NEWS
VinylPlus gives PVC update
The European PVC industry’s VinylPlus circularity programme held its 2023 meeting in Florence, Italy, where it announced that 813,266 tonnes of PVC waste were recycled within the VinylPlus framework in 2022, representing around 27% of the total PVC waste generated during the year in the EU-27, Norway, Switzer- land and the UK.
Since 2000 when the
first programme started, 8.1m tonnes of PVC have been recycled and reused in new products, prevent- ing the release of 16.2m tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere. Throughout 2022,
VinylPlus also launched a series of initiatives aimed at supporting member companies’ efforts in reducing water and energy consumption, increasing the use of renewable energy and raw material, and minimis- ing any accidental spillage of PVC into water and the environment. �
www.vinylplus.eu
Europe takes aim at greenwashing claims
The European Commission has unveiled proposals for a Directive aimed at address- ing ‘greenwashing’ — the use of misleading or inaccurate environmental claims on products marketed to consumers. The Green Claims
Directive proposal follows a study the Commission carried out in 2020 that found that more than 53% of environmental claims were either vague, mislead- ing or unfounded and 40% were unsubstantiated. The Directive, which has been approved by the European Parliament, aims to ensure that all “voluntary” green claims (it excludes
Above: European Commission wants to stop ‘greenwashing’
those covered by existing EU rules) are accurate and backed with independently verified scientific data that details both benefits delivered and any trade-offs. It includes rules to ensure claims are communicated
clearly. In particular, it highlights aspects such as off-setting and claims of recycled content, even suggesting further and more specific regulation may be required in those areas.
Flexibles project in Canada
PRFLEX, an initiative aimed at improving the recovery and recycling rates of flexible plastics collected from Canadian households, has been set up by national and regional organisations (The Canada Plastics Pact, the Chemistry Industry Assn of Canada, Circular Materials, the Circular Plastics Task-
force, Éco Entreprises Québec and The Film and Flexibles Recycling Coalition of the Recycling Partnership). The project includes: determining the percentage of flexible plastic packaging currently being collected and recycled in each province; identifying infrastructure gaps in MRFs;
proposing new technolo- gies and optimising processes to increase capture rates, improving sorting and producing higher quality post-consum- er recycled resins; and measuring the performance of equipment in select partner facilities. �
https://plasticspact.ca
Erema Group ends financial year on a high
After pulling in around €355m in overall turnover and delivering 350 extruders, creating an additional recycling capacity for 1.5m tonnes of recycled pellets, Erema Group de- clared the 2022/23 financial year a resounding success. “With demand for recycled plastics
8
remaining high, the past financial year brought many challenges that we needed to handle,” said Manfred Hackl, Erema Group CEO. “The challenges included persistent delays in the supply chain and unexpected supplier outages. Logistics and production processes had to be adapted several
PLASTICS RECYCLING WORLD | May/June 2023
times [and] as a result the situation has improved significantly.” K 2022 saw the group launch seven
new recycling systems and compo- nents including the new Intarema TVEplus DuaFil Compact recycling system. �
www.erema-group.com
www.plasticsrecyclingworld.com
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
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