Sessions at Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference Europe, 15-16 November in Rotterdam, will focus in part on the growing role of EU policy on recycling collection, processing and trading.
Targets, mandates and trade policies in the European Union, combined with corporate sustainability goals, are changing the way paperboard and plastic scrap are collected and traded in Europe. The fast-moving pace of change on the continent is atop the agenda at the 2022 Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference Europe event, to be held at the Rotterdam Hilton in the Netherlands, 15-16 November.
The conference’s opening session will feature speakers from two Brussels-based organizations on the front lines of the recycling challenges: the European Federation of Waste Management and Environmental Services (FEAD) and the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI).
FEAD, which will be represented by board member Dr. Andreas Krawczik of Remondis Netherlands, has weighed in on numerous EU recycling related policies, including those affecting plastic scrap trading, the collection of policies known as the Green Deal, and aggressive targets for plastic recycling within the EU.
On the trade front, exports to non-Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) are scheduled to require pre-registration of companies receiving scrap materials. The policy has been received with great concern from processors and traders of scrap paper and metal, which should not be regulated as “waste,” the recyclers say.
Providing additional context on the paper and board side will be CEPI and its raw materials director Ulrich Leberle. “There [has been] strong investment in recycling capacities in Europe [and] there is a strong environmental consciousness by people” Leberle noted at a CEPI online event earlier this year.
Market supply and demand fundamentals, as they have been since the event was created in 2005, will remain another critical topic of discussion.
Also providing positive news in Europe is the apparent ongoing commitment by corporations there to emphasize sustainability programs that include attention to recycling and recycled content in products. The session following the keynote addresses on Nov. 15, is titled “Sector Analysis: Packaging,” and will feature a panel focused on how sustainability is boosting recycling’s prospects.
Speaking at the session will be Jurgita Girzadiene, sustainability manager for Ireland-based paper and board producer Smurfit Kappa. That firm has sought and received sustainability recognition from e-commerce giant Amazon and from a packaging awards program.
Joining Girzadiene is Sébastien Ricard, an associate director with global advertising firm Havas Paris. Ricard, who previously worked with Paris-based recycling firm Paprec, will provide comments on how global brand owners are seeking to work recycling into their overall sustainability programs.
For nearly two decades, Paper & Plastics Recycling Conference Europe has been the must-attend event for the European paper and plastics recycling industry, providing unparalleled networking opportunities, a diverse programme and a roster of high-profile speakers who address many of the foremost issues confronting recyclers and recovered commodity consumers in Europe and abroad.
Organised by leading international publisher the Recycling Today Media Group (publisher of Recycling Today and Recycling Today Global Report), in combination with an expert industry advisory board, the event provides delegates with the perfect opportunity to learn about and discuss the issues facing the recovered paper market in Europe and beyond.