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The Western Capes first PET (PoIyEthylene Terephthalate) bottle-to-bottle recycling facility is set to start operating by next year, projected to add an extra 15,000 tonnes per annum of food-grade recycled PET output capacity.
The announcement was made on the sidelines of the opening day of the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) in Cape Town on Monday.
Producer responsibility organisation, Petco, and recycling partner Extrupet gave Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Bernice Swarts a site tour of the under construction R300 million (around $17m) PET processing facility that "represents a first-of-its-kind technology for Africa."
Extrupet joint Managing Director Chandru Wadhwani said 64% of South Africas PET plastic bottles are currently collected for recycling.
"With this increased capacity, we will be able to accommodate more plastic waste and strengthen South Africas position as a circular economy leader in Africa and the world."
During the tour of the facility being built at the Propet recycling plant in Milnerton, Swarts said public-private partnerships are crucial for the sector.
"We believe that this facility adds value to our efforts to increase the collection and recycling rates for packaging materials, including PET.
"We view the facility as an opportunity to stimulate a demand for more PET materials and a supply of these by waste pickers and waste SMMEs, thus creating stable markets for PET/ said Swarts. |
