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- BUSINESS, Page 48Business NotesRECYCLINGDon't Trash That Foam
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- Of all the plastic garbage around, the most notorious is
- poluystyrene foam. Besides helping clog landfills, some kinds
- of foam contain chlorofluorocarbons, which seep into the
- atmosphere and deplete the ozone layer. But this month two
- companies that have already removed CFCs from their production
- process -- Mobil Chemical, a subsidiary of the oil company, and
- Genpak, a food-packaging manufacturer -- will open the first
- plant in the U.S. to recycle polystyrene foam.
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- Called Plastics Again, the $4 million venture in
- Leominster, Mass., will clean up and break down used hamburger
- containers, insulated cups and cafeteria trays. The foam will
- be turned into plastic resin that can be formed into such new
- items as flowerpots, wall insulation and coat hangers. In its
- first year the plant is expected to recycle about 3 million lbs.
- of foam, or 8% of the state's annual consumption.
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