The recycling of petroleum plastic has a dark side, one little known to most consumers. The majority of the plastics we recycle, regardless of type, end up in China, where worker safety standards are virtually non existent and materials are processed under dirty, primitive conditions. Consumers may falsely believe that "recycling" our plastics through curbside pickup is an important way to help save our environment. However, consumers should be aware of the fact that plastic disposed of in this way is not truly recycled. Plastics recycled this way can only be used a few more times, if at all, before being discarded, often by being shipped to developing countries that must accept our garbage for the income it provides.
The unfortunate truth is that most petroleum plastics cannot be effectively recycled. So although a given yogurt cup may have a logo on the bottom of the "chasing arrow" symbol signifying "recyclability", it may still not be truly recyclable. Actually, the designation on the bottom of any given product is useful only to designate the type of plastic from which it is manufactured. As the degradation of petroleum plastic in the recycling process is severe, "virgin" petroleum resin must always be added in future incarnations of "recycled" plastic products. For water bottles alone, approximately 70% of virgin resin must be added to make an additional "generation" of bottles.
Many items cannot be recycled at all, such as containers for sour cream, cottage cheese, butter, frozen meals, pet food bags, garbage bags, plates, and eating utensils, cups and lids, to name a few.
