Bioplastics, wet collection dirtier: recycling slows to 56.9 per cent

Organic recycling of compostable bioplastics: in Italy in 2023, the rate was 56.9% of the amount released for consumption (44,338 tonnes out of 77,900). A decrease compared to the results of the previous year, when the rate stood at 58.3% (including a correction that took into account the official 2022 data on the collection of the wet fraction published by Ispra). These are the numbers that emerged in the annual management report for the year 2023 of Biorepack, the national consortium for the organic recycling of biodegradable and compostable plastic packaging. Among other indicators, coverage of the territory grows, with the share of the population served by the agreements signed by the consortium with municipalities or entities delegated for collection rising to 74.1% (it was 64.4% in 2022) and the number of municipalities served reaching 58.5% of the total (it was 47.8%). The economic compensation paid to municipalities and companies that manage separate waste collection is confirmed: 9.4 million euro (from 9.3).

Geographically, the figure for the islands is positive, where the population served has risen from 29% in 2022 to 52% in 2023, while the North East confirms itself as the most virtuous territory, with the municipalities affiliated reaching 83% of the total and the inhabitants served amounting to 90%. "We are satisfied with the growing numbers of coverage," comments Marco Versari, president of Biorepack, "however we see that the quality of collection has deteriorated. In 2023 we lost 17% of the bioplastics that arrived at the recycling plants due to dirty collection. Each kg of non-compostable material to be disposed of in treatment, such as traditional plastics, glass and metals, also subtracts 1.65 kg of compostable matrices. The recycling rate of bioplastics could therefore already be much higher now: this is where efforts should be concentrated. We have a budget of almost EUR 3 million in 2024 to raise awareness with environmental education projects in schools, information actions, activities on TV, radio, press, social media. On 9 June the 'I buttadentro' campaign will start again to explain what to put and not to put in the wet waste bin. For the first time it has been shared with Anci, Corepla and Conai, a good sign of collaboration".

Another front of commitment: the fight against counterfeit materials 'which have a negative impact of 20-30% on our supply chain,' Versari continues.

Italy remains a virtuous model for the collection of wet waste through compostable bioplastic bags, as has also been recognised in the new European Packaging Regulation (Ppwr), but "it remains an obstacle that for the organic fraction there are no European targets for quantity and quality," notes the Biorepack president. Despite the fact that the collection of wet waste will be compulsory for all EU countries from 1 January 2024, Versari testifies that the evidence of interest in our system is currently coming from the USA: "California and some eastern states are beginning to deal with wet waste collection in a more structured manner starting with EPR (extended producer responsibility, ndr) systems and we are the only ones to have elements in this sector".