Packaging Recycling Index (PRI)

Qalyoubi-Kemp, Rula

Journal of Economic Issues, 2009, vol. 43, issue 2, pages 457-466

Abstract: This paper is a first step toward building a Packaging Recycling Index (PRI) for the commercial packaging industry. This index has two parts; the first part refers to the percentage of "recovered material" in the construction of commercial packages. The second part refers to the percentage of the packaging that may be recycled by the consumer post use. The purpose of the PRI is to construct a simple label that would indicate the "greenness" of commercial packaging by considering total thermodynamic throughput. Building on the work of Frederick (1995) this work attempts to correct societal misunderstandings about product usage by looking at entropy rather than price as a measure of efficiency. This paper uses packaging data from Kell Container in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin to develop the initial index as described above.

Keywords: recycling; throughput; thermodynamics; entropy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009

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Persistent link: http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:mes:jeciss:v:43:y:2009:i:2:p:457-466

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