Emphasising the use of renewable and recyclable raw materials across Europe
Recycling has over the years become more and more important in paper and it is now a large industry in its own right, linking directly or indirectly to a large number of sectors in the European economy. For European containerboard production about 80 % of the raw material used is recovered paper and for tissue this figure is close to 50 %. The voluntary European Declaration of 2000 promoting paper recycling has made a positive contribution to this process. And it all brings us a step closer to the European Commission’s goal of Europe as a ‘recycling economy’, supporting Europe’s sustainable development and long-term, robust growth and employment.
Building on this successful initiative, a new Declaration covering more European countries, more European organisations and with greater ambition was launched in September 2006. In practice, this translates to groundbreaking research and development, investments in new capacities, a focus on quality and responsible sourcing, and on raising public awareness.
Together these sectors will develop a sustainable path in paper recycling, making it possible to reach the new target of a 66% recycling rate by 2010.
The ERPC is the European Recovered Paper Council. The organisation was set up after the successful launch of the first “European Declaration on Paper Recovery” as an industry own-initiative in November 2000 with the aim to monitor the progress made towards meeting targets set out in the European Declaration. 13 industry associations along the paper value chain, Commission DG Environment and DG Enterprise as observers. The industry associations represent paper maker and converters, printers, publishers and suppliers to the industry.
Brussels, end of November 2007.- Presentation of the First European Paper Recycling Awards
Anders Hildeman, Senior VP Public Affairs based in SCA Packaging’s Brussels Head office is the Chairman of the ERPC and was a member of the jury in the Awards.
The awards were given in three categories:
Industry:
Automated Entry Inspection of Recovered Paper” project, UPM-Kymmene, Augsburg, Germany.
Using Near infra-red (NRI) technology to distinguish different types of paper and impurities UPM-Kymmene has managed to overcome the difficulty of maintaining high quality paper sources whilst increasing the collection rate of recovered paper.
With Communities:
“Tu Papel Es Importante” (“Your paper/role is important”) project, ASPAPEL, Madrid Spain.
This project has increased paper collection at municipal level by 1 Mt over three years. The scheme looks at local collection schemes and either offers an improvement plan to bring the local schemes into line or the award of Tu Papel Es Importante - Your paper/your role is important confirming that the municipality is operating a sustainable scheme.
Special projects and Campaigns:
Action Eco-Bloc, Maison des Lycéens, Lycée Jules Guesde, Montpelier, France.
The Eco Bloc utilises recovered paper that has only been used on one side and are in an A5 format and so far more that 24,000 blocs have been sold to schools. The programme forms part of the schools drive to teach children entrepreneurship and has been running for 3 years with over 500 young people participating.
“By promoting recycling we can contribute to Europe’s sustainability for the future. These projects demonstrate that there are many excellent initiatives all over Europe and we hope that the award will inspire more people across the whole of society to take action and make recycling a natural part of every day life,” explains Anders Hildeman, Chairman of the ERPC.
The winning candidates received an original piece of paper artwork as part of their prize. SCA sponsored the prizes in 2007 and additionally granted 500 € each to the participating schools.
Learn more here about the ERPC and the projects:
- www.paperrecovery.org
- European Declaration on Paper Recycling 2006-2010
- Monitoring Report – European Declaration on Paper Recycling 2006-2010
For further information, please contact:
Anders Hildeman
Senior Vice President Public Affairs