Pooled vs one-way pallets at end of life
A one-way whitewood pallet becomes the receiver's to reuse, recycle or dispose of. A pooled pallet stays the pooler's property: the receiver returns it and the pooler repairs or retires it. For reporting, discarded whitewood is your scope 3 category 5 waste; returned pooled pallets are not your waste at all.
Side by side
| One-way whitewood | Pooled (CHEP, PECO, iGPS) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns it at your dock | You | The pooler |
| Who decides its fate | You | The pooler |
| Your end-of-life options | Reuse, repair, recycle, burn, landfill | Return to the owner |
| Scope 3 for the receiver | Category 5 waste when discarded | Not your waste |
| Diversion reporting | Count by fate | Count as returned to owner |
Cost isn't covered here
Whether pooling or buying is cheaper is a procurement question this site doesn't cover. This page is only about what happens at the end of each pallet's time with you.
In the calculator
Enter your pooled share in the Pallet Fate Report. It removes those pallets from the wood tonnage and lists them as returned to owner, and the pickup request sends pooled pallets to their owner's route instead.
repallet.org is not affiliated with CHEP, PECO or iGPS. Names are used only to identify whose pallets they are.
Sources
- Request blue pallet collection CHEP USA. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- PECO Asset Recovery Program (letter dated April 1, 2023) PECO Pallet. Accessed October 27, 2026.
- Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Accounting and Reporting Standard GHG Protocol (WRI/WBCSD). Accessed October 27, 2026. Box 5.6 and section 9.5 on avoided emissions; section 5.5 category descriptions.