European trade bodies have warned that strict new EU export laws could reduce recycling across the continent.
MEPs on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly in favour of updated waste shipment regulations that will make it harder to send recovered material outside those countries covered by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Umbrella organisation the European Recycling Industries’ Confederation (EuRIC) backed the intent of the move but added that the new laws could have serious consequences for the industry.
“EuRIC is deeply concerned about the uncertainty the new rules create for Europe’s recycling industries as export restrictions on trade with non-EU countries fail to differentiate between various streams, materials and markets,” said the body in a statement.
“Recovered paper and recycled scrap metals, for instance, are traded on global markets as commodities. With insufficient demand for these resources from recycling within Europe, recycling levels and activity threaten to decline.”
Plastic-waste exports to non-OECD countries will be banned within two and a half years of the regulations coming into force, while even transfers to OECD countries will be subject to stricter conditions.
Within the EU, exchange of information and data on waste shipments will be digitalised to improve reporting and transparency. Shipping waste within the EU for disposal will be allowed only in exceptional circumstances.
EuRIC secretary-general Emmanuel Katrakis said: “A coherent EU policy is urgently needed to align environmental, climate and industrial policy objectives towards economically and ecologically sustainable solutions.”
But European Parliament rapporteur Pernille Weiss insisted: “The revised law will bring more certainty to Europeans that our waste will be appropriately managed, no matter where it is shipped to.
“The EU will finally assume responsibility for its plastic waste by banning its export to non-OECD countries. Waste is a resource when it is properly managed, but should not in any case be causing harm to the environment or human health.”
