BDN cites research by Bousfield in report on recycling

The Bangor Daily News cited research by Douglas Bousfield, a professor and the graduate coordinator of chemical and biomedical engineering at the University of Maine, in a report on the rising cost of recycling in Maine, resulting from actions taken by China. Beginning Jan. 1, China banned imports of 24 waste items from the United States and other countries in an effort to clean up its environment, the article states. China also reduced its limit on imports of contaminated waste, like recycling full of broken glass or grease. This resulted in that waste remaining in the United States, where towns have to cover the cost of its disposal. And some towns, like Gouldsboro in Hancock County, cut recycling programs entirely when the cost proved too much for the town budget. Efforts to address challenges in recycling include reducing its volume in the first place. One way to do this is to manufacture biodegradable food packaging. Bousfield’s research aims to develop fully recyclable packaging for potato chips made from cellulose nanomaterials instead of aluminum, according to the BDN. Maine Public carried the BDN report.