為什麼回收保麗龍與聚苯乙烯如此困難？ | 全球廢棄物 | Business Insider：英語精讀講義

What people refer to as Styrofoam is usually expanded polystyrene foam. 文法

人們口中的Styrofoam，通常其實是發泡聚苯乙烯泡棉。

Many think it can't be recycled, but it can. 文法

很多人以為它無法回收，但其實可以。

That's likely because less than 1% of it gets recycled

之所以會有這種誤解，可能是因為它的回收率不到1%，

even though we make enough to fill more than 700 Empire State Buildings every year. 講解

儘管我們每年生產的量足以填滿700多棟帝國大廈。

And now one company has found a way to turn all this trash into treasure 慣用語

如今，一家公司找到了把這些垃圾變廢為寶的方法，

or rather photo frames. 表達脈絡

更準確地說，是把它們變成相框。

But why aren't more companies doing this? 表達脈絡

但為什麼沒有更多公司這麼做呢？

We went to Mexico City to find out.

我們前往墨西哥市一探究竟。

New materials countless in their numbers and varieties,

數量和種類都不計其數的新材料，

have been created.

被創造了出來。

Styrofoam is actually a brand developed by the Dow Chemical Company 文化背景

Styrofoam其實是陶氏化學公司開發的一個品牌，

and now owned by DuPont.

如今歸杜邦所有。

It only refers to a kind of plastic used in construction and insulation.

它只指一種用於建築與隔熱的塑膠。

There's actually no such thing as a Styrofoam cup. 片語搭配

嚴格來說，根本沒有所謂的「Styrofoam杯」。

Instead, it's expanded polystyrene foam

那其實是發泡聚苯乙烯泡棉，

that is a kind of plastic scientists first created in the 1940s.

一種由科學家在1940年代首次製成的塑膠。

Today, it's estimated that this kind of foam takes up about 30% of the world's landfills. 講解

據估計，如今這種泡棉約占全球垃圾掩埋場空間的30%。

A company called Rennueva has found a way to make money recycling this cheap product.

一家名為Rennueva的公司找到了靠回收這種廉價產品獲利的方法。

Corporations pay Rennueva to handle their polystyrene waste

企業付費請Rennueva處理聚苯乙烯廢棄物，

and regular people can drop off their own at the company's facility. 片語動詞

一般民眾也可以把自己的廢棄物送到該公司的處理設施。

It also hosts collection efforts like this one at a local university.

它也會舉辦回收活動，例如當地一所大學裡的這場活動。

All told, Héctor and his team handle 16 metric tons of plastic per week. 表達脈絡

Héctor和他的團隊每週總共處理16公噸塑膠。

Workers first grind the material to make it easier to manage.

工作人員會先把材料粉碎，讓它更容易處理。

Then they apply heat and pressure in a process called densification,

接著，他們透過一種名為「緻密化」的製程對材料加熱加壓，

which squeezes out excess air,

擠出多餘的空氣，

leaving reusable plastic behind. 文法

留下可重複利用的塑膠。

In terms of size,

從體積來看，

the ratio of pre-densified foam to post-densified foam 文法

緻密化前後的泡棉體積比

is about 90 to 1.

約為90比1。

A machine heats the material and molds it into these spaghetti-looking strips.

機器會加熱材料，並將它塑造成這些像義大利麵一樣的長條。

The company uses a chemical that's a bit like antifreeze 片語搭配

公司使用一種有點像防凍液的化學品

to cool the strips

來冷卻這些長條，

and finally a machine dices them into rice-sized pellets. 用詞

最後再由機器把它們切成米粒大小的顆粒。

Rennueva sells these pellets to companies like Marcos y Marcos,

Rennueva將這些顆粒賣給Marcos y Marcos等公司，

which turns them into frames.

後者用它們製作相框。

The process is actually pretty similar to Rennueva's.

這套製程其實與Rennueva的製程很相似。

You heat the pellets,

先加熱顆粒，

mold them,

將其塑形，

and then assemble and decorate the frames accordingly.

接著再組裝並裝飾相框。

This factory can process 6 tons of raw material per day

這座工廠每天可處理6公噸原料，

and has actually recycled some of its own old frames.

甚至還回收過自家生產的舊相框。

Different companies use Rennueva's pellets to make heels for shoes

其他公司會用Rennueva的顆粒製作鞋跟，

and to make more foam.

也會用它們生產更多泡棉。

Rennueva is working on making plates and cutlery, 文法

Rennueva正著手製作餐盤和餐具，

but first it needs to make sure the recycled plastic is safe for food.

但首先必須確保這種再生塑膠適合食品用途。

That's because polystyrene foam could pose some health risks. 片語搭配

這是因為聚苯乙烯泡棉可能帶來一些健康風險。

Scientists have found that foam containers are generally safe to eat off of, 用詞

科學家發現，一般來說，使用泡棉容器進食是安全的，

but some chemicals can transfer into your food or drink

但其中一些化學物質可能會轉移到食物或飲料中，

and they could be harmful over a long period of time.

