Importance of paper recovery and recycling

Paper is a valuable material used in numerous applications (packaging including food packaging, newspapers, insulation purposes, etc.). The recycling industry collects and recovers waste paper into standardized quality grade recovered paper in line with the European list of standard grades of paper and board for recycling (EN 643). Recovered paper is a commodity, whose supply and demand are not solely European but global, and it can be used as a substitute or in complement of virgin pulp by paper mills to produce new paper. The paper recycling chain is already circular in many aspects and using recovered paper instead of primary materials saves 70% for paper and 77% for cardboard of the energy needed to produce new paper¹.
¹Impact Assessment of ADEME & FEDEREC assessing recycling environmental benefits based on a LCA approach, April 2017.

Benefits

The European Recovered Paper Branch (ERPA) was initially created in the early 90s under the name of WAPAC and ever since aims at promoting paper recovery and recycling in Europe.

ERPA Branch Members are national recovered paper federations from different European Union countries representing the interests of companies involved in the collection, processing, recycling, transportation and trade of recovered paper.

ERPA Branch is a Member of the Technical Committee Pulp, Paper and Board (CEN/TC 172), was a founding Member of the European Recycling Paper Council (ERPC) and works closely with the whole paper value chain in order to optimize the work.

Objectives

• To monitor and analyze at EU level all legal, environmental, economic and technical issues relating to the recovery, processing, recycling, and transportation of recovered paper.

• To ensure a proper representation of the European recovered paper sector to the European institutions and liaise with relevant private associations inside and outside the EU.

• To be the contact point for the European institutions in terms of expertise regarding paper recovery.

• To provide expert inputs on any EU policy and regulatory initiative which could have an impact on the recovery, recycling and trade of recovered paper.

• To promote a fit-for-purpose regulatory framework which incentivizes the recovery and recycling of paper.

• To maintain a link between the European national member federations, in strict observance of relevant legal requirements.

ERPA Branch Members