Page 35 from: May 2013

35May 2013

increasing, but at very different speeds. Six

member states – Belgium, Denmark, Germany,

Austria, Sweden and the Netherlands – now

landfill less than 3% of their municipal waste.

At the other extreme, nine member states are

still landfilling more than 75% of their munic-

ipal waste. This is a very worrying situation

which is bad for the economy and the environ-

ment. There is also a concern that incineration

overcapacity is emerging in some member

states, leading to lost opportunities for the

recovery of recyclable materials.’

In a sustainable society, what role
should recycling play?
‘Recycling is essential to close the loop in our

economy and move to a more circular model

where materials become available for second use

on the market. From a life-cycle perspective,

changing municipal waste treatment between

2001 and 2010 has successfully cut greenhouse

gas emissions by 56%, or 38 million tonnes of

CO2-equivalent in the EU, Norway and Switzer-

land taken together. But as I’ve said, Europe is still

wasting vast quantities of valuable resources by

sending them to landfill. We need to create the

economic conditions that make recycling eco-

nomically attractive and help the development of

an efficient and high-standard recycling industry.’

To what extent have attitudes towards
recycling changed among legislators
over the years?
‘As I see it, they have evolved positively, and some

member states are going well beyond what the EU

proposes. Around 40% of the waste produced in

the EU is covered by a target. Member states have

to include these minimum targets in their nation-

al legislation, but some national legislation

includes more ambitious objectives, which is good

news for the environment and human health.’

What is the EU’s stance on material
leaving Europe?
‘Preventing the leakage of raw materials embed-

ded in our waste is definitely something we need

to look at. A more efficient recycling industry

would help. From the point of view of waste ship-

ments, if illegal shipments are to be effectively

prevented, we need adequate controls in all mem-

ber states. At the moment, some member states

have thorough, well-functioning inspection sys-

tems targeting either illegal waste shipments in

ports or at the sites of waste producers and col-

lectors, but others simply don’t. This leads to

“port hopping”. The Commission is now looking

to propose new legislation in order to strengthen

inspection provisions by requiring member states

to establish inspection plans and provide relevant

training in, among other things, the EU Waste

Shipment Regulation. We already have some suc-

cess stories to draw experience from, including

electronic waste and end-of-life vehicles.’

In 2005, with the adoption of the
Thematic Strategy on Waste Prevention
and Recycling, the EU set itself the goal
of becoming a Recycling Society. What
progress has been made?
‘Since 2005, recycling rates have progressively

risen for nearly all member states and for all

waste streams. Municipal recycling rates, for

instance, grew from 19% in 1998 to 40% in

2011. At the same time, landfilling has decreased

by around 20%. It is encouraging but we can

certainly do better, especially in member states

where recycling rates are low and the potential

gains are high. These member states often lack

key measures to promote recycling like eco-

nomic instruments that incentivise recycling,

information campaigns, sufficient separate col-

lection schemes, and adequate infrastructure.

The Commission recently organised a tour of

the 10 member states which need to make the

most progress in order to discuss their difficul-

ties and propose recommendations to move

them in the right direction. These recommenda-

tions were recently published for each of these

member states, and we intend to follow their

implementation quite carefully.’

And in 2008, with the adoption of the
revised EU Waste Framework Directive,
a five-step waste hierarchy became le-
gally binding for all EU member states.
Can you update us on implementation?
‘All member states have to transpose the Waste

Framework Directive into national legislation;

this is an obligation, not a choice, and all gov-

ernments signed up to it in the Council. The

Commission is currently checking the quality

of the transposition and will launch infringe-

ment procedures where necessary.

The Commission will also check the adequacy

of National Waste Management Strategies,

notably to see if they apply the waste hierarchy.

In practice, significant efforts are still needed

in several member states that are landfilling a

significant amount of waste. Other member

states are burning too much recyclable waste,

and nearly all member states should step up

their efforts to prevent waste from happening

in the first place. The new national prevention

programmes should be finalised by the end of

2013 and I hope that this will give a new

impulse to waste prevention.’

In your opinion, what is the influ-
ence of EU legislation on the recycling
industry in Europe and worldwide?
‘At the European level, waste legislation has been

a major driver for the development of the recy-

cling sector. Several new types of industry have

emerged – from basic sorting facilities to more

sophisticated separation methods for precious

metals, for instance. Today, the recycling sector

represents more than 50 000 facilities and 1.5

million jobs, most of which are hard to de-local-

ise. European recycling industries have a com-

parative advantage and I hope that this will be

reinforced in the coming years as the industry

evolves in response to the coming resource crisis.’

To what extent do you believe highly-
developed countries have a responsibil-
ity to bring recycling best practice to
the rest of the world?
‘Resource scarcity is a global problem, not just

a problem for developed countries. Resource

constraints on water, energy and raw materials

will put a brake on the development of many

economies, and if we don’t act on them they

could be a threat to stability and peace. Europe

should take a lead and help developing coun-

tries avoid the mistakes we have made in the

past, and not get locked into patterns of con-

sumption and production that rely on the

unsustainable use of natural resources. And we

already do in fact: we have been very vocal in

the international arena, pushing for a global

switch towards a green economy in all the mul-

tilateral processes we have been involved in.

‘European recycling
industries have
a comparative

advantage.’

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