The latest figures, released by Petcore last week, show that the export of PET from Europe rose to 136,000 tonnes in 2003 from 33,000 in 2002, an increase of over 400%.
”We are concerned about exports, which cause the loss of existing capability in Europe. “
– Frank Koelewijn, Petcore DG
Petcore said the UK and Germany were contributing most to the increase in PET exports, particularly in exports to China. Commenting on the figures, which were released by the organisation last week, Petcore director general Frank Koelewijn warned that the increases in exported PET could jeopardise domestic recycling.
He said: “Over recent years, Europe has built an infrastructure which now has considerable expertise for the recycling of PET. Whilst there is nothing against free trade, we are concerned about exports which do not result in similar environmental benefits and which also cause the loss of existing capability in Europe.
“We think it important to continue to develop and expand on existing technology, which is needed to maintain economically sustainable market outlets,” Mr Koelewijn added. Petcore believes collection organisations in European countries should not sell PET for export unless these outlets have been properly checked for environmental controls.
Collections
The 400% increase in exports dwarfed the 36% increase in the tonnage of bottles collected in Europe for recycling between 2002 and 2003.
In 2003, 612,000 tonnes of PET bottles were collected in Europe, up from the 449,000 tonnes collected in 2002. Most of this growth came from Spain, Portugal, Hungary, Slovakia, the Baltic States and Ireland, the organisation said. Large increases were also seen in Germany and the UK
Petcore reported very little change in the end markets for PET, with bottle-to-bottle recycling using 11% of materials collected in 2003, polyester fibre using 70%, polyester sheet 7.5% and strapping 7.6%.
Subscribe for free