Participants in the polymer industry are trying to adjust the requirements for environmental fees for packaging within the framework of extended producer responsibility (EPR), writes Kommersant .
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In July 2024, the Union of Plastic Processors (UPP) sent comments to the Russian Environmental Operator (REO), the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Government Office on the parameters of the legislation on EPR. The fact is that the updated EPR mechanism, which came into force in 2024, provides for a gradual increase in the mandatory packaging recycling standard for manufacturers and importers from 55% in 2025 to 100% by 2027, and companies that do not comply with the standard are required to pay an environmental fee.
The SPP primarily criticized the calculation of environmental payments. According to information from the letter, at the moment for all polymer groups the base rate is offered at the level of 12.38 thousand rubles. per ton, which takes into account all costs associated with waste treatment and should cover the costs associated with disposal. But, as the SPP added, it is also planned to introduce increasing coefficients that will increase rates by 2-5 times, which will increase the cost of some materials versus others.
According to calculations by one of the industry participants, taking into account the coefficient, the eco-fee rate for transparent PET will be 5.7 times higher than the rate for paper packaging, and the rate for monopolypropylene will be 11.5 times higher. The SPP asks to indicate in the calculation amounts of basic eco-fee rates the cost of recycling paper and cardboard, as well as packaging made from these materials, which is now zero. The Union also warned that the rise in price of polymer packaging will not reduce demand for it, but will cause an increase in prices for packaged goods.
Responsibility for packaging disposal will be transferred entirely to its manufacturers.
Manufacturers may be required to recycle packaging from 2027
