News Items - International Association of Packaging Research Institutes
| VTT seeks to improve mixed waste sorting VTT, Finland, is coordinating a project aiming to study the capabilities of industrial sorting facilities and the recyclability of the resulting plastics waste fractions from municipal solid waste (MSW), with the objective of not only boosting volumes of recycling feedstock but also reducing the amount of waste going to incineration.  Funded by Business Finland, the MSWPlast project also includes Borealis, Remeo and Vantaan Energia as partners. It began in January this year and will run up to the end of 2024.According to VTT, Finland is struggling to reach its legislated targets for recycling both MSW and plastics packaging waste. It quotes a 2019 estimate of 16.6% for the proportion of mixed waste accounted for by plastics – which is largely, but not exclusively, packaging. This translates as some 288,000 tonnes. In comparison, separate plastics collection for the same year yielded just 74,500 tonnes. VTT quotes senior adviser at the Finnish Environment Institute Hanna Salmenpera as saying that everything possible should be done to “enhance stronger material cycles”. She adds: “According to the recently-published early warning report, the EU Commission considers that Finland is at risk of not reaching the recycling targets for 2025.” In preparation for MSWPlast, waste management company Remeo will run a pilot test at its Vantaa sorting facility, sorting 500 tonnes of mixed waste from households and businesses. The output material will then be analyzed, generating data that will then help to improve sorting and robust recycling streams. Published: 07/31/23 |