European Union Establishes Regulation on Non-Recycled Plastic Packaging Waste

Strategic Insights -

The European Union has adopted a Regulation on 16 March 2023 to establish the form for the statement relating to the own resource based on non-recycled plastic packaging waste. The Regulation aims to enhance the comparability, reliability, and exhaustiveness of data on plastic packaging waste generation and recycling.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Regulation establishes the form for the annual statement on non-recycled plastic packaging waste, which shall contain statistical data on the weight of plastic packaging waste generated and recycled, and provide the calculation of the amount of the own resource based on non-recycled plastic packaging waste.
  • Member States shall determine estimates from two approaches: placed-on-the-market approach and waste analysis approach, and provide a single estimate of waste generated by balancing the available results.
  • The Regulation sets out detailed rules concerning the data to be contained in the statement, including definitions of key terms such as "waste", "separately collected", "recycled", and "plastic".
  • The statement shall serve as a supporting document for the Commission control and supervision of the own resource based on non-recycled plastic packaging waste.
  • Any difference between the data obtained by the two approaches shall be explained in detail according to the format set out in table 3 of Annex I.
  • The Regulation requires Member States to transmit electronically to the Commission (Eurostat) the annual statement for the year two years before the current year by 31 July of each year.

Statistics:

  • The Regulation establishes the form for the statement relating to the own resource based on non-recycled plastic packaging waste, which shall contain statistical data on the weight of plastic packaging waste generated and recycled.
  • The Regulation requires Member States to determine estimates from two approaches: placed-on-the-market approach and waste analysis approach, and provide a single estimate of waste generated by balancing the available results.
  • The statement shall serve as a supporting document for the Commission control and supervision of the own resource based on non-recycled plastic packaging waste.
  • Any difference between the data obtained by the two approaches shall be explained in detail according to the format set out in table 3 of Annex I.
  • The Regulation requires Member States to transmit electronically to the Commission (Eurostat) the annual statement for the year two years before the current year by 31 July of each year.

Sources:

  • Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2021/770 of 30 April 2021 on the calculation of the own resource based on plastic packaging waste that is not recycled, on the methods and procedure for making available that own resource, on the measures to meet cash requirements, and on certain aspects of the own resource based on gross national income (OJ L 165, 11.5.2021, p. 15).
  • Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on waste and repealing certain Directives (OJ L 312, 22.11.2008, p. 3).
  • Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 1994 on packaging and packaging waste (OJ L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 10).
  • Commission Decision 2005/270/EC of 22 March 2005 establishing the formats relating to the database system pursuant to Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on packaging and packaging waste (OJ L 86, 5.4.2005, p. 6).