Recyclers at EuRIC’s latest Recyclers’ Talks have called for more action from the European Commission urged to act on End of Waste (EoW) criteria.
EuRIC Calls for Action on EoW
The lack of EoW across the recycling sector is creating a barrier to trade and hampering the growth of the green economy said the recyclers.
EuRIC general secretary Emmanuel Katrakis stressed the importance of EU-wide EoW criteria as a route to achieve a well-functioning market for recovered raw materials. He argued that such criteria were key to harmonising market access across the EU.
Peter Wessman, legal officer in the waste management and secondary materials unit of DG Environment, said, the Commission was resuming its work on developing such criteria to boost a well-functioning internal market for secondary raw materials. Currently, the plan is to select one waste stream at a time to develop EoW criteria by 2023 and beyond.
End-of-life tyres (ELT) were quoted by two speakers as a waste stream for which harmonised EoW criteria would boost investment in high-value recycling. Lars Raahauge, environment, and business development at Genan Group, argued it would result in substantial climate and resource savings in line with the objectives in the European Green Deal. He noted that Spain, Italy, and Portugal already had such criteria, and it was time for harmonised criteria. Alex van Gelderen, an advisor on ELT management with the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers Association, said the tyre and rubber manufacturing industry was working closely with EuRIC on EoW criteria because they were the ‘missing link’ in investing in innovative solutions and new markets to recycle ELTs.
