The European Commission has launched a major new consultation on recycling with the aim of improving the levels of recycling and reuse across Europe, as reported by Let’s Recycle.
The consultation will look into the possibility of refreshing a number of directives regarding waste and packaging. It already has a number of existing targets up and running, such as the target to reduce household waste across Europe by half by 2020. However, it is now looking likely that many countries in the EU are set to meet or even exceed these targets, so now it will discuss the possibly of taking them further and deciding on whether a change to more challenging targets is necessary.
One of the major issues that will be considered is whether businesses should be required to dispose of their waste in a more environmentally friendly way, such as through recycling, composting or anaerobic digestion. If such a clause comes into force it would have a huge affect on many businesses and how they manage waste.
But why wait until a decision is made in Europe? If you run your own business then start to consider responsible disposal of your waste now and you’ll find that if new rules come into effect you’ll be ahead of the game.
Other proposals that will be considered during the consultation, which is being headed by UK consultancy Eunomia, include whether recycling targets should be set based upon the GDP of countries and whether there should be a cap on the amount of waste that is sent to be incinerated. The consultation will carry on until September 10th 2013.
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