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Once printed, we place the masters and the Brailon sheets on a thermoform Machine, which heats up the sheets and creates a vacuum that forms the final tactile graphics.

Environmental groups have also raised concerns that PET thermoform recycling could divert millions of gallons of water from residential use in Mexicali, which was declared to be in a state of emergency drought last summer.

Given such a bleak landscape, Ornela Garelli, an oceans and plastic campaigner for the nonprofit Greenpeace Mexico, said the promise of thermoform recycling is a "greenwashing strategy" from the plastics industry — a way to justify the continued production of plastics.

But rather than building out PET thermoform recycling infrastructure stateside, The Recycling Partnership's grant is being used to help Direct Pack build a new PET recycling facility in Mexicali, set to begin operating this spring.

The facility is great news for plastic companies based in the U.S., where industry publications say PET thermoform recycling has remained "a struggle."