natalie Portman rocked at the premier of Black Swan.

While Portman’s clutch retailed for more than $1,200, yours will be virtually free! All you’ll need is an old DVD case, a round mirror, some fabric and Baldwin’s tutorial to look like a star this Friday night.

Last year, Americans threw away 3.5 million tons of carpet and rugs, and only 9 percent of this material was recycled, according to the U.S. EPA.

But companies like The Carpet Recyclers are looking to increase the nation’s carpet recycling rate, finding new uses for old carpets and keeping them out of our landfills.

The Southern California-based company recently released a video which offers a behind-the-scenes look at its state-of-the-art recycling facility in La Mirada, Calif.

Since the facility opened its doors in 2009, The Carpet Recyclers have created 100 green collar jobs and recycled over 100 million pounds of carpet. Because carpet is a petroleum-based product, this represents a savings of 10 million gallons of oil, the company says.

What makes The Carpet Recyclers different from other carpet recycling companies? Most recyclers burn or trash the carpet’s backing, which makes up of 80 percent of the carpet, according to The Carpet Recyclers. But their company has developed technology to separate the backing into its component materials for recycling: fibers, polypropylene plastic and limestone filler.

The Carpet Recyclers sell these materials to manufacturers that make a host of new products out of the old carpet: car parts, building materials, park benches, carpet and carpet pads, and high-energy fuel.

Benefitting from a 2011 California law that charges a fee on carpet sold in the state to fund recycling efforts, The Carpet Recyclers say they’re on track to recycle over 60 million pounds of carpet in 2011.

READ: Calif. Slaps Fee on Carpet to Increase Recycling

Homepage image: Wikimedia Commons, by Quadell

SK Telecom, Korea’s largest wireless carrier, has designed food waste bins with equipment that will weigh food waste to the nearest gram. Photo: Leon Kaye

Are you an avid recycler and a composting fiend who feels burned that you’re still paying the same garbage collection rate as your non-recycling neighbors? Korea has had a pay-as-you-go system for years, and will soon implement an aggressive disposal management system that will charge businesses and residents for the exact amount of food waste they throw away.

Estimates suggest that as much as 40 percent of food in the United States and United Kingdom is wasted. The reasons are all over the map: large portion sizes at restaurants, regulations that make it difficult for retailers to donate fresh food to charities, and confusing “sell by” or “best before” dates that lead too much food going from shelf to garbage bin. This issue is similar in countries that enjoy a high standard of living.

Korea’s rate of overall food waste is comparable to the U.S. and UK. For fans of Korean food, the joys of such a meal are also what contribute to the country’s excessive disposal of food. All those tiny side dishes (pan-chan) from kim chee to glass noodles to fresh greens – not to mention the leftovers from a large restaurant meal of meat dishes like galbi and bulgogi – add to the headaches Korea experiences with waste management.

READ: How to Recycle in a City Without a Program

Overall, Korea has an efficient waste diversion system. Residents and businesses must buy specially labeled garbage bags that are available for purchase everywhere. The less you throw away, the less you spend. Nevertheless, food waste has increased dramatically in Korea as the country has experienced a long economic boom, and therefore the government is taking much stronger measures.

During 2012, the 50 million Koreans will create up to 170,000 tons of food waste daily, or about 350 grams (over 12 ounces) per person per day. The costs are high: The Korean government has estimated that the annual loss of economic value exceeds $1.5 billion. The annual disposal cost for food waste alone in Korea is more than $600 million a year and rising.

Using radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, the food waste bin calculates the fee based on the weight of the container, which is then debited from the user's public transportation card. Photo: Leon Kaye

For years, food waste was treated at sewage plants, which then discharged the resulting grey water out into the sea. And that grey water is not in the country’s long term interests for a country and cuisine that boasts plentiful seafood and seaweed – not to mention the suburb coastline surrounding the country. So, a huge shift is in order beginning in 2013.

Public service announcements have long exhorted Koreans to be more conscious about recycling and waste diversion, but in a country with little landfill space, the Korean government has decided to take more drastic measures. And with the old ways of treating waste disappearing a little over a year from now, Korea’s education ministry is tasked to push for a minimum 20 percent reduction in food waste. Technology will have a strong role.

SK Telecom, Korea’s largest wireless carrier, has designed food waste bins with equipment that will weigh food waste to the nearest gram. Using radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, the bins will then calculate the disposal fee based on the exact weight, which will then be debited from the user’s public transportation card or will be processed for payment on a linked credit card.

READ: RFID Bins are the New Recycling Police

As demonstrated at an RFID trade show I attended in Seoul last month, the process is relatively simple. The user taps the bin’s card reader with his or her assigned card. The disposal lid opens immediately, and allows the user to toss in the table scraps from last night’s dinner. The cover closes, weighs the food waste, and informs the user immediately of the total weight and subsequent fee. The responsibility for collection, transport and treatment of food waste then falls on the company contracted to empty
those bins.

This next step in food waste is remarkable considering how strongly Koreans have embraced recycling. Koreans have to buy four different types of garbage bags depending on the waste they buy and neighbors will rat out neighbors if anyone is straying from following the rules. Stacks of cardboard on street corners eagerly wait pickup every morning, and reminders in Korean that say “Don’t waste wastes!” are emblazoned on garbage bins.

But landfill space is disappearing, and at the same time, Korea is reinventing itself as an exporter of green technology. These RFID waste bins symbolize both changes occurring in the Far East.