Plastic waste: towards EU-wide EoW criteria

The European Commission has presented a proposal for a regulation to establish uniform EU-wide criteria for plastic waste to cease to be waste.

The main objective of the measure is to strengthen the Single Market for recycled plastics, reduce administrative burdens for businesses (especially SMEs), and ensure a stable supply of high-quality recovered raw materials for the production of new goods.

The regulation focuses on thermoplastic polymers (e.g., PE, PET, PP, PS), identified as the highest priority waste streams by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), subject to recycling processes that do not intentionally alter the polymer chains; consequently, mechanical recycling and solvent-based recycling would be included, while chemical recycling is currently excluded.

The proposed requirements for the cessation of waste status include:

• Input waste requirements, concerning origin, content of hazardous substances and POPs (Persistent Organic Pollutants);
• Requirements for treatment processes and techniques;
• Product quality requirements, specifically regarding the content of foreign materials and substances regulated under REACH and the POPs Regulation.

To ensure compliance with the regulation, manufacturers are required to implement and certify a Quality Management System. Furthermore, a Declaration of Conformity must be issued for each batch of EoW material.

If approved, the regulation is expected to enter into force in 2026, with a scheduled application date of July 1, 2026. A possible revision is already planned by January 1, 2029, to evaluate the inclusion of new technologies, such as chemical recycling.