Group to promote plastic materials recycling

Eight companies across the health care recycling and waste-management industries have formed a technical coalition that plans to study and promote cost-effective recycling solutions for plastic products and materials used in health care delivery.

The new Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council (HPRC) is a private technical coalition that includes BD (Becton, Dickinson and Co.), Franklin Lakes, N.J.; Cardinal Health, Dublin, Ohio; Engineered Plastics Inc., Erie, Pa.; DuPont, Wilmington, Del.; Hospira, Lake Forest, Ill.; Johnson & Johnson, New Brunswick, N.J.; Kimberly Clark Corp., Irving, Texas; and Waste Management, Houston.

The group is seeking ways to improve recycling of plastic packaging and products within health care and recover these valuable resources, says Tod Christenson, director, HPRC.

The coalition is engaged in three initiatives. One is to focus on how to remove barriers and challenges associated with recycling, including packaging, product design and use, waste recovery and recycling processing.

A second initiative calls for developing a guidance document that addresses product and packaging design considerations that could enhance recycling potential and value. A third initiative consists of pilot-study programs so hospitals can build a data model to facilitate economic analysis of recycling.

More information is available at www.hprc.com.