COVID-19 and Aerosol Recycling?
We have all been told we are in a war against this invisible enemy. Depending on your particular job and industry, you may have become fully and directly engaged on the front line, by necessity. For Recycle Aerosol, after we made the requisite moves to keep our employees safe, our thoughts turned to considering what unique, untapped resources we might be able to bring to the battle. The good news is that we can do something, and as manufactures and retailers you can participate, too, even while advancing your company’s sustainability goals through aerosol recycling.
What is Recycle Aerosol doing?
After noting the numerous media references to hand-sanitizer shortages, some distilleries responded by shifting production away from beverage grade alcohol and quickly retooled to produce denatured alcohol for these life-saving products that are in short supply. As we considered the variety of aerosols we recycle, we realized that many of the aerosol products we recycle contain this same denatured alcohol and would be especially needed if we recycle them now. We have therefore shifted our aerosol recycling production to prioritize ethanol containing products. Through our selective campaigning of these unsaleable aerosol products we are recycling 35,000 gallons of ethanol material weekly. After off-site final processing, this sustainable reclamation process supplies enough ethanol weekly to fill 3 million personal-sized 2oz bottles of 70% ethanol hand sanitizer.
How can you make an immediate impact through aerosol recycling?
We invite you to be an important part of our response. If you are not a Recycle Aerosol customer, your aerosol waste is either blended as a homogeneous boiler or industrial furnace fuel, or disposed of through hazardous waste incineration. Our process preserves the value of your specific product ingredients. As an aerosol filler and/or owner of any of the thousands of aerosol brands which are ethanol-based concentrates, we encourage you to participate with us by reviewing and updating your inventory of off-spec, out-of-date, seasonal or line scrap ethanol-containing products. Your unsaleable products will go straight to helping those in need during these challenging circumstances. You can join us by making immediate arrangements to ship these unsaleable products to us for recycling. Along with the existing benefits you would enjoy by utilizing our safe, sustainable and economical aerosol recycling services, you can join other responsible industry leaders in fulfilling this immediate need for these essential chemicals. Once you determine what quantities of ethanol containing unsaleable aerosol products you have, we ask that you contact us for priority review and scheduling.
More about Types of Ethanol
Fuel is the dominant market for US ethanol, but that ethanol does not meet FDA standards. Importantly, all our recovered ethanol from aerosol recycling is denatured, so it easily meets FDA’s requirements for alcohol used in hand sanitizers. Alcohol is “denatured” to render it unfit for human consumption, especially children. Sadly, FDA has already seen a rise in poisonings linked to hand sanitizers in recent weeks, “heightening this public concern.” This ABC News article aptly explains the current ethanol shortage. In response to the shortage of hand sanitizers, on March 27th, 2020 the FDA issued this relaxed temporary industry guidance for hand sanitizers during this Public Health Emergency. This information is provided to assist your understanding as the public response necessarily continues to evolve.
WASTE SIMPLIFIED
Our fresh approach to a zero-hazardous waste aerosol recycling process is just what the industry needs. We are driven by our guiding commitment to the environment and from the many decades of collective management experience to develop creative recycling solutions.