First Low-Grade Plastics Recycling Center Opens
The nation's first facility for recycling low-grade plastic waste has opened in Järva County thanks to an Estonian-developed technology that drastically reduces sorting problems.
The facility - a joint venture of municipal waste company Väätsa Prügila and recycling specialists Rexest Grupp - will use raw materials, mainly composed of household waste, to produce plastic flakes that can be used to create everything from lawn furniture to construction materials.
Rexest Grupp Chairman Aarne Saarevali told ERR News that the age-old problem in recycling this grade of plastic is that there are a number of different types, each of which would have to be recycled in a separate process. Most recycling companies have been reluctant to handle this grade of plastic because of the difficulties involved in sorting the waste.
His company's technology allows various types of packaging, such as yogurt tops, plastic bags and ketchup bottles to be processed together, thus eliminating the sorting headache.
The facility will initially only take in waste from central Estonia, but Saarevali said that if the business is successful, his company is looking at expansion.
Elsewhere, low-grade plastic continues to be sent to landfills or burned.
Steve Roman