08 Oct
The 15th China International Plastic Recycling Conference was held in Nanchang, Jiangxi on September 28-29, 2020. In this particularly special year, it is especially important to gather strength for the future development of the entire industry through extensive communication among various departments and upstream and downstream sectors of the industry, and to present action plans in their respective fields. As an old friend of the China Resource Recycling Association, Tianqiang Environmental Protection once again participated in this industry event that is closely related to the pattern and development of China’s plastic circular economy industry.
Hu Xichao, Chairman of Tianqiang Environmental Protection, shared the company’s vision and actions around its mission of “eliminating plastic pollution and achieving a green symbiosis in the circular economy” at the conference. He discussed the implementation of a series of policies through pilot projects, as well as Tianqiang Environmental Protection’s unique plastic recycling industry chain scenario called “sorting plastic, selecting good plastic, transforming plastic, and assisting plastic.” He also delivered a speech on the topic of “Building a Trusted Green Closed Loop for Ocean Plastic Recycling” based on cutting-edge technologies such as blockchain.
Multi-party governance and full participation of all stakeholders
As a rare company in the industry that has connected the recycling of waste plastics to their high-value utilization, Tianqiang Environmental Protection has always advocated and called for the integration of garbage classification and two networks as an important approach to solving plastic pollution and achieving a circular economy. Hu Xichao mentioned in her sharing that in order to achieve the goal of plastic recycling, it is necessary to establish the concept of multi-party governance and full participation of all stakeholders. For example, in addressing marine plastic pollution, as long as garbage classification is done well and the flow of domestic waste into the ocean is controlled, along with the proper recycling of waste fishing nets and equipment, these two bottleneck projects in plastic pollution control can be effectively managed, thus avoiding the problem of marine plastic pollution. She called for close communication and collaboration with multiple government departments, implementation of responsibilities and relevant policies, and the creation of a multi-stakeholder collaborative system led by the government, coordinated by industry associations, operated in a market-oriented manner by enterprises, and involving the full participation of society. Ultimately, this will lead to the development of a long-term plan for diverse governance of plastic pollution with Chinese characteristics.
Hu Xichao stated, “As plastics are important foundational materials for the modern socio-economic development, they have been widely used in various sectors of the national economy. The proportion of plastic waste recycled should match the consumption of plastic products.”
She emphasized, “We believe that through a series of policies such as the integration of garbage classification and two networks, waste-free cities, plastic pollution control, and extended producer responsibility (EPR), along with active collaboration and participation from multiple government departments, the entire industry chain, and all stakeholders in society, all waste plastics can be properly recycled and utilized.”
As one of the earliest companies in China to focus on plastic recycling and currently one of the largest enterprises in the country for recycled plastics utilization, Tianqiang Environmental Protection has established a complete industry chain layout for the recycling, regeneration, and utilization of plastic waste throughout its entire life cycle. It has built an integrated industrial ecological cluster and developed a recycling system for various scenarios of plastic waste, including post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastics, post-industrial recycled (PIR) plastics, and marine plastic waste. It specializes in the high-value utilization of plastic waste such as discarded fishing nets, courier bags, infusion bags, agricultural films, and food containers, which are major sources of plastic pollution. These materials are transformed through modification into environmentally friendly and high-quality plastic products commonly used in everyday life, such as automotive components, appliances, and logistics pallets, thus ensuring the three lives and three generations of plastic recycling. The company annually recycles over 80,000 tons of waste plastics and has a production capacity of processing and producing recycled plastic particles and products of up to 300,000 tons in its end-of-life resource recycling base.
Collaborative sharing to build a community of shared destiny in the industry
Tianqiang understands that only by contributing its own experience and skills in deepening the industry, grasping the trend of industrial revolution, and actively launching diversified innovative solutions can it help stakeholders in the industry chain seize the historic opportunities of the new green revolution and industrial transformation. Tianqiang Environmental Protection will continue to fully support the upgrading and transformation of China’s plastic recycling industry towards higher quality and sustainable development.
More than 400 representatives from government, associations, experts, universities, and upstream and downstream enterprises in the industry chain attended the conference. Attendees included Zhou Hongchun, Researcher at the Development Research Center of the State Council; Xu Junxiang, President of China Resource Recycling Association; Man Juan, Deputy Secretary-General of the International Communication and Foreign Enterprise Committee of China Petrochemical and Chemical Industry Federation; Wang Yonggang, Secretary-General of the Plastic Recycling Branch of China Resource Recycling Association; Zhang Yousheng, Director of the Circulation Department of Jiangxi Provincial Department of Commerce; Party Secretary of Fengcheng Circular Economy Park; Guo Yuwen, Researcher at Chinese Academy of Environmental Sciences; as well as representatives from industry-leading companies and institutions such as Jiangxi Greenmax, Dow Chemical, Procter & Gamble, Golden Hair, Remo, Meituan, Love Recycling, Cuifeng Group, Kostech, Viavi Solutions, Shenzhen Green Environment, Recycling Traceability, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Zhuochuang Information, Shanghai Yingke, and 91 Recycling Network. They each delivered wonderful keynote speeches, discussing the path of green development in the plastic recycling industry in the new era.