Newsletter on Circular Waste Management in Africa & France #48-2023

South Africa

A five-year project funded by GEF aims to transform plastic packaging in the food and beverage sector in South Africa in a bid to cut down on plastic pollution. The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and WWF South Africa are spearheading a project to support the development of circular plastic packaging and systems to reduce plastic pollution from the food and beverage industry. It is widely acknowledged that plastic pollution is not only an environmental challenge, but it also includes socio-economic and potential human health and human rights challenges. Yet, while much of the attention has focused on improved waste management, this project will focus exclusively on upstream and midstream interventions in the plastic packaging value chain – looking at how to turn off the tap on problem plastic at source. More to read: https://www.wwf.org.za/our_news/news/?46624/Project-to-implement-and-scale-circular-solutions-to-plastic-pollution-in-South-Africa#&46624/Project-to-implement-and-scale-circular-solutions-to-plastic-pollution-in-South-Africa .

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GEF financed project on Circular Economy in the Textile & Garments Sector-Inception Workshop took place. More to read: https://www.industrialefficiency.co.za/circulareconomytextileandgarment/

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France

Introduction of a TGAP waste exemption for local authorities on 120 kg of waste collected/year/inhabitant. Of the 568 kg of waste produced by a French person/ year, 190 kg is covered by Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and is therefore under the responsibility of an PRO responsible for diverting it from disposal, 194 kg is bio-waste (food waste and green waste) that local authorities are responsible for recycling. The remaining 184 kg/inhabitant have no recycling system, and are therefore necessarily disposed of in storage and heat treatment facilities. Local authorities must pay the ‘Taxe Générale Activités Polluantes’ for the disposal of this waste. However, local authorities have no control over the design of these products, which have no recycling channel, nor over their marketing or consumption. According to the French senate members, it is therefore "unfair" to tax them for the disposal of this waste for which there is no alternative. Their amendment therefore grants them an allowance corresponding to unavoidable residual waste, which is the amount of 120 kg/inhabitant corresponds to the 184 kg mentioned above, minus 64 kg/inhabitant, corresponding to the waste concerned by the new recycling channels announced by the government as part of the circular economy roadmap (toys/games, sports and leisure items, DIY and garden items including construction waste)", they indicate while judging this figure to be underestimated, "because a significant part of the waste under EPR is not recyclable". More to read: https://www.banquedesterritoires.fr/volet-recettes-du-plf-2024-les-principales-modifications-du-senat-dans-les-domaines-de

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Wind and solar power face an end-of-life sustainability challenge. Preparing for the “huge wave” of solar panels that will need to be recycled in the future is a challenge, but one that industry should be ready to face, says DG of Soren, a PRO that collects used solar panels in France and its overseas territories. More to read: https://www.ft.com/content/31f96d56-8f12-4fde-9e2e-6a013df7f7f2

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Coexistence of Teom (household collection tax), Teomi (pay as you throw) and Reom (fixed collection fee) on the territory of the municipality. Several amendments voted by the senators aim to?allow the coexistence of the household waste collection?tax (Teom) with the incentive household waste collection fee (Reomi). Local elected officials could also implement incentive pricing in only part of their territory. This legislative change would avoid the technical difficulties encountered by local authorities that have very different territories: local authorities would thus be able to deploy incentive pricing on the part of their territory that is located in peri-urban and rural areas, and not be obliged to do so in urban areas where the latter may appear to be more complex. More to read: https://www.banquedesterritoires.fr/volet-recettes-du-plf-2024-les-principales-modifications-du-senat-dans-les-domaines-de

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The transformation of production and consumption models will not happen spontaneously because both are deeply anchored in our cognitive and cultural frameworks. To change them first demands transformation of the cognitive infrastructure used to assess economic actors, such as national and international wealth indicators, business financial indicators, and production growth targets. Such a change will require support from policymakers at every level (local, national and supranational) and will need to make use of all available levers: education policies, systems to incentivize and inform consumers, tax regimes, and state investment. It is only under these conditions that this model of frugal and responsible innovation will have any chance of emerging. More to read: https://www.institut.veolia.org/sites/g/files/dvc2551/files/document/2023/11/02%20-%20Veolia_FACTS_25_2023_GB_Web_F_Aggeri.pdf

