The environmental, economic, and social impacts of recycling are substantial, from reducing greenhouse gas emissions and conserving resources to creating jobs and driving economic growth. However, the complexity of recycling policies, the limitations of plastic recycling, and varying levels of public participation present ongoing obstacles.
The following statistics offer a comprehensive look at the current state of recycling in the U.S. and globally starting from 1950.
Top Recycling Stats
- Study estimates that humans ingest up to five grams or the equivalent of one credit card worth of plastic per week.
- Plastic production and disposal release greenhouse gases equivalent to the output of 189 coal-fired power plants.
- As of 2021, the U.S. recycling rate for plastic is estimated to be only 5-6%.
- The global plastic recycling rate is only 9%.
- In 2021, the U.S. generated 51 million tons of plastic waste, of which only 2.4 million tons were recycled.
- Only 4 out of 93 Amazon packages tracked reached a facility that could potentially recycle them, with no confirmation of actual recycling.
- Using recycled plastics in manufacturing saves up to 88% of the energy needed to produce plastics from virgin materials.
- Recycling 1 ton of plastic bottles reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 3,380 lbs., which is the equivalent of 173 gallons of gasoline.
- In 2021, 17 million metric tons of plastic waste entered the ocean.
- The break-even point for recycling many plastics is a price of $1,000 per ton.
- For commodity plastics, including PVC, the costs of recycling or recovery either overlap or are greater than the selling price.
- Only 1-14% of plastic material that is processed through “advanced recycling” can be used to manufacture a new plastic product.
- 20 companies are responsible for 55% of the world’s single-use plastic waste.
1. Environmental Impact and Pollution
In 2021, recycling in the U.S. prevented millions of metric tons of CO₂ emissions, with states like Florida and New York making significant contributions. Yet, despite these efforts, plastic pollution remains a critical environmental crisis.
Each year, millions of tons of plastic enter oceans, affecting marine ecosystems and even human health as microplastics make their way into our food and water.
- In 2021, recycling avoided 79 million metric tons of CO₂ emissions in the U.S.
- Recycling efforts in Alabama helped avoid 742,000 metric tons of CO₂ emissions in 2021.
- Florida’s recycling efforts avoided 5.6 million metric tons of CO₂ emissions in 2021.
- Recycling efforts in New York prevented 4.5 million metric tons of CO₂ emissions in 2021.
- Using recycled plastics in manufacturing saves up to 88% of the energy needed to produce plastics from virgin materials.
- Recycling 1 ton of plastic bottles reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 3,380 lbs., equivalent to 173 gallons of gasoline.
- One study estimates that humans ingest up to five grams or the equivalent of one credit card worth of plastic per week.
- Plastic pollution is one of the most serious environmental crises today. Between 1950 and 2015, over 90% of plastics were landfilled, incinerated, or leaked into the environment.
- Plastic production and disposal release greenhouse gases equivalent to the output of 189 coal-fired power plants.
- 20 companies are responsible for 55% of the world’s single-use plastic waste.
- In 2021, 17 million metric tons of plastic waste entered the ocean.
Sources: ISRI, ScienceDirect, Ball Corporation, Science Advances, ANSI, EPA, The Conversation
2. Recycling Rates, Performance, and Challenges
Recycling plays a crucial role in reducing waste and conserving resources, but the statistics reveal significant gaps in the effectiveness of current systems. From collection inefficiencies to the limitations of plastic recycling, these statistics illustrate the stark realities and challenges facing recycling programs across the U.S. and globally.
- Only 32% of non-bottle PET and 89% of aluminum from single-stream collections are actually recycled.
- Maine has the highest recycling rate without FFP at 65% and captures 65% of material value.
- New York achieves a recycling rate of 61% in aluminum recycling and 43% in closed-loop recycling without FFP.
- In 2021, Alabama recycled only 8% of packaging materials without FFP; with FFP, this rate increases to 22%.
- Currently, 52% of recyclable material in Alabama is processed in a closed-loop system, meaning it can be reused within the same type of product cycle.
