The term “chemical recycling” refers to a wide range of technologies that process recovered plastic products (including packaging) into new plastic, as well as energy and/or fuel. These technologies have become a lightning rod: Producers claim they leapfrog mechanical recycling by enabling infinite processing, while environmental groups allege that they undermine efforts to reduce plastic through upstream redesign and are simply another form of greenwashing.

Meanwhile, government policy makers tasked with passing legislation or issuing permits for chemical recycling projects lack criteria to assess their economic, environmental, and human health impacts."Making Sense of Chemical Recycling,” PSI’s new report, aims to fill that gap. The report will launch after the webinar on November 17th.

During the webinar, our expert panel will discuss the wide range of technologies that fall under the chemical recycling umbrella and consider criteria to determine which, if any, can support a sustainable economy, prevent waste and pollution, and curb greenhouse gas emissions.

The EPR Masterclass webinar series is presented by the Extended Producer Responsibility Alliance (EXPRA). Founded in 2013, EXPRA is the authoritative voice and common policy platform representing the interests of 26 packaging and packaging waste recovery and recycling systems from 24 countries in Europe.