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Turkey expands plastic import restrictions

The Turkish authorities have expanded a ban on the import of plastic waste into the country to include polyethylene, leading to fears this “effectively prohibits the majority” of plastic going to the country.

In an announcement yesterday (18 May), the Turkish Ministry of Trade announced that the extended ban would come into force from 2 July, and will also include HS Code 39151000. This covers waste, parings and scrap from polymers of ethylene.

The ban will come into place on 2 July, making the majority of plastic exports to the country difficult

Defra says it is “seeking clarification and [is] working to understand the potential impacts” of the ban, but reiterated it was up to exporters to decide where they send their waste, “subject to the strict controls in place in the UK”.

The ban comes after Turkey introduced a raft of plastic import restrictions at the turn of the year (see letsrecycle.com story). This included restrictions on mixed material and plastic which has been mechanically treated.

Turkey has emerged as the largest export destination for plastic packaging waste since China introduce its own restrictions in 2017.

In the first quarter of this year, 49% of plastic exports from the UK ended up in Turkey, despite the tightening of rules.

‘Effectively banned’

Phil Conran, former chair of the Advisory Committee on Packaging (ACP) and chief executive of environmental consultancy 360 Environmental, said the ban effectively means that no LDPE or HDPE — thought to be the majority of what is now going to Turkey — can be exported to the country from the end of this month.

He said: “The ban was announced on 18 May to take effect on 2 July. Given that it can take four plus weeks from loading a container to arrival in Turkey, it effectively means that no LDPE or HDPE can be exported to Turkey.”

“It is understood that there is strong lobbying of the Environment Ministry from Turkish recyclers to overturn this ruling”

Phil Conran, 360 Environmental

Mr Conran added: “It is understood that there is strong lobbying of the Environment Ministry from Turkish recyclers to overturn this ruling – as there has been to get the ban on 19 12 04 lifted. But so far, there has been little sign that the ministry is prepared to back down due to the high levels of contaminated material they have continued to receive this year.”

The former ACP chair also said it would be “extremely difficult for exporters to find legal alternatives to plug the gap”, especially as the UK will be competing with all the other suppliers to Turkey from other countries for that capacity.

Contact

Defra “strongly advises” waste exporters contact the Turkish authorities prior to export to ensure their import restrictions are being adhered to.

A spokesperson told letsrecycle.com: “Businesses involved in the shipment of waste are required to take all necessary steps to ensure that the waste they ship is managed in an environmentally sound manner throughout its shipment and during its recycling.”

Greenpeace

The ban follows a damning report published by environmental campaign group Greenpeace this week which showed plastic waste shipped from the UK to Turkey illegally dumped and burned (see letsrecycle.com story).

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