China's packaging waste recycling system and regulations (1)

[Abstract] This article analyzes the current situation of packaging waste recycling in China, proposes a model of packaging waste recycling system, and elaborates the structure and operating mechanism of the recycling system. Finally, it is recommended that the external environment for the recovery of packaging waste be improved through the government's macro regulation and control, formulation and improvement of packaging and packaging waste recycling regulations, and raising public awareness of environmental protection.

[Key words] resource packaging, waste recycling system, packaging regulations

Environmental protection and the rational use of resources are an urgent and arduous task. Packing waste is a source of pollution, but it is also a resource that can be used. At present, the recycling of packaging waste has attracted the attention of all countries in the world. There are numerous research conferences and research materials related to packaging waste disposal. In China, due to the rapid development of the packaging industry, the problem of packaging waste has become increasingly prominent. However, China has not yet established a scientific and complete waste recycling and treatment system, and the laws and regulations for the recycling of packaging wastes have yet to be improved. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to and study the recycling of packaging waste.

I. Ecological and economic benefits of packaging waste recycling

The packaging sector is the sector with the highest rate of conversion of various materials into waste. The recycling of packaging waste has both economic purposes: it turns waste into treasure, and also has the purpose of protecting ecological balance. The economic and environmental value of Beijing's daily living garbage can be recovered as follows: 1,500 tons of waste paper, if recycled, it can produce 1,200 tons of good paper, save 6,000 cubic meters of wood, use less than 360 tons of soda ash, and reduce the pollution discharge of paper by 75%. Saving 770,000 degrees; waste glass about 1,500 tons, if recycled glass manufacturing, can save 100 tons of quartz sand, use less 375 tons of soda ash, save 90 tons of feldspar powder, coal 150 tons, saving 600,000 degrees.

The fastest growing paper packaging materials in packaging materials have become the focus of development and utilization because of their obvious ecological benefits and economic benefits. According to the current recovery level, recycling 140,000 tons of cartons a year will save 80,000 tons of coal, 49 million tons of coal, 23.8 tons of pulp and straw, and 11,000 tons of caustic soda.

The facts show that using renewable resources such as packaging waste to reprocess materials can greatly save primary resources, reduce energy consumption, and reduce environmental pollution. According to statistics, when using scrap iron, waste aluminum cans, waste paper, etc. to reconstruct steel, aluminum, paper, etc., the proportion of energy that can be saved, the proportion of air and pollution reduction are quite astonishing, as shown in Table 1. .

Table 1 Ratio of Energy Savings and Air, Water Pollution Reduction

From Table 1, it can be seen that the recycling of packaging waste can bring incalculable ecological, economic, and social benefits. While reducing production costs and pollution, it also maintains ecological balance. Moreover, the establishment of a new recycling system or a new industry will provide more employment opportunities for our country. Today, there are more than 80,000 scavengers in Beijing and there are budgets for experts. If Beijing seriously develops the waste industry, the direct economic benefits will be at least 1.12 billion yuan, and the employment problem of 100,000 people will be solved.

Second, the status of recycling waste packaging in China

At present, the annual amount of packaging waste in China is about 16 million tons, and it is still growing at a rate of more than 105 per year. The recycling rate of other packaging wastes is quite low except for beer bottles and plastic turnover boxes. The entire packaging product is very low. The recovery rate is still less than 20% of the total output of the packaged product. This has led to many problems such as the massive consumption of natural resources, the disposal of waste, the increase in waste management pressure, and the environmental impact of waste. In recent years, under the guidance of relevant national and local government authorities' policies and regulations, the recycling of packaging waste in China has made great progress, but the overall situation is not optimistic.

Problems with recycling

(1) The classification and recycling of packaging waste in China is seriously lagging behind

At present, there is almost no work on the classification of garbage in Chengdu. All kinds of packaging waste and kitchen waste are mixed together, and it is difficult to use the available resources because they are buried or incinerated. China's state-owned recycling system has been dismantled. Although there is a spontaneous private recycling system, it does not have specialized sorting and processing methods. The classification of packaging waste is entirely based on manual sorting, which cannot achieve accurate classification, making it difficult to carry out later processing, and even processing can only obtain very primitive and rough products. Moreover, since there is no dedicated classified waste recovery box, the waste recovery process is not only complicated but also the waste is generally re-contaminated. For example, China's polyester (PET) processing and processing companies have chosen to import foreign waste PET bottles instead of domestic waste PET bottles.

(2) The chaos of recycling of packaging products in China

China's past garbage classification tradition is supported by a recycling system that relies on a single government administrative action. In recent years, due to economic and conceptual reasons, the original recycling system and channels have been ineffective, and the recycling system based on the market has not yet been established. Commercial, light industry, street, civil affairs, supply and marketing departments all engage in recycling work. Among them, the recycling of paper and glass is also acceptable, and the recycling of plastics and metal containers is poor. However, most of the recovered products were sold by self-employed individuals and idlers to small paper mills, small aluminum plants, and small plastic granulating plants opened everywhere. The utilization rate is very low, resources are wasted, energy is wasted, wastes are made, and secondary pollution is serious.

(to be continued)