Weekly bulletin on Circular Waste Management #06-2024

South Africa

Africa’s Green Economy Summit will take place 21st February 2024. More to read: https://wearevuka.com/green-economy/ages/programme/

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The draft guide and toolkit for the extended producer responsibility fee determination is under public comment. More to read: nemawa_extendedproducerfeestoolkit_g50067gon4308.pdf (dffe.gov.za)

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France

In packaging, it is not only the agri-food industry that is mobilized on the transition of its supply chain, by offering bulk and reuse. The cosmetics industry is also tackling this with several tests underway over a defined period and scope. These operations are associated with research on eco-design, deposit and charging. Cosmetics reduce the size of their packaging and Several measures underway on reuse and deposit. More to read: https://lecho-circulaire.com/la-cosmetique-teste-la-reduction-des-emballages/

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We need to innovate so that more and better waste is recycled. ?the Amorce association?deplored the fact that "the collection and recycling sectors of the textile, plastic packaging or toy sectors have not achieved their environmental objectives".?We wanted to take stock of the issue of recycling with? Director of Circular Economy at ADEME. More to read: https://infos.ademe.fr/economie-circulaire-dechets/2024/nous-devons-innover-pour-que-les-dechets-soient-plus-et-mieux-recycles/

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Compulsory composting In France since 2024. In Besan?on, a middle size city introduced an incentive fee in 2012 (the heavier, larger and more numerous the household waste bins of residents, the higher the bill) and at the same time, composters were deployed in the city. As a result of these joint efforts of composting and fees, Besan?on has seen a?39% reduction in its household waste?in eleven years. ?Before that in 2008, one of the furnaces of the Besan?on waste-to-energy unit reached the end of its life and the city decided not to replace it and to focus on a significant reduction in household waste. The cost of the replacement of the furnace was estimated at between €70 and €80 million and the population was receptive to this decision (in this period of time, environmental problems related to incinerators were very much targeted). Therefore, the Besan?on region has made compost the heart of its bio-waste treatment strategy, with solutions adapted to each type of housing. Detached houses with a garden are equipped with individual composters. At the end of 2023, nearly 80% of residences were equipped ?A solution that, coupled with the sorting of the yellow bin (where paper and packaging stay) allows the community to switch to a collection of household waste in rural areas every two weeks instead of a weekly visit. More to read: https://vert.eco/articles/compostage-obligatoire-la-bonne-eleve-besancon-peut-etre-servir-dexemple-aux-autres-metropoles

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Almost four years after the publication of the law on the fight against waste and the circular economy, new provisions are due to enter into force on 1 January 2024. Zero Waste France looks back at the changes to expect, the delays taken, and the points of attention to keep in mind. Obligation to sort bio-waste at source: we are not ready (the sorting of bio-waste at source will become mandatory for all waste producers. All food waste – food scraps, peelings, coffee grounds, etc. – and green waste, which still represents 1/3 of our residual bins, must be sorted "at source"). More to read: https://www.zerowastefrance.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/20240206-bilan-loi-agec-zwf-fne-npims-at-sfe.pdf?trk=public_post_comment-text

With the separate collection of bio-waste, local authorities risk being confronted with problems; in fact the incinerators were all built for waste having a PCI containing these organic materials or for a PCI which is around 6-7MJ/kg by doing this separation at the source the PCI naturally flies 12-14MJ/kg. It is fundamentally different and very few incinerator vaults resist such PCI, production stoppages for cracked vaults will multiply and new investments will be necessary and all this in the urgency due to the cessation of production.

