A research team at the Technical University of Berlin has compared the British and German methods of meeting the EU packaging recycling targets and concluded that the PRN system is “better”. The report concludes: “Despite some problems,[the British scheme] is a better, more cost effective system”.
The report found that because the PRN system concentrates on packaging that can be easily collected and sorted, while the German system covers all sales packaging including very small items, the PRN system is more cost effective. The research team also said that as small firms in the UK are exempt from the regulations administrative costs are reduced.
The university team estimates that annual costs of the British model are around 60 million or 98 million euros (excluding administrative costs). In comparision, estimates for Germany are 2 billon euros (excluding the cost of recycling transport and secondary packaging). This equates to 2 euros or 22 euros per capita and year for Britain and Germany respectively.
The research team also found that costs are reduced because the PRN system leads to competition as British companies that are subject to the obligation to recover and recycle their packaging have a range of alternatives. They also said that PRNs encourage innovation, as they provide an incentive to find the cheapest method for recycling. And added that the German phenomena of non-payment of licence fees over a long period (free riders) is much less of an issue.
Problematic
However the report did find problems with PRNs. The research concluded that the division of the recycling responsibility by means of legislation is “problematic” and said that this division is likely to be based on a political rather than scientific basis. The distribution of paper-based PRNs was also criticised. In its place, the authors of the report said that an electronic system would further reduce costs. They suggest that experience gained by the German electricity exchange is proof that an electronic exchange could be technically feasible.
The Berlin team concluded that a modified version of the PRN could be implemented in Germany.
But the German company responsible for collecting and recycling waste packing, Duales System Deutschland (DSD), has criticised the PRN system. DSD has highlighted research undertaken at the University of Mainz whose findings contrast with those of the Technical University of Berlin. The University of Mainz team suggests that the PRN system is designed to meet the EU packaging targets at the lowest cost and is not based on environmental criteria. And it concluded that as a result of this, Britain will be unable to meet future, tighter EU packaging targets. Also, as the PRN system is linked to firms rather than to packaging itself, the incentive to reduce waste and improve packaging design is lost.
Copies of the Technical University of Berlin report (in German) can be obtained from the
University's website.
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