In most cases, the Environment Agency sends out its officers on a regional basis. But Recoup's chief executive, Andrew Simmons has said that it would be more thorough if this was done by product instead.
” As far as possible we need to make sure that the problem of incorrectly issued PRNs is eradicated “
– Andrew Simmons, Recoup
He said: “As far as possible we need to make sure that the problem of incorrectly issued PRNs is eradicated. In order to achieve this we need the right kind of auditing system in place. People familiar with industry making regular checks will be better placed to know what is right and what is wrong.”
Under the proposed changes a team of three or four officers would be trained to specifically look at plastic reprocessing plants. Rather than visiting different types of sites in one area, the officers would be sent nationwide and would only look into plastic.
By specifically visiting plastic reprocessors on a regular basis, officers would become more skilled on that specific area and would be in a better position to pick up on wrong doings, believes Mr Simmons.
Saving
According to the Recoup chief executive this would lead to less fraudulent PRNs being issued, and would not lead to a huge increase in costs. He said: “I can't see how this way of doing things would be noticeably more expensive than the current way things are done and the benefits would save money.”
But this way of investigating may not work for all materials. Mr Simmons explained that other material streams would need to make their own mind up over how they do things.
Mr Simmons has taken the plan to the agencies and he said that there had been positive dialogue with a regards to the possibility of changing the system.
The plastic PRN market has been plagued by rumours of falsely issued PRNs. In June of this year SS Thermoplastics became the first reprocessor prosecuted for wrongly issuing PRNs. The problem has still not gone away and many, including Mr Simmons, believe that fraudulent PRNs may still exist.
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