Page 42 - Plastics News October 2021

INTERNATIoNAL NEwS

Saudi looks to greener pastures as it boosts California to reduce

recycling investment Plastic waste

alifornia Governor Gavin
CNewsom has signed several bills
intended to combat plastic waste in the
state and promote a more sustainable
and renewable economy. Among the
laws to take effect on 1 January is
Senate Bill 343, which bans the use
of misleading recycling labels and
implements other measures to reduce
single-use waste pollution and support
recycling goals. Senator Ben Allen,
the bill’s author, said: “Consumers are

audi Arabia will look to invest recycling and electronics."The company being misled by the placement of the
Salmost SR24 billion ($6.4bn) in is also working with legislators and recycling symbol on items that aren’t
waste recycling by 2035 as the country regulators to separate waste from the actually recyclable under real-world
attempts to move to a more sustainable source by placing dedicated containers, conditions. “By enforcing truth in
waste management system.It will invest organizing transportation and waste labelling and empowering consumers
around SR1.3 billion ($346.6 million) collection operations, building sorting to make informed decisions, this
in construction and demolition waste, and treatment stations, as well as measure will reduce contamination
and about SR900 million in industrial making use of non-recyclable waste to in the recycling stream and improve
waste, while investments in municipal produce alternative fuels and energy, and the sorting process, which incidentally
solid waste will exceed SR20 billion, converting organic waste into organic translates to big savings for ratepayers
and investments in other waste will fertilizers for agriculture," Al-Shiha and local governments.”
exceed SR1.6 billion, Saudi Investment said."This enhances the added value
Recycling Company (SIRC) CEO, and reduces the cost of environmental
Ziyad Al-Shiha said. Saudi Arabia had degradation, which is estimated at SR86
5 percent of its total waste recycled billion annually," he said. He stated that
from the beginning of 2020 until the the company is keen to attract foreign
first half of this year 2021, including direct investments worth SR6 billion,
plastic, metal and paper, Al-Shiha create 23,000 jobs, and contribute an
said. The PIF-owned company amount of SR37 billion to the national
started investing in projects specifically GDP. He pointed out that the share
designed to increase conversion rates of foreign investment in the field of
and recycling operations by establishing recycling at the present time is relatively
alliances with private sector companies "low", compared to other sectors,
specialized in this field He pointed out especially that the recycling market in Also signed by Governor Newsom
that there is cooperation with leading Saudi Arabia is still nascent, and the were Assembly Bills 652, 962 and
local companies such as SABIC and number of local specialized companies 1200. Assembly Bill 652, introduced
Aramco in the recycling of plastic in this field is still limited. One form of by Assemblymember Laura Friedman,
waste, and Maaden in the recycling of value-add is ‘waste-to-energy’, whereby will ban the use of toxic perfluoroalkyl
mining waste, and several companies garbage, raw sewage or industrial and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
in the building materials sector in sludge can be dried and incinerated. in products for children. By approving
the field using waste to produce SIRC recently signed a Memorandum this bill, California has become the
alternative fuels, as well as a group of Understanding with the NWC to seventh US state to ban the use of
of companies in the field of metal process raw sewage for just this purpose. PFAS in food packaging.

42 PLASTICS NEWS OCTOBER 2021 43 PLASTICS NEWS OCTOBER 2021