Agricultural Plastics Recycling Conference dates set

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Agricultural Plastics Recycling Conference & Trade Show (APRC 2014) will be held July 20-22, 2014, at the Marco Island Marriott Beach Resort, Golf Club & Spa in Marco Island, Florida. This conference is a networking forum for Farmers, Nurseries, Agricultural Plastic Manufactures, Recyclers and Government Officials to discuss the alternatives to landfilling and open burning of waste agricultural plastics.

Plastic products and packaging have become an integral part to all aspects of farming. Plastic films are used to wrap forage, to cover greenhouses, and to mulch fields of vegetables and fruits like tomatoes and strawberries. Most nursery containers are made of plastic, as are the containers used for pesticides and dairy sanitizers. Irrigation and maple tubing are plastic. The list goes on. Much of it has been burned in the field, generating dioxins and other pollutants, or dumped in some out of the way place on the farm. In addition, plastics are buried in landfills. The options for farmers to recycle these used plastics have been neither robust nor sustainable.

"Agricultural plastics are a valuable, energy-rich and recoverable material we should recover, not landfill or burn in the field.” said Gene Jones, Executive Director of the Southern Waste Information eXchange, Inc. which is one of the organizations hosting the event.

Planned conference topics include:
• Overview of Generation Types and Volumes of Agricultural Plastics
• Markets for Agricultural Plastics
• Funding Agricultural Plastic Recycling Operations
• Lessons Learned in Plastic Recycling from Europe, Asia, Australia and Canada
• Converting Waste Ag Plastics to Energy, Fuel and Chemicals
• Collecting Agricultural Plastics
• Processing Agricultural Plastics
• Summary of Agricultural Plastics Recycling in North American
• Equipment and Technology Advances in Agricultural Plastics
• Management of Waste Pesticide Plastic Containers: Success Stories from the
Field
• Toxicological and Environmental Issues with Open Field Burning of Waste
Agricultural Plastics
• Regulatory Issues Concerning Agricultural Plastics
• Sustainability Initiatives from Abroad and in North America
 

For information on submitting an abstract, becoming a sponsor, or exhibiting, please visit the conference web site at: http://www.aprc2014.com.