Position papers
Over the last decades, the European recycling industries have drastically evolved by modernizing and constantly innovating to turn more waste streams into new resources. By doing so, the sector has contributed to the development of new technologies and automated equipment made in Europe and exported around the globe. The European regulatory framework has accompanied these changes thanks to ambitious targets and a meaningful waste hierarchy. However, the recycling sector continues to be subject to a complex and ever-growing EU regulatory framework, which affects its activities. To ensure a competitive European recycling sector, which is part of a global industry, EuRIC advocates clear, effective and smart European policies which:
- Incentivise recycling across the value chains;
- Minimise regulatory burdens on recyclers, in particular on SMEs;
- Guarantee an open and fair competition within Europe and with the world to foster a genuine internal recycling market.
EuRIC also advocates positive measures to ensure a consistent implementation of existing legislation across Europe.
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Press release - Global free, fair & sustainable recovered paper trade is crucial for recycling industry
Brussels, 23 May 2022 – The recycling industry collects and recovers paper waste into standardized quality grade recovered paper in line with the European standard EN 643 on a daily basis. In 2020, Europe has collected on average 54.4 million tons of recovered paper and used 47.9 million tons internally1. However, there is a lasting gap between supply and demand of around 7 million tons in terms of excess supply of recovered paper in Europe as observed over the past years. In the absence of end markets for around 7 million tons of recovered paper in Europe, exports are vitally important for the European paper recycling industry.
Read more in our press release.
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Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive
The European Recycling Industries’ Confederation (EuRIC), thanks the European Commission and Eunomia for the informative and often detailed series of workshops to support the measures created within the Impact Assessment for the revision of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) 94/62/EC.[1] EuRIC strongly supports the need for ambitious measures in the field of packaging waste, to ensure the much-needed drive towards the circular economy, as promised in the new Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP).[2] The crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic showed that the only manner to de-correlated recycled materials prices from market ones which fail to internalise externalise are binding measures to incentivise circular materials’ use[3]. Thus, a continued focus is required on this level of ambition to avoid the watering down of pro-Circular measures.
This paper outlines the key cross-cutting positions of the European Recycling Industry. We look forward to workingclosely with the European Commission and Eunomia to ensure a progressive push in the revision of the PPWD’sessential requirements.
1. Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste. Link here
2. Circular Economy Action Plan: For a cleaner and more competitive Europe. Link here.
3. EuRIC Press Release - Decisive actions needed to support plastics recycling in Europe, June 2020. -
EuRIC Updated Statement on the critical situation faced by the European paper recycling sector
Urgent need to reconcile circular economy in paper with market realities as paper recycling industry faces difficult situation. Updated statement on the critical situation.
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ERPA Statement on the critical situation faced by the European paper recycling sector
ERPA, the recovered paper branch of the European Recycling Industries’ Confederation (EuRIC), is concerned about the developments on the global recovered paper market which negatively impacts paper recycling in Europe.
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Joint Statement on the possible EN 643 revision
FEAD, EuRIC and CEPI are pleased to share a joint statement on the possible EN 643 revision including a possible approach.
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EuRIC Statement on paper recycling latest developments – Tackling international trade issues to move towards a more circular economy - 28.06.2018
EuRIC, the European Recycling Industries’ Confederation, calls for different measures to tacke international trade issues related to paper recycling to move towards a more circular economy.
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Statement of EuRIC on the publication of the European Declaration on Paper Recycling 2016 – 2020
ERPA – EuRIC Paper Recycling Branch – is a founding Member of the European Recovered Paper Council (ERPC), created in 2000 at a time where the concept of the circular economy had not yet become a major political and economic objective. It has since the outset supported the very objectives of ERPC and promoted the value chain approach that ERPC embodied. For the first time, EuRIC Paper Recycling Branch decided not to co-sign the new “European Declaration on Paper Recycling” 2016 – 2020.
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Joint Statement on Quality Control Guidelines for Recovered Paper
EuRIC and FEAD stress that the revised version of the “Paper for Recycling Control Guidelines”, which they did not co-sign, do not bind their Members’ Associations or the waste management and recycling companies they represent.