Author: The Baltic Times

VILNIUS – Lithuania, supported by the Czech Republic, Latvia and Estonia, has proposed that the European Union ban imports of ferrous metals, copper, and aluminum waste and scrap from Russia, saying that Moscow is using the money to finance its war against Ukraine. The proposal was tabled at the Environment Council's meeting in Brussels on Monday, the Environment Ministry said in a press release on Tuesday. 

Author: Marianne Gros

The environment ministers of Denmark, France and Sweden today called on the European Commission to request a change to international rules on waste exports to stop the bloc from exporting hazardous textile waste to developing countries. At today’s Environmental Council, the three ministers asked the Commission to put forward a draft Council decision that would allow the EU to make a formal request to change the Basel Convention, an international treaty that governs the shipments of hazardous waste across borders.

Author: Council of the EU

Today, the Council adopted the revision of the regulation on shipments of waste. As revised, the regulation aims to reduce shipments of problematic waste to outside the EU, update shipment procedures to reflect the objectives of the circular economy and climate neutrality, to make use of electronic submission and exchange of information, and to improve enforcement and tackle illegal shipments.

Author: Rethink Plastic Alliance

Today, the Council of the European Union unanimously agreed to address the harmful practice of the EU’s waste trade, including plastic waste, by fully endorsing the revised Waste Shipment Regulation. The final text is expected to be published in the Official Journal in April, and the Regulation will then enter into force 20 days after publication. The Rethink Plastic alliance and Break Free From Plastic welcome the Council’s decision to endorse the revised text negotiated at Trilogue, which includes increased obligations and standards with regards to the shipment of EU plastic waste. 

Author: Richard Gower

Thousands of people all over the UK have been taking part in the Big Plastic Count, to help show our leaders the extent of our plastic waste problem. (There’s still time to signup to take part, until 25 March. Count your household plastic waste for one week, and submit the data by 31 March.) All over the world, waste pickers are collecting, sorting and recycling plastic and many other types of rubbish. Here’s why their work is so valuable – and how the Global Plastics Treaty should support them.

Author: Colin Staub

An investigation that placed tracking devices in bundles of Amazon’s plastic packaging and dropped them off in store collection receptacles around the U.S. found a “failing” drop-off collection system, its authors said. Amazon said it can’t control how material is handled once it enters the recycling system. The Amazon-focused report, released March 19 and authored by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group and Environment America, is titled “Truth in Recycling: Does Amazon’s plastic packaging actually get recycled?”

Author: Joseph Winters

Feeling guilty about all those blue-and-white plastic Amazon bags piling up around the house? Fear not — they can be recycled! At least, that’s what the packaging says. For years now, Amazon’s plastic bags, bubble-lined mailers, and air pillows have featured the ubiquitous “chasing arrows” recycling symbol along with the words “store drop-off.” The idea is simple: Since most curbside recycling programs don’t accept this type of plastic — it’s too expensive to process and can clog machines — consumers can instead leave it at retail stores across the country. From there, this plastic, known as “film,” will go to a specialized facility and be turned into new products.

Author: Robert Hodgson

Belgium, current holder of the rotating EU Council presidency, has forged agreement between governments over new rules to tackle the growing problem of discarded packaging materials, overcoming the European Commission's concerns over trade diplomacy. National diplomats have endorsed a new European law on packaging waste, including provisions that would hold overseas producers to EU environmental standards on plastic recycling at the risk of losing market access.

Author: Gloria Dickie

LONDON, March 14 (Reuters) - At least 3,000 more chemicals are in plastics — from food packaging to toys to medical devices — than previously estimated by environmental agencies, a report published on Thursday found, raising questions over pollution and consumer safety. While the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) had previously identified around 13,000 plastic chemicals, the report by a team of European scientists found more than 16,000 chemicals in plastics — a quarter of which are thought to be hazardous to human health and the environment.

Author: Reuters

LONDON, March 14 (Reuters) - France is proposing a European Union ban on exports of used clothes, the environment ministry told Reuters on Thursday, as governments look for new ways to tackle the worsening problem of textile waste. United Nations trade data shows the EU exported 1.4 million metric tons of used textiles in 2022, more than twice as much as in 2000. The clothes can cause pollution in African countries where items that can't be resold end up in dumps, the EU has said.

Author: Nathan Canas

The European Parliament on Wednesday (13 March) backed targets for the prevention and reduction of food and textile waste across the bloc. However, environmental NGOs have criticised the proposal’s lack of ambition. At first reading, the Parliament adopted its position on the proposed revision of the directive on preventing and reducing food and textile waste in the EU. Adopted by 514 votes in favour, the report by Anna Zalewska (ECR, PL) proposes to amend the previous European legislation on waste, focusing on two major waste-producing sectors: textiles and food.

Author: Colin Staub

Although there are no chemical recycling facilities currently operating in the Pine Tree State, any starting up in the future will be considered “chemical plastic processing” operations subject to solid waste facility permitting, and their process will not be considered “recycling,” lawmakers recently voted. First introduced in April 2023, Maine’s Legislative Document 1660 is written as “an act to ensure proper regulation of chemical plastic processing,” which is commonly known as chemical recycling, “advanced” or even “molecular” recycling. All terms refer to a group of technologies that process scrap plastic chemically into its basic components (typically its monomers) rather than mechanically, through shredding, washing and re-pelletizing.

Author: Beatriz Santos

Exports of plastic waste to countries outside the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a group of mostly rich countries, has hit records highs in 2023, according to trade data collected by Plastic Waste Trade Watch. European Union plastic waste exports to Asia increased 45% from 2022. Total EU exports to non-OECD countries rose to 750 million kg in 2023 from 517 million kg in 2022. This is the highest level of plastic waste exports to Asia since China implemented the National Sword in 2018, the association revealed.