Europe must become world leader in sustainable use of waste

17.01.2023 9:12

Europe must become world leader in sustainable use of waste

Waste paper on a barge

The EPP Group calls upon the European Parliament’s political Groups to support all changes to the rules on waste shipments that make sure Europeans will recycle more plastic, textiles, metals and alike, rather than throwing them away.

"To succeed in that, the European Union must become an attractive environment for recycling and a place where waste becomes a valuable resource. It must become a world leader in an innovative, sustainable use of waste", said Pernille Weiss MEP, the European Parliament's Chief Negotiator on the topic, ahead of the vote in plenary today.

The new rules will, amongst others, phase out the export of plastic waste to OECD countries, make requirements for waste management more stringent and improve information exchange within the Single Market.

"The EU export of waste to non-EU countries reached as much as 16 percent of global trade in waste in 2020. Around half of it, approximately 16 million tonnes, went to third countries with waste management rules that may be less stringent than the EU's. With the new rules, Europe aims at taking more responsibility and avoiding simply shipping EU pollution abroad", said Weiss, explaining that, concretely, the new law would ensure third countries not only notify the European Commission they want to receive EU waste shipments, but also prove they can treat them in an environmentally safe way.

For the EPP Group, one of the main priorities in the negotiations has been to safeguard both human and environmental health, while providing the necessary framework for industry to deliver on our ambitions.

Note to editors

The EPP Group is the largest political group in the European Parliament with 176 Members from all EU Member States

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