ACR+ Newsline

On Thursday 15 December 2015, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted on seven draft resolutions dedicated to the 2015 Work Programme setting out the European Commission's priorities for the 12 months ahead. None of the resolutions won the necessary majority to be adopted.

However, according to the reaction of the environmental organization group Green 10, five out of seven political groups in the European Parliament have shown their position against the European Commission’s proposal to withdraw environmental legislation from its 2015 Work Programme.

The European Parliament has nevertheless failed to agree a united stance against the European Commission's plans to withdraw air quality and waste legislation: members of the European Parliament were apparently unable to settle on a cross-party motion opposing the Commission's proposals before the vote.

British liberal lawmaker Catherine Bearder deplored: "unfortunately, what could have been a strong, united position from the European Parliament has collapsed due to narrow political interests," she said.

The Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) committee of the European Parliament is organising a hearing on the waste legislative package on 22 January 2015 from 11 to 12.30 a.m. in Brussels. The hearing will be hosted by ENVI Chairman Giovanni La Via and Waste Rapporteur Simona Bonafè.

The meeting will be most probably web streamed. If you are interested in following the hearing, check the ACR+ Twitter profile: we will tweet the web address as soon as available and any other info LIVE during the hearing.

In December 2014, the European Commission caused uproar by proposing to withdraw the Circular Economy package and to reissue it, in more ambitious form, in 2015. Environment ministers criticised the Commission for backtracking on a proposal they already have worked on.

ACR+, together with other international organization, echoed this deception in a signed joint statement urging Members of the European Parliament to adopt a strong resolution against the withdrawal Circular Economy proposal.

EU Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella has reportedly suggested that governments need to regulate less and facilitate more; he also said the new proposal will focus more on results than measures and on green investment opportunities beyond waste management.
 
Many Environment members of the European Parliament are sceptical of the attitude of Frans Timmermans, Commission’s Vice-President for Better Regulation, after he tried to block a deal on plastic bags in autumn 2014. In the meantime, the hearing on waste in the Parliament will proceed as planned, on the 22 of January 2015. ACR+ will be present and will follow up on the event, informing you of the evolutions of the hearing.

The Avosetta Group, consisting of leading international environmental lawyers, say in a letter- sent to EU Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella on Friday 9 January 2015 - the legality of the European Commission’s decision to dismiss and reschedule waste and air quality proposals might be questionable.

In this recently issued opinion, the 17 law professors criticised the Commission’s plan affirming that “a definitive withdrawal of existing proposals would run counter to the general principle of loyal cooperation” between EU Institutions.

The Group noticed that an efficient circular economy package was among the main objectives set out in the EU’s seventh environmental action programme, adopted by the European Parliament and Council in 2013. Commission proposals have to be in line with lawmakers’ policy programmes, they added.

Lawyers also remarked that environmental protection is enshrined in the EU treaties. “Giving up ambitious environmental policies” is also “counterproductive from an internal market perspective” as the EU would benefit from a common regulatory framework. The Group pointed out that the Commission’s own impact assessment studies highlighted business opportunities and job growth the two legislative packages – clean air and waste - were likely to create.

The European Commission Decision 2014/955/EU, amending Decision 2000/532/EC on the list of waste, has been released in the last weeks of 2014. The European List of Waste (LoW) is meant to be a reference nomenclature providing a common terminology with the purpose of improving the efficiency of waste management activities. The LoW serves as a common encoding of waste characteristics in a broad variety of purposes like classification of hazardous wastes, transport of waste, installation permits, decisions about recyclability of the waste or as a basis for waste statistics.

In order to simplify and modernise European waste legislation, the Commission has conducted a study on the review of the European List of Waste and the hazardous properties. The study has provided information on the implementation of the LoW, proposing amendments and assessing their impacts. Taking into account the results of these studies, the Commission has issued the necessary amendments to the List of Waste.

The document contains, among others, several definitions of heavy and transition metals, stabilization and solidification of waste; it also assesses hazardous properties of waste and drafts a classification of hazardous waste. The Decision will come into application in June 2015. 

Source: www.asegre.com (Spanish)

The European Portable Battery (EPBA) issued a new report which provides an update to its 2013 study on the collection of waste portable batteries in Europe in view of the achievability of the collection target set by the Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC. The report reviews the collection rate achievement for 2012 and 2013 in the European Economic Area (EEA) plus Switzerland, offering an outlook for 2016.

In 2013, around 211,000 tonnes - or an estimated 9.6 billion - of portable batteries were reported to have been placed on the market; around 80,000 tonnes of waste portable batteries were reported as having being collected. This corresponds to a collection rate on a current year basis of 38%, up from 25% in 2010.

Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC required the EEA member countries to achieve minimum collection rates for portable batteries of 25% in 2012 and it fixes a target of 45% by 2016. On the basis of the data available for this study, the target was achieved in all but 3 countries (Cyprus, Malta and Romania) in 2012. In 2013, the 25% rate was exceeded by Malta, probably missed by Romania and missed by Cyprus and new member state Croatia.

