VinylPlus® announced the achievements of the first year of its 2030 Commitment at the 10th VinylPlus Sustainability Forum (#VSF2022) on 25 May. The #VSF2022, which was livestreamed from Brussels, attracted around 500 participants from 40 countries. Under the motto "Embracing EU Green Deal Ambitions", perspectives and scenarios arising from the current EU policy landscape and their impact on the plastics and PVC industry were discussed online.
The VinylPlus 2030 commitment to sustainable development aims to make a proactive contribution to realising the priorities at European and global level. In an open consultation process with stakeholders, three pathways and twelve action areas were identified. They include the circularity of the PVC value chain, its further development towards carbon neutrality, minimising the environmental footprint of PVC production processes and products, and collaboration with stakeholders and global coalitions.
"With our 2030 commitment" - says Brigitte Dero, Managing Director of VinylPlus - "we want to contribute to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with a particular focus on sustainable consumption and production, climate change and partnerships. This is in full compliance with the relevant EU policies under the European Green Deal, such as the EU Circular Economy Action Plan and the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability."
Despite the difficult economic conditions, VinylPlus recycled 810,775 tonnes of PVC waste and reused it in new products, which corresponds to around 26.9 % of the total PVC waste generated in 2021 in the EU-27, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The VinylPlus recycling rate is higher than AMI Consulting's estimated recycling rate of 23.1 % for total plastics recycling in Europe in 2021.
In line with the principles of the EU Circular Plastics Alliance (CPA), VinylPlus is committed to ensuring the proper traceability of waste. In 2021, Recovinyl brought® RecoTraceTM to further improve its collection and traceability systems for recycling volumes and the use of recyclates in new products. RecoTraceTM is the first system to fulfil the monitoring requirements of the CPA.
VinylPlus Chairman, Stefan Sommer, comments on VinylPlus' achievements in the circular economy as follows: "We have taken responsibility for accelerating the transition of the European PVC value chain towards a more sustainable and circular industry. Our ambition is to be a pacesetter in innovation and collaboration by being at the forefront of the circular economy and sustainable development in the plastics sector. I would like to emphasise once again the efforts we have made to increase the circularity of the PVC value chain. This has enabled us to recycle almost 7.3 million tonnes of PVC into new products since 2000 and prevent the release of more than 14.5 million tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere."
Other VinylPlus flagship initiatives include the Additive Sustainability Footprint® (ASF) methodology, which was developed as a voluntary, Europe-wide approach to assess and promote the sustainable production and use of additives in PVC products, and the VinylPlus® Product Label, the first certification system for plastic construction products, which is recognised as a certification system for responsible procurement within the framework of BREEAM® - the world's most widely used standard for green building - has been recognised. In addition, two new sustainability certification systems, the VinylPlus® Supplier Certificates (VSC) have been developed for manufacturers of additives and compounds, enabling raw material suppliers to demonstrate their sustainability efforts and making it easier for processors to use the VinylPlus® Product Label.
#VSF2022 was also an opportunity to discuss how the European PVC industry will continue to work together to tackle the challenges of the circular economy, promote sustainable innovation and progress towards carbon neutrality as part of the evolving policies under the EU Green Deal.
Analysing the upcoming impact of changing EU legislation on the PVC industry, Michael Ulbrich, Managing Director of Accenture, highlighted that increasing regulatory pressure could bring even greater challenges, which VinylPlus should address by carefully selecting priorities and continuously delivering concrete and science-based results and solutions.
With its commitment to promoting the circular economy in the healthcare sector, VinylPlus epitomises® Med fully embraces the spirit of the 2030 Commitment and is a perfect example of linking the different pathways. Launched in 2021, the project aims to recycle end-of-life single-use PVC medical devices through a partnership between hospitals, waste management companies, recyclers and the PVC industry. VinylPlus® Med was first introduced in Belgium together with Europe Hospitals and currently has more than 29 hospitals on the waiting list.
"For a recycling company like Raff Plastics, projects like VinylPlus® Med, as we believe that everything starts with good collection. In our opinion, there are unfortunately still many materials that could be recycled but end up in landfills or incinerators due to unfavourable circumstances. A project like VinylPlus® Med ensures that everyone is aware and committed to working together for the recycling of raw materials," explains Caroline Van Der Perre, co-owner and manager of Raff Plastics.
The event concluded with the presentation of the VinylPlus® Product Label, which honoured the VinylPlus partner companies that received the label in 2021 and 2022.
"With its 10-year commitment until 2030" - says Brigitte Dero, Managing Director of VinylPlus - "VinylPlus reaffirms the commitment of the united European PVC value chain to a sustainable future and to ensuring that PVC remains a safe and recyclable material suitable for the circular economy. We are confident that the work we are doing, also together with the other plastics sectors within the CPA and in partnerships with institutions and stakeholders, will be recognised as a proactive contribution to the EU Green Deal."
The annual Progress Report describes VinylPlus' achievements in improving the sustainability performance and use of PVC as a material suitable for the circular economy and in realising the targets set for the entire European PVC value chain. The 2022 Progress Report was verified by the independent SGS, while the volumes of PVC waste recycled and spend were audited and certified by KPMG.
