More and more plastic products are being labelled as
compostable
biodegradable
oxo-degradable or
bio-based.
However, plastics made from bio-based materials are not necessarily compostable or biodegradable. Moreover, plastics that do biodegrade can be made from fossil fuel-based materials.
What is the difference between compostable and biodegradable? What happens to biodegradable and compostable plastics when they are littered? Can citizens compost such products in their own gardens? Can such plastics be recycled?
This European Environment Agency (EEA) briefing aims to answer these questions.
CRE is an association representing the chemical recycling industry. It aims to promote and support the implementation of innovative chemical recycling technologies, boosting the circular economy for plastics.
Priorities:
Provide sustainable solutions to overcome the current challenges of recycling processes.
Protect nature by transforming plastic waste into a valuable resources.
Endlessly recycle plastic waste by transforming it back into its components or other products.
Save CO2 emissions and reduce the carbon footprint of our industry.
Reduce landfilling by offering sustainable end-of-life options for all plastic waste.
Chemical recycling technologies play a key role in supporting the transition towards a more sustainable and circular economy in Europe.
The Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy fulfils the commitment in the Programme for Irish Government to publish and start implementing a new National Waste Action Plan. This new national waste policy will inform and give direction to waste planning and management in Ireland over the coming years. It will be followed later this year by an All of Government Circular Economy Strategy. The need to embed climate action in all strands of public policy aligns with the goals of the European Green Deal.
The policy document contains over 200 measures across various waste areas including Circular Economy, Municipal Waste, Consumer Protection and Citizen Engagement, Plastics and Packaging, Construction and Demolition, Textiles, Green Public Procurement and Waste Enforcement.
Renewi E-waste collects Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), recycles it and sells the resulting plastic, ferrous and non-ferrous products as secondary raw materials.
Versalis produces plastics, rubbers and chemicals from renewable sources, maintaining plastic products and materials in a closed loop. It has developed the Versalis Revive® range of polymer-based products containing recycled plastics, in collaboration with leading Italian companies in the recovery and recycling of post-consumer plastic at European level.
The European Committee of Manufacturers of Electrical Machines and Power Electronics (CEMEP) supports the development towards a circular economy (CE), thus actively contributing to more sustainable manufacturing and responsible consumption. This industrial sector follows a business-to-business market model, delivering products for a wide number of economic sectors and applications.
Its three main product groups – electric motors, variable speed drives and uninterruptable power systems – show differences and similarities when it comes to material efficiency, hence the need for sector- or product-specific approaches when pursuing CE.
This position paper describes the CE status of the CEMEP industries and the way forward towards more circularity.
Upcycling Scandinavia designs practical objects using upcycled materials such as paper, cardboard and pre-use plastic from industry. Its products are reusable and can be looped back into the manufacturing of new products.
A solvent-free adhesive that is suitable for recycling and also for bonding of recycled plastic films has been developed by Henkel to be used for multilayer packaging.
