2.2 Instruments for waste recycling promotion
PRO EUROPE wellness strategy implements the following initiatives aimed at fostering waste recycling and contributing to development of a sustainable waste management policy:
- Landfill taxes
They have to reflect the real current and future costs of managing a controlled landfill. These taxes will help to balance landfill costs with recovery options.
- Producer responsibility
Producer responsibility scheme has demonstrated environmentally and economically efficient solutions for packaging waste. Producer responsibility schemes for packaging have considerable experience in the efficient operation of recycling markets. These schemes have negative impact on competition. In general, service contracts are awarded on a competitive basis in accordance with the legal requirements.
- Pay-as-you-throw scheme
Pay-as-you-throw schemes have already been implemented in several member states with a positive impact on consumer awareness and selective collection results. The rise that this scheme can assume that:
- the pressure on the “refused fraction” can lead to an “illegal dumping” placing the “refused fraction” in containers intended for certain selectively collected waste. Additionally, consumers should not be charged twice for the same activity (producer responsibility plus waste management municipal taxes).
- Tradable certificates
Tradable certificates system already impedes a number of environmental markets, including trading certificates for CO2 emissions, renewable energy, and packaging recovery. Besides a few obstacles, the use of tradable certificates systems in the future could avoid potential risk of uncontrollable and high risk system evolvement.
The minimum waste streams that should be considered are:
- Household / municipal waste
- Industrial and commercial waste
- Construction and demolition waste
Agricultural and hazardous waste streams, which are subjected to existing or would be included in the planned European legislation, are: batteries, clinical waste, electronic equipment, life vehicles, oils, ozone depleting substances, contaminated soils, and others.
