Fédération Européenne des Activités de la Dépollution et de l'Environnement
Europäische Föderation der Entsorgungswirtschaft
Interview with Ms Aurore Mourette, policy officer
European Federation of Waste Management and Environmental Services FEAD
The 10th edition of the South-East European event ‘Save the Planet’ has a well-established long-term partnership with FEAD - European Federation of Waste Management and Environmental Services. Please present in brief FEAD main objectives and mission & the latest waste management policies.
The European Federation for Waste Management and Environmental Services represents the private waste sector. Regarding policies, we have been actively working to get 35% mandatory recycled content in plastics bottles approved by EU decision makers. In October, the European Parliament approved the report which stipulated a minimum target of 35% recycled plastic in beverage bottles as well as a 90% collection target for recycling. This was a huge victory for us as it meant that the report would go on to be negotiated during the trilogue, which is happening now. Indeed, at the moment, the trilogue between the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of the European Union is taking place. It is during these talks that it will be decided if 35% mandatory recycled content and the 90% collection target will be approved or not.
It is important for us to underline that these two notions go hand in hand as they would close the loop for single use plastics and reduce littering. This is key for our sector: a mandatory recycled content target will send, through the waste and material value chain, a strong signal to boost the offer of, and the demand for recycled plastics, as well as provide operators with the necessary certainty they need to make significant investments in plastics recycling from packaging products. It is important for the EU to see waste as a resource; the private waste management sector will play a key role in transforming the European Union’s economy into a circular one.
Policy wise, we are also focusing on the Basel Convention which was proposed by Norway and which tackles waste shipment. To summarise: Norway would like to introduce a notification procedure for the shipment of plastic waste which would be bothersome and would be a tiresome procedure that would slow down the circulation of plastic waste. This wasn’t the case before, and we would like to avoid having a notification procedure introduced as it would be an obstacle to the EU recycling market.
