The market for recyclables in Oregon and around the globe, riding at or near historic highs a few short months ago, has tanked along with the economy, marking what industry experts say is the largest, quickest drop ever in prices paid for recyclable material.
Among other consequences, plummeting prices for plastic, cardboard, newspaper and metal could boost garbage rates across Oregon as haulers collect far less recycling revenue to offset costs.
Orders for recyclables, typically converted to raw materials for manufacturing, dropped abruptly about two months ago as factories worldwide slowed down or shut down. Demand from China and the rest of Asia, the engine of the recycling boom, is now feeble at best, recyclers say.
Two months ago, Portland-area haulers got $40 to $50 a ton from sorting plants for mixed recyclables collected at curbside. Now they're getting nothing -- or paying the plants up to $20 a ton.
Recyclers say the public shouldn't lose faith in the system, though.
At this point, almost all of Oregon's recycling still finds a home despite the lower prices, they say, in large part because of the region's ample supply of paper mills. The mix of newspapers, magazines and mail sent to mills makes up about three-quarters of curbside recycling.
But some recyclables, particularly low-grade bales of plastic and mixed paper, may head to landfills if the economy doesn't recover. After years of getting paid for used paper, businesses that generate lots of paper could soon be asked to pay for collection. And falling prices could force some recyclers out of business.
Since September, historically high prices for scrap aluminum, copper, iron and steel have dropped by about 75 percent overall, said Victor Winkler, president of Portland's Metro Metals Northwest, one of the largest scrap metal processors on the West Coast.
The company is stockpiling recycled tin cans at its Columbia Boulevard site because demand for the metal has dried up.
"You've got to understand that prices go up and down if you want to be in this market," Winkler said. "But we've never had this much of a drop in a month and a half. And nobody thought prices could go down this low."
Most categories of recycled plastic, paper, newspaper and cardboard have also seen steep price declines as domestic and overseas demand plunged.
The price for bales of mixed paper has fallen by 90 percent since September, according to Official Board Markets, the paper industry's pricing bible. Prices for plastic bags and other plastic "film" have dropped by two-thirds in less than a month.
Full Story: http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/post_47.html
