Polystyrene (or else recognized by the brand of Styrofoam) is among the largest worldwide factors to landfill waste. In order to minimize waste and make certain that polystyrene is recycled, it's important to know how you can recycle and dispose of polystyrene.

What Type of Products Use Polystyrene?

Polystyrene is used in nearly every kind of packaging material that you can think of. From food to household products and bulky items, it's a preferred selection because it's cheap, lightweight, and reliable.

A few of the most usual places where you can find polystyrene include:

Packaging materials

Insulation products

Food packaging

Food containers and tableware

Egg cartons (although this is diminishing)

Helmets (motorbike and push bike)

Swimming flotation devices and structures

Disposable medical products

Regardless of the ecological concerns associated with polystyrene use, demand shows no signs of slowing down primarily because of the increasing trend towards online shopping.

Can you Recycle Polystyrene in Australia?

Polystyrene cannot be recycled from your kerbside residential recycling container. While some councils supply special pickup services for polystyrene product packaging, you can't put it in your normal recycling container.

You can dispose of polystyrene in your household rubbish container, yet it will certainly not be recycled. Polystyrene that ends up in your rubbish will usually contribute to our landfill-- so attempt to avoid it.

Exactly How Can I Correctly Dispose of Polystyrene?

Never ever put polystyrene items in your house recycling bin (the one with the yellow cover). Polystyrene should be securely put and secured in a bag prior to being disposed of in your red bin.

*Remember: Polystyrene that ends up in your red lid household waste bin will not be recycled.

For residential addresses dealing with a small amount of polystyrene, after that putting it in your rubbish bin might be an alternative (although not a fantastic choice for the environment). For residential disposal, it's essential that your secure polystyrene before disposing. Given how light it is, there is a good chance that unsecured polystyrene will end up being blown away before it can be collected.

Businesses that handle a big amount of packaging materials could invest a polystyrene recycling machine that can help with recycling polystyrene. Stuffing it in your waste container isn't a terrific seek any business-- so it's crucial that you do your part to appropriately recycle polystyrene packaging waste.

How are Polystyrene Products Different from Other Waste?

Polystyrene and other Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) are problematic because they can take hundreds of years to break down in landfill. Not just does it take centuries to break down at landfill, there's also a possibility that it will be taken by the wind and end up in our seas and waterways.

Although that EPS products are comprised of 98% air, the latest estimates indicate that polystyrene products occupy around 25-30% of space in our landfills. It's additionally approximated that someplace between 60-80% of all marine litter originates from Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) items.

The GREENMAX Screw Compactor is a versatile solution developed to compact polystyrene (including EPS, EPP, EPE, XPS and PUR) and is utilized in a series of applications including the fish industry (fish boxes), construction, waste handling and for used packaging. The compaction process conserves space at a rate of 50:1 which reduces transport costs and transforms a waste item into beneficial material which can be used in the production of new products.

Waste material is fed into the hopper and the screw breaks down and compresses the material so that the air is squeezed out greatly decreasing the volume. For the majority of items a dense, stackable block is achieved which can be easily stored and transported.

The EPS compactors from GREENMAX do not use heat-- and they utilize extremely little electrical energy in general.

INTCO Recycling GREENMAX Projects

INTCO Recycling GREENMAX Projects are sector specialists in engineering innovative and advanced recycling plants. We work very closely with our clients to create bespoke solutions to meet their specific needs. From initial concepts, design and build and through to delivery, installation and after care, we are with you every step of the way. INTCO Recycling will buy back your compacted foam blocks and remake them into new products, so you don't have to worry about no one buying your compacted materials.

For help with your waste and recycling needs, contact us today.