Recycling holiday gift boxes this year will be a lot different than in previous years under China’s newly enforced import ban.
As the influx of holiday deliveries is underway, this holiday season, some of those gift boxes won’t actually end up being recycled—even as the general public wishes to keep more waste out of landfills.
This year marks the first holiday season the waste and recycling industry is working under China’s stringent import restrictions. National Sword has caused cities across the country to impose higher collection fees for recyclables or eliminate curbside collection programs altogether. The surge in e-commerce and online retail have also forced major changes in the recycling business.