How many people today grab a takeaway coffee cup from the local cafe to drink on the go? We don’t know, but the number must be enormous.. Most every one of the above have a plastic top that will last 100s of years. Some cafes still use plastic cups that last a similar time. Is 10 minutes of coffee worth 100s of years of trash?
These items can be seen littering our gutters and on our streets all over the place. If they were all cardboard, they would still be littered, but they would, at least, be gone in a short time.
They do not need to be made of plastic.
On the way home from the gym last week, a distance of about 1 km (1/2 mile), I counted the items of plastic litter on the curb as I walked. In that short distance I counted 63 pieces of plastic litter. Plastic drink bottles, bottle tops, candy wrappers, plastic film, polystyrene fragments etc. That seemed to be a lot to me. I guess it is a generational thing. Our parents would have been horrified to see that amount, whereas it seems to go unnoticed by our youth of today. In another 20 years how many pieces will there be on this stretch, -- 200? What will today’s youth think of that new amount then when they are older? Will their children be so readily accepting of a higher amount of litter? 
Soft plastics crisis hits Sydney council – Australia
Posted on January 31, 2023 by DrRossH in Plastic Recycling
Hornsby Shire Council, based in north-west Sydney, are asking people for proof of residency if they want to drop off soft/hard plastics and styrofoam at its Thornleigh Community Recycling Centre. Quantity limits for residents of one normal shopping bag full of soft plastics (40cmx40cm bag) per week have also been put into place.
The change comes off the back of the November 2022 postponement of soft plastics recycling scheme, REDcycle which collected soft plastics from Coles and Woolworths. With the close of this service, councils and residents across Sydney are struggling to find alternative collection services for their soft plastics as they try to maintain their recycling practices.
Due to the scarcity of alternative collection systems in Sydney, Hornsby’s CRC has faced a spike in users of the facility. The quantity of soft plastics has more than doubled since November 2022 and based on the increasing trend, it is estimated the CRC facility will accept around 50-80 tonnes of soft plastic material over the next 12 months.
The council has established a partnership with Plasmar, a plastics recycling specialist, which sorts soft plastics, pelletises them and then makes a range of products including posts, boards, sleepers, bollards, wheel stops and other construction materials. Plasmar’s Sydney factory has a limited capacity to accept soft plastics, with the rapidly increasing demand on its services, needs to cap the quantities being accepted.
Residents from outside Hornsby Shire will no longer be able to drop off their soft plastics, hard plastics and Styrofoam at the Thornleigh CRC. Residents from outside the Shire should contact their local council to find out more about recycling services within their LGA.
Read more: Plastics bag ban comes into effect
Council’s Mayor, Philip Ruddock AO has called on both the State and Federal Governments to do more to urgently address the soft plastics crisis.
“Both State and Federal levels of government have Plastics Action Plans and it is critical that further funds are invested in recycling services that allow the sorting, processing and remanufacturing of our soft plastics into beneficial products that can be used in our circular economy,” Ruddock said.
“It is time that government looks to regulate the packaging industry and to heavily invest in the necessary remanufacturing facilities that can turn our waste into useful resources. If our recycling systems are going to meet community demand, State and Federal Governments must invest in the rapid expansion of soft and hard plastics sorting and remanufacturing facilities such as Plasmar’s.”
Users of the CRC from outside the Hornsby Shire LGA will no longer be able to drop off their soft plastics, hard plastics and Styrofoam at the facility. However, they are still welcome to bring other materials for recycling including cardboard, paint and e-waste.
Residents will also be subject to a weekly limit of one normal shopping bag full of soft plastics (40cmx40cm bag) per week.
The new rules came into effect as of 8:30am on Friday, 27 January 2023. CRC facility staff will accept either a Hornsby Shire Council issued rates notice or driver’s license proving residence in Hornsby Shire.
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