- In 2021, Florida recycled 17% of packaging materials without FFP; this increases to 36% when FFP is considered.
- In 2021, New York achieved a 44% recycling rate for packaging materials without FFP, increasing to 50% with FFP included.
- In 2022, the domestic sector generated 1,856,000 tonnes of waste, showing a slight increase from 1,823,000 tonnes in 2021.
- At least 1 billion pounds of U.S. plastic bags and film were collected for recycling in 2017, up 54% since 2005.
- More than 60% of the aluminum consumed by U.S. mills comes from scrap.
- Between 2018 and 2022, the non-domestic sector consistently generated more waste than the domestic sector, with an average difference of around 3,600,000 tonnes per year.
- The highest recycling rate recorded in the U.S. was 35.2% in 2017, marking a period of stagnation in recycling growth.
- 23% of U.S. residents in multi-family housing lack access to recycling programs, compared to 3% of those in single-family homes.
- The 2021 recycling rate for the State of Nevada was 24%.
- States like Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont have moderate residential recycling rates, capturing 30%, 26%, and 25% of recyclable materials, respectively.
- Louisiana and Alabama have some of the lowest recycling rates at 8%, with Mississippi and Wyoming slightly higher at 9%, capturing less than 10% of recyclable materials.
- The reported national recycling rate was initially 57% in 2021, but after adjustments for non-municipal and industrial waste exclusion, Singapore’s municipal recycling rate was adjusted down to 27%.
- 50% of aluminum cans in the U.S. are recycled, making them a commonly recycled item.
- 29% of PET plastic beverage bottles are recycled across the U.S., showing a relatively low recycling rate for these items.
- Only 4 out of 93 Amazon packages tracked reached a facility that could potentially recycle them, with no confirmation of actual recycling.
- In 2023, Bloomberg Green tracked Amazon packages with 40% ending up in landfills across ten U.S. states.
- In an investigation, 50% of plastic bags dropped off at Target and Walmart stores ended up in landfills or incinerators.
- Across two rounds of tracking, most Amazon plastic packaging was either landfilled or incinerated, showing recycling inefficiencies.
- The vast majority of plastics cannot be ‘recycled’—meaning they cannot be collected, processed, and remanufactured into new products.
- Municipal recycling programs across the country may collect plastics, but they do not actually recycle them.
- As of 2021, the U.S. recycling rate for plastic is estimated to be only 5-6%.
- PET bottles cannot be recycled with PET clamshells and other thermoforms, which are made from a PET material with different chemical properties.
- Green PET bottles cannot be recycled with clear PET bottles.
- Only 1-14% of plastic material processed through ‘advanced recycling’ can be used to manufacture a new plastic product.
- The peak plastic recycling rate in the U.S. was reached in 2014 at 9.5%.
- In 2021, the U.S. generated 51 million tons of plastic waste, of which only 2.4 million tons were recycled.
- In 2021, the top 100 cities in the U.S. recycled an average of 8.2% of their discarded plastics.
- There are only three ‘advanced recycling’ facilities that are commercially operational in the U.S.
- By 1990, the NPRC’s plant was processing 40 million pounds of polystyrene annually.
- The break-even point for recycling many plastics is a price of $1,000 per ton.
- The global plastic recycling rate is only 9%.
- The U.S. plastic bag recycling rate is less than 5%.
- A 2022 report by Beyond Plastics found that plastic recycling is ‘a failed concept’.
- A 2020 Greenpeace report found that most plastic cannot be recycled.
- A 2019 investigation by The Guardian found that Americans’ plastic recycling was being dumped in landfills.
Sources: Ball Corporation, ISRI Plastic Factsheet, ISRI Non-Ferrous, NEA, ResearchGate, Sustainable Packaging, Nevada Legislative, Recycling Partnership, TOMRA, NBER, Truth in Recycling, EPA, City of Knoxville, Beyond Plastics Report, Beyond Plastics Publication, ACS, Greenpeace, American Chemistry Council Press, Digital Hagley, The New York Times, The Guardian
3. Economic Impact and Potential
From rising material prices to job creation within the recycling sector, these statistics highlight the economic potential of recycling and the investment required to scale up recycling efforts effectively.
