Brussels - European Union 27+2 has recycled 4.6m tonnes, 30.3 percent of all its plastic packaging in 2009. So the EU’s minimum target of 22.5 were easily surpassed, says the annual report Plastics -The Facts 2010. This report has been produced in partnership between PlasticsEurope, EuPC, EuPR and EPRO. Energy recovery also exceeded 30 percent for the first time, hitting 30.4 percent. In total 60.7 percent (58 percent in 2008) of all plastic packaging was recovered in 2009, with 39.3 percent (42 percent in 2008), the balance going to landfills. In 2009, six countries (2008: 9 countries) did not achieve the recycling target of 22.5 percent. We still have a job to do, EPRO says, but overall there has been steady progress.

In terms of overall plastics 'recovery', 53.6 percent (51.3 percent) of post-consumer used plastics in Europe (EU27+2) were recovered in 2009, with the rest going to disposal. Of the 53.6 percent recovered, 5.4m (5.3m) tonnes were recycled – as material and feedstock – and 7.6m (7.5m) tonnes were recovered as energy. This equals a recycling rate of 22.3 percent and an energy recovery rate of 31.3 percent

Due to the financial crisis, global production fell to 230m tonnes in 2009 from 245m tonnes the year before. In 2007 the production amounted to 260m tonnes. In Europe the production declined from 60m tonnes to 55m tonnes, while the demand from European converters dropped by 7.2 percent to 45m tonnes.

While the demand from European converters amounted to 45m tonnes (48.5m), the post consumer plastic waste totalled 24.4m tonnes (24.9m). The difference is partly explained by the fact that many plastic applications have a long life. Several plastic products made in 2009 will thus end up as waste some day in the future, while plastic packaging normally ends up as waste the same year. The post consumer plastic waste equals 47.7kg/capita. The generated waste figures range from 24 kg/capita in Bulgaria to 71kg/capita in Ireland.

The recovery of plastics is close to 100 percent in some European countries. The following nine countries recovered more than 80 percent of their post consumer plastic waste: Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway and Luxembourg. The first five countries surpassed even 95 percent. Six countries recovered less than 20 percent with Malta at the bottom with 8.8 percent. Malta and some other countries have still non or limited energy recovery solutions, while some member states in the north have overcapacity on energy recovery.

Malta and 15 other countries still landfill more than 60 percent of their post consumer plastic waste. This group of nations includes also Spain and UK both with very low energy recovery rates of just 13.5 percent and 7.4 percent and thus a rather high degree of land filling of 67 percent and 73 percent of their plastic waste.

Some more short information under epro-plasticsrecycling.org(1); the report can be downloaded from epro-plasticsrecycling.org(2).

Quelle: European Association of Plastics Recycling and Recovery Organisations (EPRO)

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