Alupro “optimistic” of beating PERN shortfall

The extension of a June 30 deadline set back in April (see letsrecycle.com story) has been allowed to head off a possible shortfall in producer responsibility evidence, known as PERNs, sold to packaging producers or compliance schemes to enable them to meet annual packaging recycling targets.

Alumminium packaging producers' organisation Alupro has said the Environment Agency will, for the rest of the year, allow accredited metal packaging waste exporters to back-date their PERNs once they have secured the required documentation proving that receiving reprocessors have “broadly equivalent” standards to EU recycling plants.

It is thought this move could still mean only 70-80% of the non-EU reprocessors who accepted UK aluminium packaging waste last year being accredited this year under the PERN (packaging waste export recovery note) system.

However, as a new aluminium can recycling campaign was launched yesterday, Rick Hindley, executive director for industry body Alupro said that his organisation was “optimistic” that increasing domestic collections of aluminium cans would help to fill any resulting shortfall in the issuing of PERNs this year.

Challenge

Commenting on the agreement with the Agency, Mr Hindley told letsrecycle.com: “We have met with the Agency again and reviewed progress. The exporters are still facing a real challenge, and potentially there will be a shortfall in those that can get evidence.

“The Agency will continue to allow metal exporters to issue a PRN once they have secured the evidence – essentially, they are allowing the back-dating of PRNs and allowing us to do that for the rest of the year. The Agency is now considering how to move forward,” Mr Hindley said.

The requirement for non-EU recycling plants receiving British packaging waste to meet equivalent EU working conditions and environmental standards originally came in during 2006 under amended packaging producer responsibility regulations.

The difficulties faced by aluminium exporters include the fact that they often sell to agents and do not know the final destination of their material, while in the global marketplace buyers for material may come and go at short notice. Even though foreign reprocessors may well meet EU standards, securing suitable evidence to satisfy the Environment Agency can be problematic.

“It has been a challenge to get the evidence – that's just the way that metals are traded, metals recyclers often have no idea where the final end markets are,” said Mr Hindley. “Clearly the metal is still being recycled, but it's whether we can count it that's the issue.”

Another potentially large headache are the new Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations, which come into force tomorrow (July 12).

The regulations will require exporters of UK waste destined for recycling to provide documentation naming where material has originated and where it is to be reprocessed – something that would prove difficult if exporters do not know where their end markets are for reasons of commercial sensitivity on behalf of their brokers. More guidance on this is expected from the Environment Agency soon (see letsrecycle.com story).

PERN prices

The fear of Alupro, which represents aluminium producers, is that a shortfall of PERNs in the middle part of this year might affect PERN prices. These prices are currently in the region of £20 to £30 per tonne, although few sales are being seen at the moment, but aluminium PERN prices have been up to £200 per tonne during periods of perceived scarcity in the past.

“The last thing even exporters want is PRN prices soaring again,” its executive director said.

With quarter two reprocessing figures being submitted by recyclers and exporters this month to the National Packaging Waste Database (NPWD), Mr Hindley said he expected the data to show a shortfall compared to last year. However, he insisted the situation “will even itself out” by December.

A further complication to the Q2 figures will be that one of last year's large aluminium reprocessors is not accredited this year, because of the changes to aluminium protocol grades. However, another “potentially significant” exporter of aluminium is currently going through the accreditation process, which could help with the supply of aluminium PERNs.

“We are optimistic that with the new volume we now see coming through, with the growth of packaging collections, that we will be able to offset the material that cannot count. We are optimistic that there will be additional PRNs for that volume, but clearly it is a big challenge.”

Campaign

Yesterday saw the launch of Alupro's third campaign pledging to plant trees for each tonne of aluminium cans collected for recycling in the UK, which will run until July 2009. The second campaign has seen 100,000 trees planted in Burkina Faso since 2003.

The new campaign will involve the planting of a fruit tree in Malawi for every tonne of aluminium recycled in the UK, with Alupro working with locally-based charity Ripple Africa.

“This is a very exciting development for the area, tackling three of the main problems people face: poverty, nutrition and de-forestation,” said environmental film-maker Dr Charlotte Uhlenbroek as she launched the campaign. “Growing high-value trees means that they will not be chopped down for firewood, which is a major cause of de-forestation, leading to poor soil, crop failure – and then more woodland cleared to grow food.”

“And all people have to do to make sure this all happens is to recycle every single aluminium drinks can and clean foil container they can get their hands on,” she added.