A fresh look at Ukraine and sustainability

When Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022, we talked about the impact it would have on the plastics industry. Early on, I wondered, "Would this mean that the push toward circularity would go on the back burner?"

At the time, Sustainable Plastics' Karen Laird predicted that the invasion would impact long-term thinking about sustainability and circular plastics.

We didn't know then how long the war would last (and we still don't), but she speculated that it could prompt Western Europe to move faster toward sustainable materials out of necessity because it was cutting off imports of natural gas and oil from Russia.

"Here in Europe, we're dependent on Russia for 40 percent of our [natural gas] and 25 percent of our oil," Laird said during our March 1, 2022, Sustainable Plastics Live. "The sustainable choice ... would be for us all not to be so dependent on a state that has invaded another state."

I still think she's right about that, but the move isn't happening very fast at all. We aren't seeing a big leap ahead in plastics recycling. Instead, the slumping economy — caused by the war — has meant lower demand for virgin resins, which has led to lower prices. That's slowed demand for recycled plastics.

"I'm very curious as to how many [recyclers] are actually going to survive and whether we're going to actually be able to generate the quantities we're going to need in a year and a half [to meet recycled-content requirements]," Laird said in our newest Sustainable Plastics Live, which we recorded Tuesday.

I'll take a deeper look into this issue next week in The Plastics Blog.

I got a call on Wednesday from a plastics industry veteran who asked if PN could wish a happy 90th birthday to one of the industry's shining stars, Glenn Beall. How could I say no?

Beall's had a 60-year-plus career in plastics. His service to the industry is second to none. He started designing plastic products in 1958 when he joined Abbott Laboratories, where he helped the medical market transition from reusable to safer disposable devices. He joined the Society of Plastics Engineers in 1960, and since then he's volunteered countless hours for the group.

Beall, who turns 90 on Aug. 13, owns Beall Plastics Ltd., a consulting firm in Libertyville, Ill. He has so many honors that I can't list them all here. Beall is a member of the Plastics Hall of Fame, class of 1997, an SPE fellow and winner of the Distinguished Service Member award from the Plastics Pioneers Association.

Generations of plastics professionals owe a lot to Glenn Beall. And thanks to his good genes, generations have had the chance to meet him in person. Happy birthday.

The entire supply chain is sweating the potential of a United Auto Worker strike, according to Kurt Nagle of Crain's Detroit Business, and that includes a lot of plastics companies.

"There's a lot of trepidation about the status of the supply base as a whole, but there's a real big concern for the smaller-tier suppliers across the supply base," said Glenn Stevens, executive director of MICHauto and vice president of mobility initiatives for the Detroit Regional Chamber.

We've already seen some distressed plastics molders and toolmakers — even though the auto sector has been relatively strong since recovering from the pandemic shutdown and supply chain problems.

Stevens offered some good advice to those small suppliers: Get on the phone with your lenders and customers and keep them apprised of their financial and operating status.

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