Privileged & Confidential | Attorney-Client Communication
ITI Fall ELC Meeting – San Diego
Circular Economy and Global Plastics Initiatives
Paul Hagen, [email protected] Meng, [email protected]
October 2, 2018
Overview
• The circular economy
• Marine plastics pollution
• EU Plastics Strategy
• China’s import ban and related developments
• New Basel Convention initiatives on plastic waste
• Issues to watch going forward
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What is the Circular Economy?
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Minimize waste generation and maintain value of products and materials
Product design•Repairability & reusability•Durability•Upgradeability•Recyclability
Sustainable sourcing•Raw materials•Improve market for secondary materials
Consumption• Green claims• Labeling• Procurement incentives
Waste management• Expand EPR regimes• Improve recycling rates• Reduce landfilling
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Where are the Sources of Ocean Plastics?
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Leakage into the Ocean
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• Wind• Stormwater• Rivers• Direct deposit
• Wastewater discharge• Accidental release• Loss of packaging at
retail
Manufacturing & distribution
Use
End of life
• Intended loss • Unintended loss • Accidental release
• Littering• Loss from collection,
recycling, landfills
Challenges for Plastics Management
• Not all plastics can be recycled together− Diversity of plastics (resins, colors)− Stream contamination
• Tracing chemicals of concern• Economics• Lack of infrastructure• Scale/nature of the problem
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EU 2018 Circular Economy PackageCouncil has adopted Four Legislative Proposals
New legislation amending existing EU Directives: Directive on waste Directive on the landfill of waste Directive on ELV/Batteries/WEEE Directive on packaging waste
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EU 2018 Circular Economy PackageNew Tools in January 2018 to Implement Circular Economy Action Plan
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EU Strategy for Plastics in the
Circular Economy
By 2030, all plastics packaging
should be recyclable
Identifies need for legislation to
reduce impact of single-use plastics
Interface of Chemicals,
Product and Waste Legislation
Assesses how rules on waste, products and
chemicals relate to each other.
Monitoring Framework on
Progress Towards Circular Economy
Identifies ten key indicators to
cover each phase of circular economy
Report on Critical Raw Materials and Circular
Economy
Highlights potential to make
use of the 27 critical materials in the economy more circular
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• Released January 2018; single-use plastics proposal later
• New plastics economy vision for 2020
• Pledging campaign• Adding microplastics to REACH• Tracing chemicals from
electronics in recycled streams• Public procurement for plastics
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EU Plastics Strategy
Proposal for Single-Use Plastic DirectiveReleased May 28, 2018; subject to ongoing negotiations
Categories of single-use plastics
• Cutlery, plates, straws, stirrers• Food containers• Beverage cups and containers• Bags• Food packets and wrappers• Wet wipes and sanitary items• Tobacco products• Balloons and balloon sticks• Cotton buds
Tools
• Ban• Extended producer
responsibility• Awareness-raising • Labelling • National consumption
reduction• Product design requirement• Collection target
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Waste Import Control Catalogues and China’s “Foreign Garbage” Import Ban
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Ministries made two adjustments:
April 19, 2018
• December 31, 2018: Imports of the following categories of wastes are prohibited:• Metal-containing waste generated from melting,
smelting, refining metal (3 categories)• Industrial source waste plastic scrap and tailings
(8 categories)• Mixed metal waste, including waste vehicle
pressers and waste vessels (5 categories)
• December 31, 2019: Imports of the following categories of wastes are prohibited:• Wood and softwood waste (3 categories)• Metal and metal alloy scrap (13 categories)
August 16, 2017
• December 31, 2017: Imports of the following categories of wastes are prohibited:
• Non-industrial source (including household source) waste plastic scrap and tailings (8 categories)
• Unsorted waste paper (1 category)
• Waste textile raw materials (11 categories)
• Vanadium slag (4 categories)
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• United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) expert working group declaration
• Basel Annex negotiations and partnership
• G7 Declaration
• G20 Action Plan on Marine Litter
• GEF 7 Strategy development
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International Activity on Ocean Plastics
UNEA Expert Group
• United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) declaration in December 2017
• Open-ended ad hoc expert group on marine litter and microplastics− 1st meeting in May 2018− 2nd meeting in November 2018
• Considering existing mechanisms (Basel, Stockholm, SAICM, etc.) and potential for a new global governance structure to address marine plastics
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G7 Ocean Plastics Charter
• Signed by Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the UK and the EU in June 2018; US and Japan did not sign
• Also signed by the Circular Economy Leadership Coalition
• Commitments include:◦ Work with industry towards 100% reusable, recyclable, or recoverable plastics by
2030.◦ Work with industry and other levels of government to recycle and reuse at least
55% of plastic packaging by 2030 and recover 100% of all plastics by 2040.◦ Work with industry towards increasing recycled content by at least 50% by 2030.◦ Significantly reduce the unnecessary use of single-use plastics.◦ Use tools like green public procurement, product stewardship, labeling
requirements, industry leadership initiatives, data collection, and public awareness campaigns.
