Cologne, 30 June 2020. To promote glass recycling in Europe, leading European associations and companies operating in the fields of container glass production and recycling have set up the “Close the Glass Loop” platform. The initiative’s goal is to increase the recycling rates for packaging glass in Europe from its present-day 76 percent to initially 80 percent by 2025 and then 90 percent by 2030. PROsPA, the European alliance of producer responsibility systems for packaging in Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Portugal and the United Kingdom actively supports this platform.
Whereas glass recycling rates in some EU member states have been running at over 80 percent for years already, the average rates achieved in Europe are still significantly lower. PROsPAs intention is to not only help raise the rates but also to improve the quality of the used-glass cullet and to substantially increase the proportion of recycled raw materials contained in packaging glass. “Close the Glass Loop” brings together not only glass producers, processors and recyclers throughout Europe but also the continent’s food and beverage producers, plus of course system operators like PROsPAs members who implement extended producer responsibility and are thus crucial for boosting glass recycling.
The founding members of “Close the Glass Loop” include ACR+ (the Association of Cities and Regions for Sustainable Resource Management), which alone represents 1,100 municipalities in Europe. This cooperation is highly welcome, as municipalities play a key role in upgrading the collection of used glass packages throughout Europe and enabling greater quantities to be recycled. Another vital element is Design for Recycling – by avoiding materials which are problematic in glass smelting such as ceramic lids etc. Plus, of course, the requisite recycling infrastructure must be in place, and make it easier for consumers to send their glass packaging to recycling. Glass recycling saves large quantities of energy, and greenhouse gases as well – that is yet another significant reason for supporting this cooperation.
The platform will be launched today, and PROsPA will be represented by Jean Hornain, CEO of the French member CITEO.
