TIDMBIFF
Biffa plc
11 October 2019
Biffa calls for ban on the export of waste plastics
-- Leading UK recycler and waste management provider Biffa says
all plastics should be recycled in the UK to restore public
confidence in recycling and to boost domestic jobs and
investment.
-- Biffa calls for the phasing out of problem plastics and
making necessary packaging as recyclable as possible with a focus
on closed loop recycling. Well-intended 'compostable plastics' are
not recyclable, adding to consumer confusion and causing problems
for materials that actually are recyclable.
-- Make recycling easier. If recycling is made difficult, it is
less likely that people will do it. It needs to be made easier
through clear unambiguous labelling and more consistent recycling
collections.
11 October, 2019: Biffa says in a report released today that
there should be a ban on the export of waste plastics as part of a
drive for all plastics to be recycled within the UK. The move would
retain the material as a resource, generate UK investment and jobs
and avoid unintended environmental problems in other countries.
The demonisation of all plastic is also resulting in unintended
consequences for UK recycling, which have the potential to make the
UK's plastic problem worse. The report highlights the need for
clearer differentiation between 'good plastics' which are easily
recyclable versus 'bad plastics' such as unnecessary single-use
plastic and difficult to recycle plastics.
Biffa argues that short-term publicity exercises culminating in
the rise of alternative materials including 'compostable' plastics,
'bio-plastics' and plastic pouches are giving consumers false
confidence that they are choosing recyclable items, when these
materials are generally more environmentally harmful and are
contaminating high-quality recycling.
The Group is calling for simplification in plastic packaging
materials with a focus on closed-loop recycling investment to
ensure that where plastic packaging is necessary, it is developed
to be as recyclable as possible into its original form or for other
materials.
The report also recommends that simpler and clearer labelling be
backed by improved measures to make recycling collections more
consistent across the UK.
Michael Topham, Chief Executive of Biffa commented:
"Everyone is rightly concerned about our dependence on plastics
and on how we deal with our plastic waste. The time has come for
decisive action to ensure we only use plastics in a sustainable
manner, and to restore confidence in our waste and recycling
systems. Biffa is today calling for a total ban on the export of
unprocessed plastic waste. This will not only ensure our plastic
waste is
dealt with properly here in the UK but will also support
investment and jobs, and provide vital raw materials for the UK
circular economy. At the same time, we must phase out plastics that
cannot be recycled, and deliver labelling and collection systems
that are easy to understand and work for households and
businesses."
The report includes the following key recommendations:
1. Stop exporting waste plastics. Global markets cannot always
be relied on to deliver the environmental standards now demanded
through heightened public concern and new political environmental
ambition. We can, and should, aim to recycle all plastics within
the UK.
2. Phase out problem plastics. Single use plastics and difficult
to recycle plastic composites such as black plastic food trays and
compostable plastics have to go. Where plastic packaging is
necessary, it should be as recyclable as possible to reduce the
carbon impacts from virgin plastic production. There should also be
higher compliance fees for producers of non-recyclable or difficult
to recycle plastic packaging.
3. Make recycling easier. If recycling is made difficult, it is
less likely that people will do it. It needs to be made easier
through a simplification of the array of plastics, clear
unambiguous labelling and more consistent recycling
collections.
With over 3.9 million collections per week from 2.2 million
households and 2.3 million tonnes collected from businesses per
annum, Biffa is at the forefront of recycling in the UK.
The Group has been one of the leaders in closed-loop recycling
innovation in the UK having worked closely with the UK Dairy
roadmap to re-design the milk bottle to be fully recyclable. Biffa
Polymers processes approximately 900 million milk bottles per year
and today 80% of milk bottles in the UK contain 40% of plastic from
Biffa.
The report also calls for greater policy support for UK
recycling, including mandatory business waste recycling
collections, a tax on plastic packaging and an urgent review of the
current producer responsibility (PRN) system which Biffa argues
will all be vital long-term drivers for truly effective recycling
reform.
-ENDS-
For more information and for media enquiries please contact:
Houston
T: 020 3701 7660
E: biffa@houston.co.uk
About Biffa
Biffa is the UK's leading sustainable waste management business.
We have over 8,000 employees working across more than 200 sites to
change the way people think about waste. We operate across the
waste management value chain, including the collection, treatment,
processing and disposal of waste, as well as the production and
sale of recovered commodities such as energy, paper, glass, metals
and plastic. We are first choice for customers, with our national
customer base including local authorities, large corporates and
SMEs, and purchasers of end-product commodities and energy. We are
structured in to two divisions: Collections and Resources &
Energy. In FY19, the Group's total revenue was GBP1,091.2m and its
Underlying EBITDA was GBP150.7m. Biffa has been listed on the
London Stock Exchange since in October 2016 under the ticker
"BIFF".
For more information visit www.biffa.co.uk
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END
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