Given the sheer volume of post-consumer plastic waste produced annually, and with the revision of the EU legislation on packaging and packaging waste set to come into play in 2024, there is an urgent global need to implement existing systemic and technological solutions that have been proven efficient and effective in bridging the gaps along on the value chain, reducing waste, and using valuable materials to their highest extent.
Source: Tomra
A quick reminder: The objectives of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR)
The proposed requirements are based on the current packaging and packaging waste directive, which has three main objectives: to prevent packaging waste generation by reducing quantity, restricting unnecessary packaging, and promoting reusable and refillable packaging solutions, to boost closed-loop recycling (all packaging on the EU market will be made recyclable by 2030), and to reduce the need for primary resources and create a well‑functioning market for secondary raw materials via an increase in the use of recycled plastics in packaging.
The overall target is to reduce packaging waste via both reuse and recycling by 15% by 2040 per Member State, per person. Ambitious? Yes? Achievable? With the right systems in place, yes.
Closing the quantity and quality gaps
The amount of plastic that is recovered will need to increase to meet the requirements set in the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). As it stands, there isn’t enough high-quality feedstock to meet growing demand. This is what we refer to as the quantity and quality gaps.
To bridge the quantity gap, more plastic must be collected, sorted, and recycledfrom waste that would otherwise end up in landfills, incinerators, and littered in the environment. One way to achieve this is via mixed waste sorting, i.e., the recovery of plastics and other valuables from mixed waste streams. This is already happening at several plants around the world, including Norway, Netherlands, Greece, and Poland.
Implementing advanced mechanical recycling (AMR) practices and innovative sorting technologies can enable virgin-like recyclates from both source separated and mixed waste streams and ensure that recycled materials meet the performance requirements for demanding applications. This will bridge the quality gap.
TOMRA’s state-of-the-art plant in Lahnstein, Germany, directly processes post-consumer plastic waste into high-quality recyclates of virgin material quality, replacing fossil fuels in primary production and reducing CO2 emissions.
Holistic municipal solid waste management to drive plastics circularity
Prioritizing closed-loop recycling as the predominant treatment method for plastic waste is instrumental in reducing fossil fuel reliance, decarbonizing plastics, and transitioning to a circular economy. For this to happen, the world needs infrastructure and system-level changes that keep plastics at their highest and best use. TOMRA’s Holistic Resource Systems (HRS) approach to waste management, supported by legislation with performance targets and deadlines, is crucial to stop the endless flow of plastic waste worldwide, and close the quantity and quality gaps that undermine the plastics value chain.
The HRS is made up of individual waste management systems that have the power to increase the extraction of valuable materials – keeping them in circulation, and in the market, for as long as possible. The market then has the chance to become less reliant on virgin materials – increasing the resilience of those markets today.
HRS integrates three systems:
1. Deposit return systems (DRS), which are an ideal system for enabling bottle-to-bottle recycling. DRS produces much higher plastic collection rates when compared to other separate collections of the same materials because those materials are given value. Once a DRS is up and running, it has the power to stop used beverage containers from becoming litter.
2. Separate collections of organic, textile, e-waste, paper and glass (also known as source separated recycling or dual stream recycling, this concept relies on consumers to separate their waste by material type and discard it in a dedicated bin for recycling).
3. And mixed waste sorting (MWS) a previously underutilized process that can rescue finite resources from household waste and create virgin-like recycled plastic
Accelerating the global implementation of proven waste management and recycling practices, like those that make up the HRS, can significantly improve our chances of meeting, and perhaps even exceeding the potential requirements of the new PPWR.
About TOMRA
TOMRA is a global impact leader in the resource revolution, creating and providing sensor-based solutions for optimal resource productivity. TOMRA was founded in 1972 on an innovation that began with the design, manufacture, and sale of reverse vending machines (RVMs) for the automated collection of used beverage containers. Today, TOMRA provides technology-led solutions that enable the growth of the circular economy with advanced collection and sorting systems that optimize resource recovery and minimize waste in the food, recycling, and mining industries.
More information: www.tomra.com