The development of collection rates suggest that the achievement of a 45% collection rate in 2016 presents a challenge to all European countries that have not currently achieved this rate (all except Austria, Belgium, Sweden, Luxembourg, with the addition of Switzerland). Six countries have plateaued at rates between 35% and 45% (Denmark, Germany, Finland, France, The Netherlands and Norway); other countries, for instance Portugal, Spain, Greece, Poland, Slovenia and Bulgaria may face challenges in exceeding 35% consistently, while the remainder may not collect beyond 20% and 30% in 2016.

An English supermarket chain will begin selling misshapen fruit and vegetables at five of its stores at the end of January 2015, in a bid to reduce food waste. The "Beautiful on the Inside" trial, beginning on 26 January 2015, will see crooked carrots, misshapen potatoes and other knobbly fruit and vegetables sold at reduced prices.

The initiative will be supported by a marketing campaign featuring funny fruit and vegetables characters such as Carlos Citrus, Paul Potato, Claude Carrot or Alfie Apple. The trial has been established in collaboration with famous TV chef Jamie Oliver, who approached the supermarket with the idea of running a small in-store trial to understand customer perceptions of wonky produce and whether they would be willing to buy it.

A similar trial launched by French supermarket chain Intermarché in July 2014 was considered to be a success after the whole stock of ‘ugly’ carrots, apples and oranges were sold in the first days of the campaign.

Jamie Oliver affirmed that if most British had half an idea of the amount of food going to waste, they would be "snapping up ugly veg by the trolley load. There is no difference whatsoever in taste or nutritional value. This is perfectly good food that could and should be eaten by humans". The English supermarket chain has stated that if the campaign is a "success", there "could be an opportunity to expand the trial across other fresh produce lines".
 

The Chilean Minister of Environment, Pablo Badenier, has announced that he will consider a project for the regulation of plastic bags use. The news came after his meeting with Carolina Toha, the mayor of Chilean capital Santiago, to discuss measures to restrict use of disposable plastic bags.

Carolina Toha explained that a public consultation conducted in 2014 found that 87% of Santiago residents supported the idea of reducing plastic bag waste.

According to the Ministry of Environment, Chilean standards are being developed for biodegradable bags, and once approved will accelerate the transition from polyethylene single-use plastic bags.

While Chile has not adopted a national plastic bag law yet, several Chilean municipalities have already autonomously adopted local laws.

New laws now require the Chinese public to recycle their waste. From 1 January 2015, China’s revised Environmental Protection Law says citizens “should adopt a low-carbon and frugal lifestyle and perform environmental protection duties” and to “observe environmental laws and make their own efforts in this regard, including sorting their garbage for recycling”.

This builds on China’s Circular Economy Promotion Law that came into effect from 1 January 2009 and encouraged the public and businesses to reduce, reuse and recycle to develop a circular economy. The revised Environmental Protection Law is also likely to see smaller, polluting recycling facilities shut down or forced to improve.

Prior to 2014, polluters were given a small annual fine for non-compliance and many would pay this at the beginning of the year before carrying on as before. Now, daily fines have been introduced and owners can be sent to jail. Environmental groups are also allowed to take legal action against polluters and seek damages for the first time.

La communauté de communes « En terres vives », située au nord de Bourges, vient d'être retenue par l’État pour participer au projet  « Zéro déchets, zéro gaspillage ».

Les 13 000 habitants de ces 11 communes situées autour de Saint-Martin-d'Auxigny (région Centre) auront droit à des poules noires du Berry: une centaine de gallinacés leur seront ainsi distribuées pour picorer les déchets organiques dans les jardins. Une expérimentation du même genre avait déjà été menée sur le territoire et elle s'était avérée concluante: deux poules permettentd'économiser en moyenne130 kilos de déchets par foyer.

Le projet reprend également la « redevance incitative » expérimentée depuis 2013. Les éboueurs effectuent 26 passages par an, comptées grâce au code-barre identifiant chaque poubelle. Au-delà de ces 26 passages, les habitants doivent mettre la main à la poche pour les collectes supplémentaires: 1,5 euro pour un bac de 80 litres, 5 euros la levée supplémentaire pour une grosse poubelle de 340 litres. Une manière, là aussi, d'inciter les habitants produire et à jeter moins déchets.

Les huiles alimentaires: ce type de déchet connaît une cote importante au niveau du tri sélectif. Le geste citoyen a suivi la recommandation publique, à Toulouse comme partout en France, après que des conduites d'évacuation et autres canalisations aient été obstruées en raison de graisses tenaces. Amener ses huiles alimentaires, de friture mais pas seulement, est devenu fondamental. « En plus, il n'y a rien de plus facile, observe Pierre Juarès, responsable du service valorisation et élimination des déchets à Toulouse Métropole. »

Désormais pourvue de sept déchetteries aptes à recevoir les huiles, la Métropole toulousaine s'avère avant-gardiste en matière de tri sélectif, d'autant que la campagne de sensibilisation s'accompagne d'une vraie pédagogie. À partir du moment où les citoyens ont appris que leurs huiles pouvaient être recyclées, ils se sont rendus en nombre dans les déchetteries, profitant d’un service non-payant.