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Basel Convention
• Global agreement covering waste shipped for disposal or recycling
• Provides framework for “waste” and “hazardous waste” classifications
• Covered shipments subject to prior notice, consent, documentation
• Various trade bans• Plastics and E-waste are priorities• Implications for repair, EPR programs,
and circular economy
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Quick History of Basel Convention
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Global concern over dumping of hazardous
waste in developing countries (1980s)
Basel Convention signed in
1989, entered into force in
1992
186 Parties to the
Convention
United States signed but is
not party
Parallel agreement
governs trade in recyclables among OECD
countries
Mandate on Plastics
Basel COP 13 (2017) included marine plastic litter and microplastics in work programme of OEWG for 2018-2019
. . .consider relevant options available under the Convention to further address marine plastic litter and microplastics, taking into account, inter alia, the assessment requested by the United Nations Environment Assembly of the United Nations Environment Programme in its resolution 2/11, any relevant resolution by the Environment Assembly at its forthcoming third session and existing guidance documents and activities under the Basel Convention that address issues related to marine plastic litter and microplastics, and develop a proposal for possible further action, within the scope of the Convention and avoiding duplication with activities relating to the matter in other forums, for consideration by the Conference of the Parties at its fourteenth meeting.
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Original Norway Proposal (Summer 2018)
List plastic waste “other waste” on Annex II:
“waste and scrap from plastic and mixed plastic materials and mixtures of waste containing plastics,
including microplastic beads”
All plastic wastes subject to
control and non-party trade ban
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Delete entry on plastics in Annex IX
(presumptively non-hazardous list)
Variability at national level re whether plastic
wastes should be treated as hazardous
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OEWG September 2018 –Key Outcomes on Plastics
Norway Annex II – Other Wastes
Mixed reception by governments
Norway will propose slightly narrowed text
Will be debated at COP in 2019
Norway Annex IX –Non-Hazardous
Listing
Mixed reception by governments
Norway to propose revised waste listing
Will be debated at COP in 2019
New Plastics Partnership
Broad support by governments
Draft decision and terms of reference open for comment
Will likely be launched at COP in
2019
EU - Add chemicals to Annex I to move
some plastics to hazardous waste
Not fully developed proposal
Will be discussed with other proposals on
plastics in pre-existing EWG on
Annexes
Will not be ready for debate at COP in
2019
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New Plastics Partnership Emerging
• Likely to be modeled on other partnerships− Mobile Phones (MPPI)− E-Waste (PACE)
• Opportunities for active observer role− Industry− US Government− NGOs
• Draft COP decision, mandate and terms of reference open for comment
• Will be negotiated and likely adopted at COP-14
• Currently very broad
• Capacity building
• New guidance and listings?
