Bin sin

Food establishments are resorting to recyclable and reusable utensils and cups to minimize waste going to landfills or the ocean. For example, coffee shop chain Starbucks uses single-use polypropylene (PP) cups in its stores.

Food establishments are resorting to recyclable and reusable utensils and cups to minimize waste going to landfills or the ocean. For example, coffee shop chain Starbucks uses single-use polypropylene (PP) cups in its stores.

PP is a widely traded commodity in the recycling market because it can be granulated, melted down, and reformed into new products without degrading. Moreover, there is an existing infrastructure to process it.

However, environmental nonprofit group Beyond Plastics of Vermont, USA claimed that Starbucks’ PP cups are not recyclable as the company claims, Reuters reports.

The group said it put location trackers on 36 Starbucks recyclable cups earlier this year and placed them in recycling bins inside Starbucks cafes across the country. Of the cups, 33 ​ended up in landfills, incinerators, or on their way to either, instead of recycling plants, with the remainder last seen in sorting facilities, according to Reuters.

A Starbucks spokesperson said Beyond Plastics’ methodology was questionable, while industry groups, including the Association of Plastic Recyclers, said the tracking devices themselves may divert discarded items from recycling streams.

Meanwhile, a man in Japan was arrested on 18 June for putting a non-recyclable item in a rubbish bin at his partner’s home.

According to police, the 35-year-old man admitted to placing his partner’s five-year-old daughter inside the bin and closing the lid for five minutes in Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture, on 12 May, The Straits Times (TST) reports.

His motive was to discipline the girl, who was unharmed.

A child welfare center learned about the incident and notified the police, leading to the arrest, TST reports.

The girl’s older sister has also been taken into the center’s protective custody for her safety, adds TST.