Newton, CT — Landscape pavers made with car tires, a recycling program for irrigation tubes, and plastic derived from castor oil plants are among the recipients of the 2010 Environmental Stewardship Awards given by the Plastics Environmental Division of the Society of Plastics Engineers.
The companies being recognized, and the awards they will receive, are:
Delta Plastics, "Daniel Eberhardt Environmental Stewardship Award," for reclaiming and recycling 100 percent of its used LDPE irrigation tubing as well as collecting and recycling competitors' tubing and other waste LDPE products.
Arkema, "Plastic Materials from Renewable Sources," for its Pebax RNew, the first range of engineering thermoplastic elastomers made with renewable resources. The plastic is derived from castor oil plant seeds and has been used in running shoes and ski boots.
BIOtech Products, "New Environmental Technologies in Conventional Plastic Materials," for its BIOchem additives, which make it possible for conventional plastics to biodegrade in anaerobic landfills.
Eco Research Institute, "Emerging Technologies in Materials, Processing & Applications," for developing a way to pulverize paper into 
micrometer-sized bits and combine it with other materials to make paper pellets that can be turned into molded products like cups, CD cases and combs (right).
VAST Enterprises, "Design for Sustainability," for its landscaping and deck pavers that contain 95 percent recycled car tires and plastic (above, left).
Associated Packaging Technologies, "Plastics Recycling Technologies and Applications," for its range of crystalline PET plastic trays for food that have lower environmental impacts that comparable products.
Mannington Mills, "Carpet/Floor/Wall Covering Recycling," for expanding its LOOP post-consumer carpet recycling program, which also recycles vinyl flooring tiles.
Mack Molding Company and BigBelly Solar, "Enabling Technologies in Processes and Procedures," for BigBelly's solar compactor, a trash bin that uses solar power to compress the waste inside it. Mack molds the solar bubble, makes the back panel and door, procures parts and assembles the compactors.
Nicos Polymers Group, "Chairman's Award," for the process it developed to remove continuous fiber reinforcement from flexible composites, likfe from garden hoses, allowing for the cleanest recovery of the material.
Amway, "Design for Sustainability," for its eSpring water purifier.
The awards will be presented at the SPE's Global Plastics Environmental Conference in March.