- The U.S. has $6.5 billion in untapped economic potential from recyclable material in landfills.
- Implementing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and Recycling Refund (RR) programs could generate $1 billion in total annual economic benefits for Alabama.
- With EPR+RR, New York could capture $410.6 million in material value annually and achieve $975.6 million in greenhouse gas impact reduction.
- The United States exported $10.6 billion worth of non-ferrous scrap in 2019 to more than 95 countries.
- The national average price for cleaned, crushed, and baled aluminum cans was $1,550 per ton in September 2021, up from $915 per ton in September 2020, showing a 1.69-fold increase.
- In Canada, recycling is projected to grow by approximately 3.5 times, outpacing mining growth projected at about 1.5 times by 2060.
- In USA, recycling is set to grow around 3 times, with mining expected to grow just under 1.5 times by 2060.
- The global chemical recycling market size was valued at USD 4.2 billion in 2021.
- For commodity plastics, including PVC, the costs of recycling or recovery either overlap or are greater than the selling price.
- Global investment in plastic factories totaled $180 billion in 2017.
- 75% of virgin plastic production in the U.S. is concentrated in Texas and Louisiana.
- The U.S. plastic recycling industry employs roughly 30,000 people.
- The global plastics recycling market size was valued at USD 45.2 billion in 2022.
- The break-even point for recycling many plastics is a price of $1,000 per ton.
Sources: ISRI Non-Ferrous, NBER, OECD, Toxic Docs, Ball Corporation, Beyond Plastics, The Guardian, American Chemistry Council, ACC and SPI, Digital Hagley, Greenpeace, ABC News
4. Recycling Programs, Policies, and Initiatives
Recycling refund programs, often known as “bottle bills,” have a notable impact on recycling rates and the success of closed-loop systems. The following statistics shed light on the role of RR states and the ongoing challenges in reaching industry targets.
- States with Recycling Refunds (RR) recycle 47% of all packaging, compared to 27% in states without them.
- Closed-loop recycling covers 34% of materials in RR states but only 7% in non-RR states.
- 27% of the U.S. population resides in RR states, which significantly contribute to national recycling.
- The RR states account for 47% of all packaging recycled nationally, excluding FFP.
- 60% of PET bottles recycled nationally come from U.S. RR states.
- 51% of glass bottles, jars, and aluminum cans recycled nationally are from U.S. RR states.
- 66% of closed-loop recycling nationally is achieved by the U.S. RR states.
- 25.8% of Amazon’s plastic packaging bundles were sent to Trex, a company that repurposes plastic film into products.
- ExxonMobil’s recent ‘advanced recycling’ capacity target is 1 billion pounds by 2026.
- The ACC announced a goal in 2018 for 100% of plastic packaging to be recyclable or recoverable by 2030, and 100% reused, recycled, or recovered by 2040.
- The National Polystyrene Recycling Company (NPRC) invested $20 million in a polystyrene recycling plant in 1989.
- The Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO) implemented a recycling education campaign in 2012 with a budget of $25,000.
- The plastics industry has spent millions of dollars lobbying against plastic bans and regulations.
- Some environmental groups argue that ‘advanced recycling’ is not a real solution to the plastic waste problem.
- Some environmental groups argue that ‘advanced recycling’ is often just a way to incinerate plastic waste.
- The industry’s goal to recycle 25% of plastic bottles and containers by 1995 was abandoned in 1995.
Sources: Truth in Recycling, ExxonMobil Annual, Ball Corporation, ExxonMobil News, Plastics Today, Plastics News, CBS, GreenpeaceNRDC, Plastics News
Covering Up
From these 80 recycling stats, one thing is clear: while recycling has made strides, there’s a serious disconnect between what’s possible and what’s actually happening. Despite ambitious industry goals, issues like the high cost of processing, contamination, and public access hurdles remain massive roadblocks.
These stats make it clear: a stronger commitment to policy, technology, and public education is essential if we’re serious about a waste-free future.