Plastics are made from non-renewable resources such as oil, gas and coal. By recycling plastic this conserves these natural resources, diverts non-biodegradable waste from landfill and enables the production of new plastic products.

Most plastics are non-biodegradable and will persist indefinitely in landfill. By recycling plastic products the demand for oil is reduced. Many types of plastics are accepted by commercial recyclers by contract or as part of co-mingled recycling, where they collected, shredded and extruded for use in new plastic products.