Packaging figure delay prompts fears over glass

The Environment Agency has today (October 22) delayed publishing packaging recycling data for the third quarter of 2012 in a move which hascompoundedfears over the UKs performance in glass.

Provisional recycling and recovery data for July to September 2012 was due to be published this morning on the Agencys National Packaging Waste Database. The data was important because earlier figures had shown a worrying shortfall in glass.

However, the Agency has published a notice explaining that publication of the quarter three data has been pushed back to allow Defra further time to review the figures.

The notice says: We have delayed publishing Q3 recovery and recycling data to provide DEFRA with further time to review the figures. We will publish Q3 data as soon as possible and no later than Wednesday 24th October. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

The unusual announcement has heightened concerns that there is little or no improvement in the glass packaging recycling figures as some had hoped and that the 2012 business targets will subsequently be very hard to meet. Defras involvement in reviewing the figures has been interpreted as the departments efforts to find a way around the problem.

One compliance scheme said: We are shocked at the Agency not being able to produce the numbers on time. It presumably means they have real problems in the system. The numbers probably mean we need an impossible amount of glass recycling in the fourth quarter to meet the targets. Defra will be trying to come up with a big fix.

Commenting on the notice, Phil Conran, of consultancy 360 environmental, said: I can only imagine this is all about the glass and the figures will show that glass is still at too low levels for the targets to be met. The numbers due out are preliminary numbers and the Agency will confirm them at a later data as there are always reprocessors who have not submitted their figures. I imagine that they are looking to see if there is any more significant tonnage coming through.

Mr Conran added that, if there was a problem in glass, this may be down to fraud in the system and may lead to Defra concluding that it had misjudged the targets for the year.

He said: The problem now is that people may hold off buying glass PRNs if they think that Defra may make a change.

Plastics

On a more positive note, revised figures on the National Packaging Waste Database for the first and second quarter of 2012 have shown that there had been some improvement in packaging recycling performance in plastics, which it has also been feared would be tight. This is understood to be linked to changes introduced by the Agency to allow PRNs to be issued against plastic flake as well as pellet, thereby allowing more to be issued.

One compliance scheme said: The pressure has come off plastics. The quarter one and quarter two figures are significantly higher than they were two months ago.”