長期下來可能對人體有害。

And breathing in foam particulates is dangerous. 文法

而吸入泡棉微粒也很危險。

The International Agency for Research on Cancer says one of the main components of polystyrene is a probable carcinogen,

國際癌症研究機構表示，聚苯乙烯的一種主要成分很可能致癌，

though the EPA hasn't classified it as such. 用詞

不過EPA尚未將它歸為致癌物。

Héctor and his team are realistic.

Héctor和他的團隊很務實。

They know this kind of plastic isn't going anywhere soon. 慣用語

他們知道，這種塑膠短期內不會消失。

So their solution to waste relies on a circular economy, 文化背景

因此，他們解決廢棄物問題的方案仰賴循環經濟：

reduce trash by reusing it.

透過重複利用來減少垃圾。

distribuidores, usuarios y recicladores.

經銷商、使用者與回收業者。

Most recycling facilities don't handle polystyrene foam

大多數回收設施都不處理聚苯乙烯泡棉，

and as a result many people simply throw the product away. 講解

因此很多人乾脆把它丟掉。

Rennueva has outreach programs to let people know the product can be recycled.

Rennueva推動宣導計畫，讓人們知道這種產品可以回收。

The company says that it now recycles 5% of the polystyrene foam used in Mexico City, 表達脈絡

該公司表示，目前它回收處理墨西哥市所用聚苯乙烯泡棉的5%，

but we were unable to independently verify that fact.

但我們無法獨立查證這項說法。

para que todos sepan que el material se recicla

讓所有人都知道這種材料可以回收。

Rennueva has recycled 1,200 metric tons of foam since its founding in 2014, 文法

自2014年創立以來，Rennueva已回收1,200公噸泡棉，

a small fraction of the amount produced worldwide every year. 片語搭配

但這只占全球每年產量的一小部分。

That helps explain why everyone isn't copying the Rennueva model.

這也說明了為什麼並非所有人都仿效Rennueva的模式。

Most polystyrene products are cheap in part 片語搭配

大多數聚苯乙烯製品之所以便宜，部分原因是

because more than 90% of them is just air.

其體積的90%以上都只是空氣。

That makes them very light,

這讓它們非常輕，

but also means you need a lot to make recycling profitable. 文法

但也意味著必須收集非常大的量，回收才有利可圖。

They're also often covered in food waste and can break apart really easily, 片語動詞

它們也經常沾滿食物殘渣，而且很容易碎裂，

which makes them tough to process. 文法

因此很難處理。

There are a few similar facilities that run on the Rennueva model,

有少數類似的設施採用Rennueva模式營運，

like this one in China,

例如中國的這座工廠，

or the Canadian company Styro-Go,

還有加拿大公司Styro-Go，

which uses mobile trucks to densify polystyrene foam on site. 用詞

它利用移動式處理車在現場對聚苯乙烯泡棉進行緻密化處理。

But many people around the world are pushing to simply end the use of foam

但世界各地有許多人主張徹底停止使用這種泡棉，

rather than figure out how to recycle it. 講解

而不是設法回收它。

The European Union,

歐盟、

China,

中國、

Costa Rica,

哥斯大黎加，

and US states like New York and Colorado

以及紐約州和科羅拉多州等美國州

have all announced or implemented bans on single-use plastics like polystyrene foam. 片語搭配

都已宣布或實施針對聚苯乙烯泡棉等一次性塑膠的禁令。

Mexico City banned single-use plastic starting in 2021,

墨西哥市從2021年起禁用一次性塑膠，

but that doesn't include polystyrene foam.

但聚苯乙烯泡棉不在禁令範圍內。

So the product is everywhere and it fuels the Central de Abasto, 慣用語

因此，這種產品隨處可見，也支撐著Central de Abasto的運作，

one of Mexico City's largest wholesale food markets.

墨西哥市最大的食品批發市場之一。

Food vendors like Irene depend on that product's low price.

Irene這類食品攤商仰賴這種產品的低廉價格。

todo todo es mucho más económico.

所有東西，所有東西都便宜得多。

El biodegradable se disparan los precios.

改用生物可分解產品，價格就會飆升。

That's why plastic bans don't always have the intended effects. 文法

這就是塑膠禁令不一定能達到預期效果的原因。

hay un impacto ambiental un poco eh grave

這會造成比較，呃，嚴重的環境影響，

porque este impacto lo que hace es que la ley no va enfocada al consumo,

因為問題在於，法律關注的不是消費，

va enfocada a la sustitución de la mercancía.

而是用其他商品來替代。

Cuando tú sustituyes una mercancía es ya no consumo plástico,

當你用一種商品替代另一種時，你會說：「我不再使用塑膠，

pero ahora consumo papel.

但現在改用紙張。」

This supports Rennueva's main idea, 表達脈絡

這印證了Rennueva的核心理念：

that single-use plastic should be recycled.

一次性塑膠應該回收再利用。

According to Héctor,

Héctor認為，

the solution to all the plastic sitting in our landfills 表達脈絡

要解決垃圾掩埋場裡堆積的所有塑膠，

is to use the plastic sitting in our landfills.

就要利用垃圾掩埋場裡現有的塑膠。

Any environmental action that doesn't make economic sense isn't realistic. 片語搭配

任何不具經濟可行性的環保行動都不切實際。