This Month’s Dispatch: The Realities of Plastic Recycling in Hawaiʻi

Upcountry Curbside owner JD Pells (front-left) poses for a photo with participants and faculty at Hawaiʻi Pacific University’s Plastic Recycling Research Facility on Oʻahu.

Earlier this month, I attended a four-day plastic recycling short course designed for industry professionals, engineers, scientists, and entrepreneurs. It was hosted at Hawaiʻi Pacific University’s Center for Marine Debris Research (CMDR) on Oʻahu, inside their micro- and macro-plastic research facilities.

Their mission? To address the ongoing crisis of plastic marine debris washing ashore throughout the Hawaiian archipelago—and to do it with data-driven, brutally honest solutions.

What We Appreciate About CMDR

They’re not just studying marine debris. They’re actively tackling it—collecting hundreds of tons of it each year and confronting the hard truths about recycling. It’s refreshing to see real-world impact backed by transparent data, even when the findings are uncomfortable.

The CMDR is funded (for now) by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. To learn more about it, visit: www.hpu.edu/cncs/cmdr/

The Problem with Recycling Plastic in Hawaiʻi

As a curbside recycling company, you’d think we’d be all-in on recycling everything. But like CMDR, we’re focused on actual solutions—not greenwashing.

Recycling shouldn’t be about claiming to be “zero waste” or “eco-friendly.” It should be that. And to get there, we have to:

• First, reduce our use of single-use plastic

• Then recycle responsibly—with evidence that it actually benefits the environment

Because if we can’t prove it’s doing good…why do it at all?

Why Recycling in Hawaiʻi Isn’t Always Green

One of CMDR’s biggest findings (in my opinion): recycling post-consumer plastic in Hawaiʻi can actually do more harm than good.

Here’s why:

• The largest source of recycling-related emissions here is transportation fuel.

• Without curbside systems and nearby processing facilities, Hawaiʻi’s plastic takes a convoluted route before it ever becomes something new.

Example of a typical Maui recycling route:

House → Redemption Center → Sorting Facility → Harbor → Ocean → Overseas Port → Recycling Processor → Product Manufacturer

That’s a lot of miles, fuel, and emissions to “close the loop.”

Nine individual Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) were completed by a CMDR researcher to compare various methods of disposing of / recycling derelict fishing nets as well as post-consumer waste (PCW). (Credit: HPU-CMDR)

So What Happens to the Plastic Collected by CMDR?

CMDR receives hundreds of tons of ocean plastics each year. Roughly 90% of it is incinerated at Oʻahu’s waste-to-energy facility, H-Power.

Yes, incinerated.

Why? Because based on lifecycle analysis, shipping marine debris to Mainland recyclers results in a higher carbon footprint than burning it for energy.

CMDR found that the energy recovered through H-Power offsets enough emissions to make incineration the lesser evil.

A Note on What’s Recyclable

• About 80% of ocean waste in Hawaiʻi is foreign derelict fishing gear (DFG)

• Around 20% of that gear is made from HDPE (a recyclable plastic)

• That means only ~16% of ocean plastics are even viable for recycling

The rest? Not recyclable and not worth shipping off-island.

We’ll dive deeper into H-Power in a future edition.

Holding a piece of plastic Derelict Fishing Gear collected by CMDR with a conglomerate in the background.

Is Recycling Worth It on Maui?

Without access to a local recycling processor or a waste-to-energy plant like H-Power, Maui’s “recycling circle” is even bigger—and less efficient.

That means the answer isn’t a simple “yes.”

More research is needed to say for sure.

In some cases, the emissions from recycling plastic can outweigh the emissions from simply disposing of it. But that doesn't mean landfilling plastic is a good solution.

One thing remains clear:

The most impactful thing we can do is reduce our use of single-use plastic.

PSA: “Compostable” Foodware ≠ Eco-Friendly

Let’s clear this up:

• “Compostable” takeout containers and utensils do not belong in your blue bin

• Nor do #1 or #2 plastic clamshells

• These items contaminate the recycling stream and usually end up in the trash

Since Hawaiʻi’s 2022 ban on polystyrene foodware, many businesses switched to “compostable” alternatives. But these are often bio-based plastics made from corn or other crops—and they act like regular plastic in the environment.

They can’t be recycled

They won’t break down naturally

And if they’re not processed in an industrial compost facility, they degrade into—you guessed it—microplastics

What to Use Instead

If you want to level up your sustainability game, here are some actual alternatives (based on tips from Céline Jennison of Plastic Tides):

• Plates and bowls made from fast-growing trees, bamboo, or leaves

• Visibly compostable products that guests can easily identify

• Unbleached cardboard with no wax or plastic lining

• Partner with local zero-waste services like Maui Huliau Foundation to ensure items are actually composted at West Maui Green Cycle