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EU & Other countries

End-to-end strategy for EPR implementation is delivered in Ghana. The final report contains a roadmap with concrete steps necessary to design and implement EPR in Ghana, including continuous stakeholder dialogue to agree on collection, recycling and recovery targets, as well as other crucial aspects of the regulatory framework. More to read: https://landbell-group.com/news/fighting-the-plastic-menace/

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·?????? Waste Pickers Demand Livelihood Protection During Dump Closures: Learnings from 3 Cities. With growing concerns around social and environmental impacts, pressure to close open dump sites is increasing. These processes often happen hastily and without due consideration for waste picker livelihoods. Experiences from Brasilia, Accra and Dakar show that the inclusion of waste pickers in dump closure plans is crucial for a just transition towards more sustainable waste management practices. More to read: https://www.wiego.org/blog/waste-pickers-demand-livelihood-protection-during-dump-closures-learnings-3-cities

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·?????? Research on the Synergies between Zero Emissions & Zero Waste strategies and Sustainable Development Goals achievement. More to read: https://pubpub.maastrichtuniversitypress.nl/pub/h6lapqdk/release/1?readingCollection=24aa8eeb

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·?????? The right to repair WEEE in Europe: call for evidence: https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/13420-Waste-from-electrical-and-electronic-equipment-evaluating-the-EU-rules/F3353380_en

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·?????? THE ReSOLVE framework and the application of circular economy in the plastic industry. In general, the result also showed that companies had below-average scores for all six actions in the ReSOLVE framework, which indicated that the application of circular economy in the plastic industry was still low. The real reason was that companies might not understand the circular economy very clearly and the economy was the main driving force for businesses, not the sustainable development goal. More to read: https://pubpub.maastrichtuniversitypress.nl/pub/3x5lisxs/release/1?readingCollection=24aa8eeb

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·?????? Canada’s changing EPR landscape. Canada currently utilises a combination of extended producer responsibility programs and product stewardship programs to manage products at their end of life.? ?Canada has recently passed the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations (SUPPR) which aims to achieve zero plastic waste by 2030. These regulations enforce a ban on the production, importation, and sale of several types of single-use plastic items. The Government of Canada is continuing to bring forward new measures to better manage plastic and move towards its goal of zero plastic waste. The Federal Plastics Registry is a proposed initiative that aims to standardize data collection on provincial and territorial EPR programs. By establishing a centralized registry, the government can enhance its understanding of plastic waste, value recovery, and pollution across the country. It will also address the inconsistent data requirements and tracking processes of existing EPR programs. The Canadian Government also plans to introduce regulations on recycled content and labelling rules for plastics. More to read: https://www.valpak.co.uk/canadas-changing-epr-landscape/

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·?????? KEPRO Kenya Waste Collectors' Toolkit v1 2023. ?More to read: https://kepro.co.ke/resource/waste-collectors-toolkit

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·?????? The recycling industry in the European Union should develop target specifications for processed materials to ease the transition to a circular economy. Currently, there are no common recyclate specifications or consensuses in the European market to align the secondary plastics industry and the definition of quality remains unclear, and a framework to implement such quality in the recycling process is lacking. More to read: https://resource--recycling-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/resource-recycling.com/plastics/2023/08/01/industry-group-calls-for-pcr-quality-standards/amp/ . However, in France, there is a NF MPR certification which offers several advantages for manufacturers, such as enhancing the quality of recycled resins (RPM), enhancing the practices and professionalism of manufacturers producing PRM, and promoting the environmental benefit of the use of PRMs. In addition, it reinforces customer trust and loyalty and displays complete information controlled by AFNOR Certification. More to read: https://www.srprecycle.com/post/journ%C3%A9e-de-remise-des-certificats-de-la-marque-nf-mpr-c%C3%A9l%C3%A9brer-le-recyclage-plastique-de-qualit%C3%A9

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·?????? The European Union adopts strict regulations to reduce methane leaks. A major contributor to global warming, methane has long remained under the radar of the authorities. By developing a sophisticated system of controls and obligations, the European Union hopes to reduce its particularly harmful leaks. The future regulation ?will therefore impose strict obligations on companies in the oil, gas and coal sectors, in terms of measuring, reporting and verifying their emissions, but also in mitigating these emissions at the time of fossil fuel production, as well as their transport: installation of?leak ?detection devices small and large, including underground and subsea, repairs, ventilation limitation and flaring reduction, among others. More to read: https://www.actu-environnement.com/ae/news/accord-reglement-UE-methane-surveillance-fuites-42943.php4 and MethaneSAT | Solving a crucial climate challenge