The EU Environment Committee has adopted stricter rules on waste shipments. Accordingly, the European Commission will develop uniform criteria for the classification of waste. EU exports of waste for recovery will be allowed only to those non-OECD countries that demonstrate their ability to treat this waste sustainably. The commission will also monitor waste exports to OECD countries more closely to ensure that they manage waste in an environmentally-sound manner.
The European Steel Association (EUROFER) has stated that the changes brought to the Waste Shipment Regulation fits environmental and social standards, though stronger monitoring for OECD countries is needed to prevent the weakening of the effectiveness of the measures.
Accordingly, stronger monitoring procedure with country-level assessment for OECD countries and a facility-based audit system covering all their activities are absolutely needed to make sure the new regulation is water-proof, EUROFER said. Axel Eggert, director general of EUROFER, stated that the EU should not export its waste material to third countries with lower treatment standards, as SteelOrbis previously reported.
“Ferrous scrap is a valuable secondary raw material and essential for the steel industry’s decarbonization. It does not make any sense to move waste challenges abroad, whilst the recycling of metal waste - where the European steel sector plays a central role - remains key for reaching the circular economy and carbon emissions targets in the EU. Our sector’s scrap needs will rapidly increase in the next years, as our green steel projects to be implemented by 2030 will require significantly more scrap,” Mr. Eggert said.
According to the statement, steel scrap is by far the most exported waste from the EU. Yet, it is a valuable material that could be recycled into new steel. For every metric ton of carbon steel scrap recycled, a saving of 1.5 metric tons of carbon is achieved, and in the case of stainless steel scrap this saving is even higher, reaching roughly five metric tons of carbon. The recycling of scrap is therefore important for the EU to reach decarbonization and energy saving targets, EUROFER noted.