Scramble to meet EC packaging recovery target reaches last lap

The UK looks set to miss the target to recover at least 50% of packaging waste by 2001 laid down by the EC packaging Directive by five to seven percentage points. While there is ample reprocessing capacity available, at home and abroad, not enough waste is being collected. With little evidence that reprocessors have used revenue from the sale of packaging waste recovery notes to invest in collection systems or support secondary material prices, the regime appears to lean too far in favour of reprocessors, rather than waste collectors.