En les déposant à la déchetterie, les huiles seront collectées et orientées vers des filières de traitement adaptées afin de les recycler en biocarburant ou de les utiliser dans le secteur du bâtiment.

Source: www.ladepeche.fr

Unas 500 personas han participado en la manifestación de protesta "No volem ser el femer d'Europa", promovida por el Grup d'Ornitologia Balear (GOB) contra el nuevo Plan Director Sectorial de Residuos del Consell de Mallorca. La portavoz del GOB, Margalida Ramis, ha recordado que los motivos de la protesta son la reciente llegada de basura importada del extranjero a Mallorca para incineración a través del puerto de Alcúdia y la aprobación inicial del Plan Director Sectorial de Residuos del Consell de Mallorca.

Ramis ha criticado un plan que "consolida a largo plazo la importación de residuos y la apuesta por la incineración, que es un modelo de gestión erróneo" y ha señalado que las entidades convocantes desarrollarán "un trabajo intenso para intentar plantar las bases de otra estrategia de gestión de residuos".

Varios representantes de Més per Mallorca y del Partit Socialista de les Illes Balears (PSIB) se han sumado a la protesta contra el nuevo Plan Director Sectorial de Residuos de Mallorca, porque consideran que consolida la importación de basuras, una medida contraria a la protección del medio ambiente y la reducción de la incineración.

La Consejería de Medio Ambiente y Ordenación del Territorio de Andalucía, la Federación Andaluza de Municipios y Provincias, FAMP, y los nueve sistemas colectivos de gestión de RAEE, residuos de aparatos eléctricos y electrónicos, han firmado un convenio marco con el fin de facilitar el cumplimiento de las exigencias establecidas en la normativa vigente sobre RAEE.

Para ello, se establecen una serie de compromisos para mejorar los objetivos legales de recogida selectiva, reutilización, reciclado y valorización y para promover el desarrollo de sistemas de recogida selectiva realizando operaciones de mejor descontaminación, reutilización y reciclado.

Con la rúbrica de este documento se persigue un doble objetivo, ambiental y económico. Por un lado, la mejora de estos servicios reducirá la contaminación que estos aparatos generan tras su vida útil. Por otro, estos propósitos implican un aumento de la actividad económica del sector, que convenio emplea en Andalucía a 23.000 personas.

Según los datos, la Comunidad autónoma está la cabeza en número de empresas medioambientales con 9.560 entidades. Además, este subsector registró en la región un aumento de contratación del 7,9%. Según la consejera del ramo, María Jesús Serrano, “la economía verde no sólo resiste los envites de la crisis, sino que gana terreno, lo que nos debe animar a apostar por este sector”.

Kataeb Party leader Amine Gemayel affirmed having “achieved a great victory for the Lebanese people” by pushing forward the amendments to the garbage management bill. There was a specialized committee from the Party’s political bureau that cooperated with civil society, Gemayel said in a news conference held on 12 January 2014, less than two hours before a cabinet session that Prime Minister Tammam Salam had called to reach a solution to the garbage management controversy.

Lebanese Environment Minister Mohammad Machnouk had submitted a draft policy to the cabinet in which he included a plan to reform the garbage management sector and a call for new tenders. The plan was strongly criticized by the Kataeb, who then filed a list of suggestions to modify the bill “in a manner that increases transparency” in calls for tenders and in the administrative division of areas to facilitate the collection and management of waste.

Kataeb official Alber Kostanian stressed the need of financial motivation for home recycling and the importance of a decision the locations of the future landfills in Lebanon, fearing corruption between private companies and local politicians.

Source: www.dailystar.com.lb

La réforme du Programme national des déchets ménagers et assimilés (PNDM), dont la 2ème phase s'étale jusqu'en 2017, porte essentiellement sur le renforcement de la gouvernance du secteur des déchets ménagers à travers l'accès à l'information, la transparence dans la fourniture de service et son évaluation.

Cette réforme s'articule également autour de l'amélioration de la soutenabilité des services de gestion des déchets ménagers, en vue d'améliorer la professionnalisation du secteur, d'assurer le financement à moyen terme pour couvrir les coûts de gestion des déchets ménagers et d'améliorer et consolider l'attractivité du marché de la fourniture de service dans ce domaine, en réduisant les risques liés à la gestion des contrats de délégation de ce service.

La réforme du PNDM consiste aussi en le développement de filières de valorisation, permettant ainsi d'assurer des sources de financement pérennes pour le secteur et l'intégration des chiffonniers dans le secteur du recyclage.

S'étalant sur une période de 15 ans (2008-2022), le PNDM vise particulièrement à appuyer les collectivités territoriales dans la mise à niveau du secteur des déchets ménagers en vue d'assurer une meilleure performance économique, environnementale et sociale.