Setting the Record Straight on Plastic Recycling
A called for abandoning the Environmental Protection Agency’s national recycling plan. The piece, authored by Howard Husock, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, relies on outdated and misleading claims about plastic recycling. In response, APR President & CEO Steve Alexander penned the following Letter to the Editor to highlight the reality: plastic recycling is not only viable—it’s essential to U.S. jobs, innovation, and supply chains. Rather than dismissing the EPA’s goals, we should be working together to modernize and expand our recycling infrastructure. Read on for APR’s full response.
The recent op-ed, “Lee Zeldin should trash EPA’s national recycling plan,” relies on outdated and misleading claims about plastic recycling. As President and CEO of the Association of Plastic Recyclers, I see firsthand how a strong recycling infrastructure supports U.S. jobs, innovation, and domestic supply chains.
Contrary to the article’s assertions, over 93% of plastics recovered in the U.S. are recycled in North America, not sent overseas. In fact, the U.S. is now a net importer of recycled plastics to meet the growing demand from domestic manufacturers who want to incorporate recycled content.
Why should we abandon the EPA’s recycling goal when it is clear that improved plastic recycling directly supports all five pillars of Zeldin’s EPA’s Powering the Great American Comeback initiative? It reduces pollution, enhances energy independence, fosters innovation, streamlines regulations, and even strengthens U.S. auto manufacturing. A robust recycling system ensures that valuable materials remain in our economy, fueling industries that drive American prosperity and innovation.
This shift in the recycling landscape underscores the critical role that recycled materials play in strengthening domestic supply chains. In 2022 alone, North American recyclers kept over 5 billion pounds of plastic out of landfills and put back into manufacturing new products, ensuring that valuable material remains here. Today, nearly 40% of U.S. manufacturing inputs come from recycled materials, including steel, paper, glass, and plastics. The auto industry, in particular, depends on recycling, with up to two-thirds of a vehicle’s components made from recycled content.
The economic benefits of recycling are also well-documented. The industry directly employs over 171,000 Americans (with wages and benefits averaging nearly $80,000 annually) and indirectly supports an additional 425,000 jobs. It is responsible for $7.16 billion in state and local tax revenues and $11.55 billion in federal taxes each year.
At the same time, it takes at least 75% less energy to make a plastic bottle using recycled plastic compared to one with newly made plastic, helping to strengthen U.S. energy independence by allowing domestic energy resources to be allocated more efficiently. The industry is also rapidly integrating AI and robotics, a market expected to reach $5 billion by 2030, further driving American leadership in innovation.
Recycling isn’t an “either-or” proposition. The U.S. can—and should—expand all forms of material recovery, including e-waste recycling, which complements rather than competes with plastics recycling.
The only thing we need to trash is the outdated notion that recycling is only an environmental objective—it always has, and will continue to be, a foundation of stronger domestic manufacturing in every region of the country. Rather than dismissing the EPA’s national recycling goal, we should be working together to expand and modernize our recycling infrastructure. Doing so will reduce waste, strengthen domestic supply chains, support American jobs, and maintain U.S. competitiveness in the global economy.