Sustainable Plastics - October 2021 - 34

recycling
continued from page 32
our cascade model - starts with
optimising product design, first
for eco-eff iciency, then for reuse
and finally for recycling, "
said Lucrèce Foufopoulos, EVP
Polyolefins, Innovation & Technology
at Borealis. The valorised
material outputs derived from
both the mechanical and chemical
recycling streams are processed
with Borealis Borcycle
M - for mechanical- or C, which
stands for chemical, recycling
technology. She acknowledged
that various regulatory aspects
remain to be clarified regarding
chemical recycling and
mass balance, particularly with
respect as to whether these
materials count as 'recycled'
under the EU requirements for
recycled content in packaging
that take eff ect in 2025. But
Foufopoulos is optimistic, noting
that policymakers are taking
the time to educate themselves
to ensure that all options
for the lowest carbon footprint
are being respected, while
at the same time embracing
chemical recycling technology.
In the same vein, PlasticsEurope,
the Brussels-based pan-European
association of plastics
manufacturers, supports the European
Commission's proposal
for a mandatory EU recycled
content target for plastics packaging,
calling in a 9 September
statement for a target of 30%
for plastics packaging by 2030.
According to its figures, some
17.8 Mt of plastic post-consumer
packaging waste were
collected in 2018. 42% were
sent to recycling, 39.5% to energy
recovery and 18.5% to
landfills - figures that clearly
show room for improvement.
A mandatory EU recycled content
target in packaging is important
for driving the market
for recycled content and making
a true circular economy happen.
However, the association cited
the lack of regulatory authorisation
for polymers, e.g. food contact
legislation, combined with
inconsistent batch qualities and
Holy Grail 2.0's
first prototype
detection
sorting unit.
lack of supply security as obstacles
that must be tackled if true
progress is to be made.
Its members are already
working towards the proposed
2030 target, the association
said. They are investing
billions of Euros in, among
others, advanced recycling.
Planned investments in this
technology and infrastructure
range from 2.6 billion Euros
by 2025 to 7.2 billion Euros by
2030 in Europe.
As PlasticsEurope stated:
" Chemical recycling is the missing
link necessary to achieve a
truly circular economy for plastics.
As a promising technology,
chemical recycling complements
other plastic recycling
options like mechanical and
dissolution recycling. "
Ramping up chemical recycling
is essential to achieve
such a mandatory target, the
association warns.
" The call for a regulated recycled
content target for plastics
packaging in the EU demonstrates
our commitment to accelerate
the transformation to
a circular economy, helping implement
the EU Green Deal and
Circular Economy Action Plan, "
said Dr Markus Steilemann,
President of PlasticsEurope and
CEO of Covestro.
" To successfully meet this
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target, we need new systems
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amongst others. We must
also ensure recycled content is
derived from all " waste materials "
through a technology-neutral
approach that includes both
mechanical and chemical recycling,
with a credible mass balance
framework. "
" We need a harmonised EU
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policy framework that provides
certainty and incentivises further
investment in collection,
sorting and recycling infrastructure
and technologies,
including chemical recycling, "
emphasised Virginia Janssens,
Managing Director of PlasticsEurope.
The
Single Market has a crucial
role to play and we must
harness its power, she added.
" However, systemic change
requires concerted collaboration.
It is only by working together
with the EU institutions
and the value chain that we
can deliver on this target. With
the right enabling conditions in
place this will be a very diff erent
industry 10 years from now. "
34
2020
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Sustainable Plastics - October 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sustainable Plastics - October 2021
