Measures to Enhance a Circular Plastic Economy in Europe

The transition to a circular plastic economy requires increasing recycling rates and well-functioning markets for secondary plastics. Today, lack of ecodesign considerations in manufacture leads to poor recyclability at end-of-life phase for most plastic products, leaving incineration and export as only waste management options. We have a somewhat good insight into the external barriers related to increasing plastic recycling. However, the internal barriers of the plastic sector remain unclear, as does also the means for overcoming barriers and facilitating a transition to a circular plastic economy. This study investigates the hinders currently preventing efficient plastic recycling and solutions for overcoming these. The objective of study is to generate recommendations for creating a well-functioning and safe plastic recycling system in Europe. The focus is on plastic waste in end-of-life vehicles (ELV), waste electronics and electrical equipment (WEEE) and construction and demolition waste (C&DW). Data collection was implemented in the form of semi-structured interviews. The results from the interviews were combined into a set of hinders with solutions for tackling these presented along a simplified value chain. These were lumped into four solutions, namely (i) enhancing the collection and recycling efficiency, (ii) increasing the recycling capacity and recyclate markets, (iii) enhancing the positioning of chemical and physical recycling technologies, and (iv) enhancing the recyclability of plastic waste. To facilitate implementation of the solutions, actions for legislative revision, policy implementation and standardization activities were presented.