Over 100 signatories commit to Circular Plastics Alliance

Over 100 public and private partners covering the entirety of the plastics value chain have signed the declaration for the Circular Plastics Alliance, which aims to promote voluntary action to establish a well-functioning EU market in recycled plastics.

The declaration lays out how the Alliance will reach the target of using 10 million tonnes of recycled plastic in everyday products per annum by 2025. This target was set by the European Commission in its 2018 Plastics Strategy, as part of its efforts to boost plastics recycling in Europe.

The potential for recycling plastic waste is still largely unexploited in the EU, especially when in comparison with other materials such as glass, paper and metals. The European Commission has said that of the more than 27 million tonnes of plastic waste collected every year in the EU, less that a third goes on to recycling plants. Through its endorsement of the EU target of 10 million tonnes of recycled plastics sold in the bloc by 2025, the Alliance is committing to boosting the recycled plastics market by 150%.

First Vice-President Frans Timmermans, responsible for sustainable development, said: “I welcome the industry's commitments to rethink the way we produce and use plastics. By efficiently recycling plastics, we will clean up the planet and fight climate change, by substituting fossil fuels with plastic waste in the production cycle.”

Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska, responsible for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, said: “We have the opportunity to make our industry a world leader in recycled plastics. We should fully seize it to protect the environment, to create new jobs in this sector and remain competitive.”

The declaration of the Alliance will remain open on the European Commission's website for more signatories to join over time, in particular public authorities from all across Europe.

The European Commission launched the Circular Plastics Alliance in December 2018 following a preliminary assessment of industry voluntary pledges for more recycled plastics. The assessment found that enough suppliers had made the pledge to meet, and possibly exceed, the 10 million tonnes target. However, there were insufficient pledges from receivers of recycled plastics, and the Commission felt it was necessary to take action to bridge the gap between supply and demand.

The Circular Plastics Alliance held its first meeting in February 2019 at the European Industry Days, where the participants agreed to work together along the plastics value chains to reach the Plastics Strategy targets by 2025.

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