Common criteria and definition of waste and end-of-life plastic materials (high density polyethylene/polypropylene) in the plastic industry

Subject: Common criteria and definition of waste and end-of-life plastic materials (high density polyethylene/polypropylene) in the plastic industry

In Latvia, the company Schoeller Allibert has to prove that a re-usable/secondary raw material polymer that is used in production is not a waste material The company’s suppliers are exporting and importing the materials (classified as non-waste) between EU countries without complying with Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 on shipments of waste. The authorities in Latvia do, however, require formal proof of the secondary material for each batch received, otherwise waste management legislation is applied.

The secondary raw material process does not require granulation, heat treatment or melting for further recycling. The material is clean, free from impurities, washed and does not contain metals. The material can therefore be used directly in injection moulding machines without further treatment.

– Can the Commission confirm whether returnable plastic production (rigid plastic packaging, i.e. crates, pallets, trays and refillable bottles for beverages etc.) can be excluded from waste management and be exempted from the scope of waste legislation when return systems are provided?

– Will it be possible to have a finer or flexible range for the definition of high density polyethylene/polypropylene (HDPE/PP) in terms of its characterisation as a waste or secondary raw material?

Answer given by Mr Vella on behalf of the European Commission

(9 April 2019)

Directive 2008/98/EC (1) establishes a very broad definition of waste covering any substance or object which the holder discards or intends or is required to discard.

The directive also envisages that waste can cease to be waste following a recovery operation, subject to meeting specific criteria established in Article 6 of the directive. At present, no end-of-waste criteria for plastics are adopted at EU level.

In the absence of EU-wide end-of-waste criteria for plastic waste, it is up to Member States to set up their own criteria or apply case- by-case decisions which in accordance with this Article 6 should specify, inter alia, the permissible waste input material for the recovery operation and the quality criteria for the end-of-waste materials resulting therefrom.

There is therefore no specific definition at the EU level of criteria for the characterisation of waste of substances like polyethylene/polypropylene.

Plastic packaging waste can be recovered and reach end of waste status in accordance with Article 6 of the directive. Member States are obliged to verify compliance with the requirements of this Article, including in the context of shipments of waste as laid down in Articles 28 and 50 of Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 (2).

The application of Directive 2008/98/EC depends on whether the definition of ‘waste’ is fulfilled in the context of the specific circumstances of a return system of plastic bottles. If the plastic bottles are returned for the purposes of their further recovery this should be considered as a waste management operation.

The Commission is evaluating the interface between Chemicals, Products and Waste Legislation. The report from the public consultation has recently been published (3). Improving certainty in the implementation of end-of-waste provisions is one of the key challenges identified.

⋅1∙ Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, OJ L 312, 22.11.2008, p. 3-30.

⋅2∙ Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 on shipments of waste OJ L 190, 12.7.2006, p. 1-98.

⋅3∙ https://ec.europa.eu/info/consultations/public-consultation-addressing-interface-between-chemical-product-and-waste-legislation_en