Organisations involved in paper recycling discuss European best practices
Experts on paper recycling met on 24 June in the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw. The conference focused on European best practices aimed at improving local selective collection and paper recycling performances.
More than 80 top paper recycling professionals followed the invitation from the IMPACT project group to attend the Conference entitled ‘Circular Economy – How to improve paper collection in Poland?’ on 24 June in Warsaw, Poland. The conference was followed by a visit to the newly opened Stora Enso Ostroleka mill the next day, to show paper making hands on.
SPP – the Association of Polish Papermakers was represented by their Director General Mr Zbigniew Fornalski. He expressed the hope that “this conference will kick-off a more permanent dialogue between all Polish municipalities, waste management companies and paper makers to make the best use of our available raw materials and properly prepare Poland for the circular economy”.
Jolanta Krzywiec, Director of Municipal Waste Management in the Department of Warsaw, introduced the new waste management system in Warsaw. “The municipality in Warsaw is doing their utmost to improve paper collection and ensuring a constant high quality level of this valuable raw material for the paper industry“, stressed Mrs Krzywiec. Mr Krzysztof Kawczyński – Chairman for the Committee for the Protection of the Environment in the National Chamber of Commerce introduced the new waste recycling regulation in Poland.
Several best practice cases from countries around Europe gave valuable examples to local municipalities in Poland on how to step up paper collection and recycling quality in the country. Especially the example from Aspapel – the Spanish paper industry association – showed how in a short period of time educational campaigns on paper recycling can be a very effective tool to improve recycling rates in a country.
“Paper needs to be collected separately from other waste streams to maintain a consistent quality and achieve high recycling targets and bring the current Polish recycling rate to the EU average“, explains Ulrich Leberle from the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI).
The workshop was the kick-off of the IMPACT committment -of which CEPI is a member- aiming to achieve the European Innovation Partnernship’s objectives. IMPACT partners hope to organise similar events in other countries aiming to improve their paper recycling rates in the future. CEPI is also part of a European Recovered Paper Council that has pledged to improve paper recycling in Europe.
The conference was a satellite meeting as part of a larger European Commission event on resource efficiency and the circular economy – the Greenweek. Greenweek takes place every year in Brussels and attracts thousands of participants from all over Europe with an interest in the environment.
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For more information, please contact Daniela Haiduc at , mobile: +32 (0) 473562936 or Katarzyna Godlewska or Agnieszka Radziłowska
Note to the Editor
IMPACT – Introduction and Improvement of Separate Paper Collection to avoid landfilling and incineration
The partners of IMPACT will offer municipalities best practices and advice in the separate collection of paper from the municipal waste stream (mainly households and small shops) to support them in phasing out landfilling and incineration. Targeted municipalities are in regions with paper recycling rates below 60%, particularly Poland (38.5%) and Romania (53.5%), as well as areas where commingled collection is pre-dominant such as in France and in the United Kingdom. In the second half, the project will be extended to other countries with low collection rates or predominance of comingled collection. The diversion of recyclable paper from landfilling will help local authorities meet the targets of the EU landfill directive. EU Member States highly depending on landfill have to respect a target to reduce the share of biodegradable waste going to landfill to 35% by 2020.
Webpage: www.cepi.org/impact
Greenweek
The 2014 edition of Green Week, the biggest annual conference on European environment policy it takes place in Brussels under the theme Circular Economy, Resource Efficiency & Waste. Satellite events are taking place all around in May/June 2014 at local or regional level.
All information at http://www.greenweek2014.eu/index.html
The Association of Polish Papermakers (SPP)
The Association of Polish Papermakers is an organization of scientific, technical and managerial qualities with individual and corporate members whose activities are connected with the paper and paper converting industries. an organization of scientific, technical and managerial qualities with individual and corporate members whose activities are connected with the paper and paper converting industries. The association members represent near 80% of polish paper production and significant part of corrugated board market.
The purposes of SPP activity are:
• to integrate papermakers, preserve association tradition and document papermaking history and also create professional ethics among the members, amicable solidarity and mutual remembrance,
• to represent papermakers on the forum of the governmental and local administration organs,
• to create conditions for versatile exchange of information and options on current and future needs of the paper industry and related branches, particularly concerning production quality and quantity, new products, raw materials and intermediates, machine and equipment performance, control and automation of manufacturing processes, power engineering, environmental protection, paper trade, economic, organizational and marketing issues and personnel training.
More information available at http://www.spp.pl
Warsaw municipality
Warsaw, the capital of Poland Warsaw is a major international tourist destination and an important economic hub in Central Europe. Warsaw is a green city. Since 2006, Warsaw has been hosting Recycling Days – a picnic event, during which unwanted materials, such as electronic junk, etc. is collected. In exchange for plastic bottles and used batteries one can obtain geranium seedlings, herbs or garden conifers.
Today Warsaw is revolutionizing its system of segregation, collection, treatment and recycling of waste. The new rules will mean less waste going to landfill, with far more resources being recovered and used again. The new sorting system is accompanied by a broad campaign to inform and educate the public. Warsaw is organising a multitude of environmental initiatives, as the names of selected projects prove: Festival of Trees, Earth Hour, Climate Day Picnic and Car-Free Day. In November 2013 Warsaw hosted the UN Conference on Climate Change. Organization of this summit in Poland’s capital means that Poland is holding the Presidency of the climate convention from November 2013 to November 2014. Warsaw is the only city in Poland and after Berlin, the second in Central Europe to cooperate under the C40 Large Cities Leadership Group towards Climate Change. Cooperation also takes place within the Clinton Climate Initiative organization and the Eurocities association. These activities result in the implementation of specific programs – thermo-modernization of public buildings, energy efficient street lighting, and the launching of environmentally friendly practices with regard to water, wastewater and waste management. Warsaw’s Mayor Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz is the president of Eurocities – a network for cooperation between Europe’s metropolises.
CEPI aisbl – The Confederation of European Paper Industries
The Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) is a Brussels-based non-profit organisation regrouping the European pulp and paper industry and championing industry’s achievements and the benefits of its products. Through its 18 member countries (17 European Union members plus Norway) CEPI represents some 520 pulp, paper and board producing companies across Europe, ranging from small and medium sized companies to multi-nationals, and 950 paper mills. Together they represent 23% of world production.
Paper recycling: www.paperforrecycling.eu
Resource efficiency: www.cepi.org/resourceefficiency
Website: http://www.cepi.org/ Connect with us: @EuropeanPaper