A Survey on PET Recycling Problems in Qom City, Iran

Recycling process is developed in communities to decrease the volume of high solid wastes and prevent environmental pollution. Plastic is one of the most recyclable materials in municipal solid wastes (MSW) with a high rate of application during the last decades. PET (poly ethylene therphtalate) is one of the basic plastic compounds which are used in a variety of products such as textile fibers, bottles and other containers. Methods for PET recycling include mechanical and chemical processes and PET incineration. In this study which was conducted on MSW analysis in Qom (a city in the central region of Iran, known for increase of population and high migration, environmental pollutions such as high quantity of MSW, industries and vehicle contamination, noise pollution and municipal sewage), physical analysis of MSW was carried out to four geographical sites and in different seasons of the year 2002. Results showed the rate of PET production to be 0.44% of the total MSW production, depending on site characteristics and area, time and cultural specifications. It is concluded that approximately 700 tons of PET plastics are buried per year.