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The second largest materials producer is changing its approach to the market, in line with a strategy that embraces the challenges of the circular economy, logistical rationalization and diversification of its outlets. For the subsidiary of the Bouygues group, the second largest French materials producer which owns 180 quarries and more than 700 sites on French territory, there is no question of watching the situation deteriorate without doing anything. Indeed, it is currently implementing an ambitious strategy, aiming to better address the market as a whole and to develop circular economy solutions. Pushing recycled materials while it is very difficult to open new quarries in France, Colas has in fact decided to focus on aggregates and recycled materials. Of the 36 Mt produced each year by the group, 7 Mt today come from deconstruction deposits. The four-year objective: to reach 10 Mt of recycled materials. More to read: https://www.lemoniteur.fr/article/materiaux-colas-deploie-sa-strategie-autour-de-l-economie-circulaire.2322906

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EU & Other countries

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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has assessed potential research and development (R&D) activities that could improve the economic viability of municipal solid waste-to-energy facilities. DOE recognizes that sorted municipal solid waste (MSW) and related feedstocks constitute a present disposal problem for municipalities and similar entities. Improving waste-to-energy conversion in existing facilities and developing technologies for next generation facilities is important to localities across the country as they explore more cost-effective solutions to waste disposal. More to read: https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2019/08/f66/BETO--Waste-to-Energy-Report-August--2019.pdf

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India has joined with countries with petrochemical interests to weaken key aspects of the Global Plastics Treaty, despite clear science of harm, and the vulnerability of its citizens. More to read: https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/pollution/opinion-why-is-india-weakening-the-global-plastics-treaty/

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Large Municipal Waste Combustors (LMWC): New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and Emissions Guidelines by US EPA. More to read: https://www.epa.gov/stationary-sources-air-pollution/large-municipal-waste-combustors-lmwc-new-source-performance

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Could energy recovery solve the mounting problem of global waste? With 70% of global landfill suitable for energy recovery, there is potential for serious growth in waste-to-energy (WtE) industries. More to read: https://www.woodmac.com/news/opinion/waste-to-energy/?utm_source=linkedin&utm_medium=social&utm_content=waste-to-energy-2023&utm_campaign=chemicals-2023

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UK Eco Park Surrey, built for the council by waste management company SUEZ Group, transforms 40,000 tons of food waste and up to 55,000 tons of general refuse waste a year into electricity. It does this by using biogas from anaerobic digestion of the food waste and gasification of the general refuse waste as the power sources. More to read: https://www.watermagazine.co.uk/2023/09/13/envirogen-group-water-treatment-live-at-new-energy-from-waste-plant-in-surrey/

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The China State Council has issued guidelines for expediting the establishment of a waste recycling system. According to the document, the construction of the waste recycling system is a crucial measure to implement the comprehensive conservation strategy, ensure the security of national resources, actively and steadily promote carbon peak and carbon neutrality, as well as accelerate the green transformation of the development mode. It sets goals that by 2025, a waste recycling system covering all fields and links will be initially established and by 2030, a comprehensive, efficient, regulated and well-organized waste recycling system will be built up, and the value of various waste resources will be fully utilized, and the overall level of waste recycling will rank among the top in the world. More to read: https://english.www.gov.cn/policies/latestreleases/202402/09/content_WS65c5ea15c6d0868f4e8e3e8a.html

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An Overview of EU directives for Consumer Electronics. More details: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14QMSTVlI8gPRrsMMiNXc_1YAOgJoPISdNfvNBsi-y_g/edit#gid=0

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Drivers of EU plastic waste exports. This report aims to identify and discuss key drivers of EU plastic waste export, whether they are increasing or decreasing. Even as legislation continues to develop on EU plastic waste exports, it is useful to understand what drives exports, so that implementation of further export restriction can be as impactful as possible. The report also contribute to a better understanding of the recent dynamics of the trade in waste plastics and follow up on previous reports on the trade in plastic waste (ETC/WMGE, 2019; ETC/CE, 2023). More to read: https://www.eionet.europa.eu/etcs/etc-ce/products/etc-ce-report-2024-2-drivers-of-eu-plastic-waste-exports/@@download/file/2024%202%20_Plastic%20waste%20trade_for%20publication%20(3).pdf

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EU Parliament probing lobbyists who fought sustainable packaging rules. Business groups could face penalties for overzealous lobbying on the EU’s new rules to ditch throwaway packaging for reusable options. More to read: https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-parliament-qatargate-climate-lobbyists-sustainable-packaging-rules/

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