EU packaging, waste rules moving forward

European Union officials are moving forward with a Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation agreement that will affect the use of recycled plastics in Europe, overcoming a disagreement that had seemed like it would make approval "unlikely."

The Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU announced on X, previously Twitter, on March 14 that a majority of EU governments have signed off on the text of the PPWR, which will allow the measure to be formally adopted.

The European Parliament and Council had agreed to a final PPWR text previously, but European Commission had withheld its support because of a  is a clause introduced at the 11th hour in the final text at the hands of France.

The so-called "mirror clause" states that if imported plastic is to count towards meeting the PPWR’s recycling content targets, it must be collected in line with EU standards for separate collection and then processed in facilities that comply with the same pollution and emissions limits that apply to domestic producers.

Because few recycling plants outside of the EU comply with its standards, the clause would effectively impose a ban on imported recycled plastics.

The measure is intended to protect European plastic recyclers from rising amounts of cheap recycled resin imported into the block and has been strongly defended by industry representatives.

However, the European Commission took issue with the clause and did not yet give its support to the final text.

According to sources heard by Euronews, the Commission’s directorate-general for trade (DG TRADE) has since privately lobbied to stall the legislation, warning of "potential dire trade and diplomacy issues if the law is adopted in its current form," the Euronews report says.

DG TRADE claims the "mirror clause" would drive up packaged product prices, disrupt trade and could unfairly discriminate against developing countries.

Pascal Canfin, the French member of the European Parliament who chairs its environmental committee, said it is"‘completely unacceptable" that commission officials are trying to influence country’s positions, according to reports by the Financial Times and Politico.

The PPWR should now move ahead, including the clause which will effectively impose a ban on imported recycled plastics.

Sustainable Plastics will update this article more details become available.

The agreement must be approved in the April plenary, the last step before EU elections. It must then be formally adopted by the European Parliament and Council, following revision by lawyer-linguists, before it can be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force.