OPINION: Boris Johnson says plastic recycling ‘doesn’t work’ (and he’s not entirely wrong)

By SunSkips managing director Mat Stewart

You might have been surprised to hear Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s recent comments about recycling at a press conference that created quite a stir in the waste management and recycling industries.

Recycling advocates were quick to express their disappointment when the PM outright said that recycling doesn’t work, with many fearing that the statement would seriously set back recycling advocacy, something that’s taken decades to gain ground in the UK.

But while I personally don’t agree that recycling “doesn’t work”, I thought it might be worth unpacking what the PM actually said and if there’s any truth behind it at all.

Incendiary statement

Firstly, it goes without saying that outbursts like this from Boris Johnson are par for the course and I wonder if sometimes it’s more about shining a light on a topic than the blanket statement it appears to be.

Because he certainly got people talking… The Recycling Association was particularly put out by his comments, saying Mr Johnson had “completely lost the plastic plot”.

But I think it’s his wording that’s the main issue here because recycling is far too complex a topic to speak about in such absolutes. It’s just the way he is, I suppose…

To be fair, he did go on to say the only answer is that “we’ve all got to cut down on our use of plastic.” Then after the press conference – which was held for a special audience of eight to 12-year-olds – a Downing Street spokesperson was quick to backtrack on Mr Johnson’s comments slightly, saying, “Simply relying on recycling alone, as the prime minister set out, would be a red herring. We need to go further and take wider action.”

It’s also important to note the context in which the prime minister was speaking: climate change. Recycling does far more good for the planet than curbing climate change, including keeping harmful plastic out of the oceans and the countryside.

I think what he’s trying to say (in his way) is that we do need to focus on reducing our plastic consumption as a priority. And whether you like how he said it or not, it’s hard to argue that this isn’t the case.

Boris Johnson clearly has issues with recycling, and he’s not entirely wrong…

The challenges of recycling plastic

One of the most obvious issues with recycling plastic is the fact that there are only so many times you can recycle the material before the polymers break down and become useless (usually two to three).

Recycling plastic is also expensive and consumes a lot of energy (although significantly less than creating virgin plastics).

Then there’s contamination. In Suffolk, for example, about 10,000 tonnes of waste collected for recycling is rejected at the plant every year, which is about 20% of what they process. On top of that, cleaning up the contaminated materials costs taxpayers in the county more than £1m a year!

Plastic bottles need to be rinsed out and things like crisp packets and salad bags can’t actually be recycled in most domestic collections. A lot of people throw it all in anyway, probably without even knowing they’re doing it wrong, causing huge problems at the plant.

There was a recent interview in the Sunday Times with Virador manager Veekram Mohabeer that illustrates the serious challenges inherent in recycling plastic. He explained that the biggest issue with recycling plastic is that not everything coming through on the conveyor belt is actually recyclable plastic. The screening line has to be equipped with infrared sensors designed to detect lithium-ion batteries (like those used in smartphones) because not only can they not be recycled with the plastic, they’re also highly combustible.

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to contamination. At SunSkips, we sent some plastic off the other day that came back because it needed a more thorough cleaning. Then there are really tricky things like plastic road barriers, which are inevitably dirty because they’ve been on the ground around traffic.

In fact, most of the plastic we process at SunSkips is going to be covered in dirt of some kind, but there are alternative ways of repurposing the material. A lot of our soft plastic waste goes off to be processed into SRF fuel, which is used in industrial kilns. It’s not really an issue that it’s contaminated, as long as it burns.

So I’m not saying that recycling plastic is the road to salvation by any means, but there are things we can do to make the process more efficient and get the most out of it before writing it off completely.

A focus on packaging

Plastic packaging such as bottles and films are the biggest culprits ending up in landfill and oceans, which is why the PM is saying that we need to stop producing it in the first place.

But that’s far easier said than done…

Big corporations like drinks manufacturers are often touting new recycled packaging while continuing to export to countries that simply don’t have the means to establish robust recycling schemes.

Meat packaging is another big issue because it can’t be recycled and suitable alternatives that keep the food just as fresh have yet to be adopted. Supermarket plastics include all sorts of films that have different types of polymers in them. There are talks of a new cardboard that can hold liquid so you don’t need to use plastic to contaminate an otherwise recyclable material, but innovations like this aren’t usually adopted very quickly.

And even then, consumer habits play a major part. Can we really rely on shops to put pressure on customers to bring in their own containers? Should shoppers be forced to buy a loaf of bread without the packaging? Are people even going to buy ham in environmentally friendly packets?

These issues have economic implications that require smart solutions, so as far as I’m concerned, promoting recycling as an essential step is still the way to go.

So does plastic recycling work or not?

There’s no denying that Mr Johnson has lit the touch paper with people that are recycling plastics, but did it work to get people looking at the problem from a different perspective?

As I’ve already mentioned at length, recycling is not without its challenges, but it’s important to take into account that there are several different levels of quality when it comes to recycling.

But getting back to the main point of whether the PM has impacted the public’s trust in recycling, I would say that he probably hasn’t.

In fact, there is an argument that too many people do think we can “recycle our way out of this”, as Mr Johnson put it himself at the press conference, and that belief encourages industries to keep pumping it out.

That being said, there are five “Rs” of waste management (refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, recycle) for a reason. There are several steps that both individuals and businesses should take in order to not have to get to the final step of recycling. But in reality, we still live in a world where we inevitably end up with plastic to dispose of, and it’s better off in the recycling bin than the general rubbish.

My opinion is that if Mr Johnson follows up his comments with policy that can effectively reduce plastic at source, that would be very positive for the country indeed.

SunSkips is always looking into innovative new methods to divert as much waste as possible from landfill. Always choose to work with waste management companies that demonstrate their concern for the environment and work in ways that are part of the solution.

Feature photo 📸: Arno Mikkor