Phoenix To Convert Plastic Waste Into Fuel: Release

PHOENIX, AZ — The City of Phoenix is going to take part in turning plastic waste into fuel, according to a release from the city. "Plastics 3-7," or low-value plastics, will be targeted to create fuel.

The decision comes with a partnership between the public works department and Renew Phoenix, a venture between Phoenix-based Generated Materials Recovery and Renewlogy, a plastic-to-fuel tech firm founded at MIT.

The government of China, where much of the U.S.'s recycling goes, announced last year they were raising their standards for contamination percentage of recycling they'll import, restricting U.S. recycling exporters.

Some cities, like Tucson, even considered halting the collection of certain materials like newspapers and certain glass in order to cut costs lost by the new standards.

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"I believe in taking bold chances to make big change. The idea of making fuel with the plastics we are throwing away is certainly an 'out of the box' idea that I am thrilled to say will also bring jobs and revenue to our city," Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, according to the release.

"The need to find a way to re-use these materials comes on the heels of China no longer accepting certain recycled materials from the United States. This forced city leadership to think creatively to find new solutions for its recycled materials," the release says.

Renew Phoenix plans to build a facility to process the materials in the city, in the Resource Innovation Campus.

The project is expected to bring 15 full-time jobs and $5 million in investment to the area.

"Renewlogy is excited about bringing our technology to Phoenix and creating a more circular economy around plastic waste locally," said Priyanka Bakaya, founder and CEO of Renewlogy.

See Phoenix's full release here.