Useful resource administration firm Veolia is looking for the Authorities to escalate the Plastic Packaging Tax to incentivise the top markets for recycled content material, give buyers confidence to construct home infrastructure and stimulate inexperienced financial development.
The group commissioned analysis by local weather motion NGO WRAP to grasp the financial and environmental impacts of escalating the Plastic Packaging Tax. At present set at £217.85 per tonne tax from 1 April 2024 on plastic packaging that comprises lower than 30% recycled content material, the tax just isn’t reaching its goals as solely 22% of fabric utilized in plastic packaging is from recycled sources.
By signalling a transparent course of journey and growing the Plastic Packaging Tax, Veolia says it believes this may stimulate demand for recycled content material from manufacturers and producers who’re already beneath stress from shoppers to reveal their sustainability credentials. 82% of UK adults, surveyed by YouGov in February 2024, want to see extra recycled content material within the packaging they purchase.
The advice set out in Veolia’s Useful resource the Future report is to extend the Plastic Packaging Tax to 35% recycled content material and £275 per tonne this yr, escalating to 50% and £500 per tonne by 2030. To realize this the UK might want to make investments £1.1 billion in constructing ten new plastic sorting and 30 new plastic reprocessing services, creating 2,500 new jobs and decreasing annual carbon emissions by 1.8 million tonnes of CO₂ equal.
Escalating the Plastic Packaging Tax may also permit UK manufacturers, producers and recyclers to proceed to commerce throughout each UK and European markets with out falling behind European Union (EU) laws. The EU is concentrating on necessary recycled content material, reasonably than incentives, reaching as much as 65% by 2040.
Gavin Graveson, Veolia Senior Govt Vice President, Northern Europe Zone mentioned : “The recycled plastic business can’t be ignored if we’re severe about constructing a inexperienced economic system. The Plastic Packaging Tax is an important lever to stimulate development within the sector, but it surely wants recalibrating so we create a market the place it’s cheaper to be sustainable and costlier to pollute through the use of virgin polymers.
“We need to bring thousands of tonnes worth of recycling capacity online – and fast. But this can be a great opportunity for the Government to unlock private investment, new jobs and carbon savings. Backing green policy isn’t a zero sum game.”
Key information
A survey of two,000 UK adults by YouGov in February 2024 discovered that:
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58% mentioned the Authorities is doing too little to deal with environmental points
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69% would assist a rise in tax for corporations who don’t use recycled supplies of their packaging
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82% want to see a rise in recycled content material utilized in normal packaging
Analysis by WRAP on behalf of Veolia investigating the efficacy of the Plastic Packaging Tax:
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2,219 kilotonnes of plastic packaging enters the market every year
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Solely 22% of fabric utilized in plastic packaging is from recycled sources
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The UK would wish to convey on-line over 600,000 tonnes of plastic sorting and reprocessing capability to satisfy a 50% recycled content material goal
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This is able to require ten new plastic sorting crops and 30 plastic reprocessing crops, bringing funding of circa £1.1 billion.
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Escalating the Plastic Packaging Tax to 50% recycled content material may doubtlessly save an estimated 1.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equal emissions.