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Plastic Waste Listing NegotiationsHazardous Waste Other Wastes Annex IX
• Proposed changes to Annex I constituents and categories
• Negotiations on Annex III characteristics
• Proposals for threshold limit values on constituents
• Full Basel controls and trade bans apply
• Subject to future OECD to non-OECD trade ban
• Norway proposal for plastics to be listed in Annex II
• Parties not receptive to listing all plastics in Annex II
• Narrower listing?• Basel controls apply• Ban on trade with U.S.
(non-party)• Not covered by future
OECD to non-OECD trade ban
• Norway proposed deleting current Annex IX listing for plastics
• Parties appear supportive of keeping some plastic wastes on Annex IX
• Watch for revised Norway proposal
• OEWG has recommended that the COP consider revisions
• Recognized as outside the Convention
• Most beneficial to circular economy
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Beyond Plastics: Guidance for Electronics
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Negotiations to Amend Annexes
• Parties established a new EWG to review Convention Annexes and to propose amendments
− Annex I: Waste streams and constituents considered hazardous
− Annex III: Hazardous characteristics
− Annex IV: Final disposal and recycling operations
− Annex IX: Waste entry for non-hazardous electronic waste (and related references to reuse and repair)
• Outcome will determine legal and logistical requirements for shipments for repair, reuse and recycling world-wide
• EWG meeting held in March (Geneva); work to continue through COP-14 (2019)
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Revisions to Basel waste listings for electronics• A1180: Waste electrical and
electronic assemblies or scrap containing components such as accumulators and other batteries included on list A, mercury-switches, glass from cathode-ray tubes and other activated glass and PCB-capacitors, or contaminated with Annex I constituents (e.g., cadmium, mercury, lead, polychlorinated biphenyl) to an extent that they possess any of the characteristics contained in Annex III
• B1110:Electrical and electronic assemblies:o Electronic assemblies consisting only of metals or
alloyso Waste electrical and electronic assemblies or
scrap (including printed circuit boards) not containing components such as accumulators and other batteries included on list A, mercury-switches, glass from cathode-ray tubes and other activated glass and PCB-capacitors, or not contaminated with Annex I constituents (e.g., cadmium, mercury, lead, polychlorinated biphenyl) or from which these have been removed, to an extent that they do not possess any of the characteristics contained in Annex III (note the related entry on list A A1180)
o Electrical and electronic assemblies (including printed circuit boards, electronic components and wires) destined for direct reuse, and not for recycling or final disposal
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Proposals to Expand Scope of Annex I (Presumptively Hazardous)
New proposals to expand scope of hazardous wastes include:
• Aluminium, aluminium compounds
• Brominated flame retardants
• Electrical and electronic assemblies
• Lithium/lithium batteries
• Nanomaterials
• Ozone depleting substances
• Wastes and compounds of silicon
• Wastes from production, use of plastic products
• Other waste consumer items
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Basel “Ban Amendment”
• Adopted in 1995 but not yet in force • Will prohibit exports from OECD to non-OECD countries• Applies to “hazardous wastes” defined under Art. 1(1)(a)
(not to “other wastes”)• Already implemented by EU and others• Likely to take effect in 1-2 years• Annex negotiations will define impact on IT companies
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Key Next Steps
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Early October: Revised Texts from Norway
10/31/18Comments on
draft COP Framework Decision on
Marine Plastics
12/11/18 Meeting of EWG on Annex
Amendments (Buenos Aires)
12/17/18 Comments on draft Terms of Reference for
Plastics Partnership
End of April 2019: COP
Meeting (Geneva)
Looking Ahead – Key Work Streams
• EU policies and legislation on plastics will be highly influential
• Anticipate new bans on “single-use” plastics
• New Basel listings will likely restrict trade in some waste plastics
• Outcome of Basel amendments regarding used electronics for reuse and waste classification of electronics, lithium-ion batteries and plastics will determine whether circular economy business models are legally permissible or economically viable
• Watch for new initiatives out of G-7 and UNEA
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Questions?
Thank you!Paul HagenPrincipalWashington, [email protected]
Dacia MengAssociateWashington, [email protected]
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