Environmental concerns over Exxon's advanced recycling plant

ExxonMobil's new "advanced recycling" plant in Texas, one of the largest chemical recycling plants in North America, has raised concerns among environmental advocates who say the technology is a dangerous distraction from the need to reduce plastic production. Chemical recycling generates hazardous pollutants while providing cover for oil giants to keep producing millions of tons of new plastic products each year. Recent research has shown that chemical recycling is worse for the environment than mechanical recycling in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and water use, and in some cases, worse than virgin plastic production.