Geumcheon-gu Establishes Transparent PET Bottle Recycling System

Geumcheon-gu, Seoul City, and Hyosung TNC Sign Business Agreement on the 28th to Enhance the Value of Transparent Waste PET Bottle Recycling... Establishing a Cooperative System to Promote High-Quality Recycling of Transparent Waste PET Bottles

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Geumcheon-gu (Mayor Yu Seong-hoon) signed a business agreement on the 28th with Seoul City and the recycling company Hyosung TNC to expand high-quality recycling of transparent PET bottles.

The district generates a total of 580 tons of waste PET bottles annually, including 289 tons of transparent PET bottles and 291 tons of colored PET bottles, but has been simply recycling them by collecting and selling the two types of PET bottles mixed together.

Unlike colored PET bottles, transparent PET bottles have higher quality as recycled raw materials and can increase the value of resource circulation by upcycling them into clothing, bags, shoes, and more.

Upcycling refers to a recycling method that redesigns waste products into items with higher qualitative and environmental value.

Through this agreement, Geumcheon-gu and other institutions plan to promote high-quality recycling of transparent waste PET bottles and carry out various activities to realize a sustainable circular economy.

According to the agreement, Seoul City will oversee policies such as the separate disposal of transparent waste PET bottles, Geumcheon-gu will establish a separate disposal, collection, and sorting system for transparent waste PET bottles and secure the volume.

Additionally, the recycling company Hyosung TNC will be responsible for producing recycled yarns that can be commercialized into clothing, bags, shoes, etc., using transparent waste PET bottles, as well as manufacturing branded products.

Through this agreement, the district plans to build a resource circulation system that enhances the recycling value of waste PET bottles and reduces costs, along with the ‘Separate Disposal Day System for Waste Vinyl and Transparent PET Bottles’ which has been piloted since the new year.

Mayor Yu Seong-hoon said, “It is important to clean up waste properly, but more than anything, it is crucial to separate and dispose of recyclable resources well and not to discard them carelessly,” adding, “We will work together with all residents to create a resource-circulating city, Geumcheon.”