Source :pagcev.org

The session “Recycling within the Framework of the Green Deal” took place at the New Plastics Economy Conference

 

At the New Plastics Economy Conference, organized for the second time this year by the Sustainability Academy, all key stakeholders driving change—from the private sector to public institutions, academia, and civil society organizations—came together around a circular economy vision for plastics. During the online conference held on February 23, the session “Recycling within the Framework of the Green Deal”, moderated by PAGEV President and SEM Plastik Board Chairman Yavuz Eroğlu, featured speakers Hülya Çakır, Senior Environmental Engineer at the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change, and Hakan Özhuy, President of SEPA.

Highlighting that plastic is not only an economic material but also contributes to our lives by transforming from shape to shape and color to color, from harder than steel to softer than silk, Eroğlu stated:
"Plastic is the most consumed and economically most accessible material worldwide. We see challenges arising from plastic waste, such as excessive packaging beyond consumer needs and disposal of consumed material into nature rather than recycling it. These issues were also given special emphasis in the Green Deal. From this perspective, recycling is extremely important both economically and environmentally, and it is very significant for our country as well. Turkey is the 6th largest plastic producer in the world and, following Germany, has the 2nd largest plastic industry in Europe, contributing greatly to the economic cycle."

Eroğlu emphasized that with the green transformation, the focus for plastics should be on reuse whenever possible without depleting resources, and if reuse is not possible, materials should be recycled. He added:
"Within the framework of the Green Deal, major global brand owners have made it mandatory, from a social responsibility perspective, for their products to include a certain percentage of recycled materials. As a result, using recycled plastic raw materials in packaging, textiles, automotive, and construction has become a top priority for both brand owners and consumers. To use recycled materials, we must collect waste plastics in a high-quality and clean manner and then recycle them. Our regulations regarding the use of recycled materials in products must also be clearly defined. In Turkey, parts of our legislation concerning recycled materials in contact with food need to be updated. Recycled raw materials used in production must be safely certified and shared with the public."

 

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Hülya Çakır, Senior Environmental Engineer at the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change, stated:
"The EU Green Deal was published in 2019 and has priority areas. Plastics are one of these priority areas. Within the framework of the EU Green Deal, the Ministry of Trade has also prepared an action plan. This plan includes 32 targets and 81 actions. One of these targets is the circular economy. The Circular Economy Package was prepared in 2015 and implemented in 2018. By 2020, an action plan was developed, which serves as a guide."

Çakır emphasized the importance of designing products to be recyclable during production, durable, reusable, and upgradable. Referring to the Technical Support Project for Assessing Turkey’s Circular Economy Potential, a three-year project initiated by the Ministry on February 7, 2022, consisting of four components, she explained:
"Looking at the first component, we see that it will analyze the current situation. The second component addresses plastics and includes the preparation of a circular economy action plan. A roadmap will be developed for single-use plastics and marine litter. Life cycle analyses will be conducted for plastics. The third component focuses mainly on collection systems. Increasing source-separated collection and awareness-raising activities are among the most important aspects of this project. The fourth component concerns promotion activities. In this context, work will be carried out with the sector. Visits will be conducted to inform the sector, and their practices will guide this project. It is an important project to be implemented through public-private collaboration."

Hakan Özhuy, President of SEPA (Association of Rigid Plastic Packaging Manufacturers), said:
"As rigid plastic packaging manufacturers, we produce bottles, boxes, and packaging mostly from single-type raw materials such as PE, PP, PET, or PS. In addition, we have plastic crates and pallet systems. Around 250 companies in Turkey are engaged in this production, processing a total of 1.3 million tons of raw materials. It is crucial that all of this comes from single-type materials. Multi-layered packaging, such as flexible packaging or UHT milk cartons, is much harder to recycle."

Özhuy also highlighted the energy and water consumption involved in making secondary use sustainable:
"When we process 1 kilogram of plastic raw material, we consume about 1.4–1.6 kWh of electricity. Recycling consumes roughly the same amount. Therefore, we consider how to design more environmentally friendly products from the start, how to be greener during production, and whether materials can be reused. In Turkey, 42% of total plastics are used in packaging, and 25–30% of that is rigid plastic from our production. Consequently, we need to work much more actively with recycling companies and brands."