EXCLUSIVE: The recovered (or waste) paper export market is facing up to orders coming to a halt for supplying China, more controls being imposed in Indonesia and ‘quotas’ introduced in Turkey.
This week the UK’s Recycling Association headed to the Indonesian Embassy in London to try and resolve paperwork concerns (see letsrecycle.com story).
In Turkey from 3 September 2020 (see letsrecycle.com story), the country’s Environment Department is requiring both reprocessors of waste plastics, and paper mills using waste paper, to ensure that in 2020 and for next year that 50% of the feedstock has been sourced domestically.
above: (left) Ercan Yurekli, vice chairman, Turkish National Recycling Association talks to Steve Eminton
Impacts
Speaking exclusively in a video interview to letsrecycle.com, Ercan Yurekli, Mr Erjan Yurekli, who is owner of the business and also vice president of TUDAM, Turkey’s National Recycling Organisation, explains what the roots and the potential impacts of the new Turkish policy are.
Mr Yurekli said that one of the causes of the requirement by Turkey’s Environment Department to use more domestic material is because of the sending of garbage with recycling from the UK.
He urged the UK’s Environment Agency to step in and take more actions to ensure this didn’t happen.
Mr Yurekli has urged the Environment Agency to take action over ‘exports of garbage’ to Turkey
And, the dumping of “garbage” was also hitting the paper and plastics recycling sector in that it made the government look less favourably at imports.
He also explains in the interview that Turkey’s National Recycling Organisation is hopeful that talks involving it, manufacturers, the government and other organisations might find a workable solution that could see a way forward to keep both imports of materials coming in and also boosting domestic demand.
Originally, said Mr Yurekli, a 20% quota on imports had been expected. And, he reasoned that suppliers of domestic material might expect higher prices for their product as it is now needed in greater volumes, there is a general world price for material and paper mills, for example, would not be able to compete on the world stage if they had higher raw material costs than their competitors.
More information
Mr Yurekli can be contacted at yureklikagit.com
The post Video report: Turkey’s move to use more domestic material appeared first on letsrecycle.com.
Source: letsrecycle.com Plastic
