US paper recovery nears 52 million tonnes in 2015

United States – According to data from the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA), around 52 million tonnes of paper was recovered nationwide last year.

The association estimates the overall paper recovery rate at an all-time high of 66.8%, which compares to 65.4% in 2014. AF&PA credits the higher numbers to growth in the country’s recycling infrastructure and to paper mill demand for recovered material.

Overall paper generation in the USA fell slightly to just under 78 million tonnes in 2015 and has dropped around 25% since 1999. OCC generation reached 33.7 million tonnes last year – of which 31.3 million tonnes, or 92.9%, was recovered.