Some Interesting Facts About EPS
Some Interesting Facts About EPS EPS Boxes (uncompacted) A typical vegetable or fish box (with the lid on) made from EPS is 57 cm long, 30 cm wide and 30 cm high; a volume of 0.05 cubic metres. A typical vegetable or fish box (with the lid on) weighs 335 grams. In one tonne of EPS, there would be approximately 3,000 boxes. One tonne of the boxes would take up about 150 cubic metres. If stacked end to end, one tonne of the boxes
would stretch for 1.7 kilometres.
EPS in Council Waste (for NSW) On average, each person generates about 5 kilograms of waste EPS per year. It is estimated that a council could realistically expect to collect about 20% of the waste EPS generated in the LGA. Councils could expect that there will be 5 tonnes of waste EPS generated per 1,000 people in a LGA per year. It is estimated that councils could realistically collect about 1 tonne per 1,000 people in an LGA per year for recycling. (i.e. a council with 100,000 people could expect to collect 100 tonnes of EPS per year) For the whole of NSW, with a population of approximately 7.3 million people, it is estimated that 7,300 tonnes of EPS per year could be collected for recycling.
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EPS in Landfills in NSW EPS represents a relatively minor proportion of municipal solid waste (approx. 0.74% by weight). It is estimated that less than 10% of the EPS consumed during 2011 was recycled. It is estimated that at least 12,000 tonnes of expanded plastics (mainly EPS) was sent to landfill in 2011. The density of EPS compacted in landfill is about 18 cubic metres per tonne, meaning 12,000 tonnes of expanded plastics (mainly EPS) would have taken up 216,000 cubic metres. If all the waste EPS in New South Wales could be recycled i.e. diverted from landfill it would free up space in landfill for 162,000 tonnes of general rubbish (density of 750 kg per cubic metre) per year. Landfill owners use at least $2,500 of landfill space
to dispose of each tonne of EPS, for which they collect no more than $300 in gate fees.
Compaction It takes about 3 cubic metres of loose EPS to make a slab of (hot) compacted EPS. Machines which cold compact EPS can reduce the volume by a factor of 45:1. Machines which hot compact and then extrude EPS can reduce the volume by a factor of 90:1. A slab of (hot) compacted EPS weighs about 14-15 kilograms. Clean, compacted EPS can be sold to buyers, for about $500 per tonne. About one tonne of (hot) compacted EPS will fit
on a pallet.
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would stretch for 1.7 kilometres.
EPS in Council Waste (for NSW) On average, each person generates about 5 kilograms of waste EPS per year. It is estimated that a council could realistically expect to collect about 20% of the waste EPS generated in the LGA. Councils could expect that there will be 5 tonnes of waste EPS generated per 1,000 people in a LGA per year. It is estimated that councils could realistically collect about 1 tonne per 1,000 people in an LGA per year for recycling. (i.e. a council with 100,000 people could expect to collect 100 tonnes of EPS per year) For the whole of NSW, with a population of approximately 7.3 million people, it is estimated that 7,300 tonnes of EPS per year could be collected for recycling.
Interesting Facts About EPS
1
EPS in Landfills in NSW EPS represents a relatively minor proportion of municipal solid waste (approx. 0.74% by weight). It is estimated that less than 10% of the EPS consumed during 2011 was recycled. It is estimated that at least 12,000 tonnes of expanded plastics (mainly EPS) was sent to landfill in 2011. The density of EPS compacted in landfill is about 18 cubic metres per tonne, meaning 12,000 tonnes of expanded plastics (mainly EPS) would have taken up 216,000 cubic metres. If all the waste EPS in New South Wales could be recycled i.e. diverted from landfill it would free up space in landfill for 162,000 tonnes of general rubbish (density of 750 kg per cubic metre) per year. Landfill owners use at least $2,500 of landfill space
to dispose of each tonne of EPS, for which they collect no more than $300 in gate fees.
Compaction It takes about 3 cubic metres of loose EPS to make a slab of (hot) compacted EPS. Machines which cold compact EPS can reduce the volume by a factor of 45:1. Machines which hot compact and then extrude EPS can reduce the volume by a factor of 90:1. A slab of (hot) compacted EPS weighs about 14-15 kilograms. Clean, compacted EPS can be sold to buyers, for about $500 per tonne. About one tonne of (hot) compacted EPS will fit
on a pallet.
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