European Commission Proposal on Packaging and Packaging Waste to Build a World-Class Circularity Model Where Reuse and Recycling are Complementary

The European Commission's revised proposal for packaging and packaging waste is based on the EU industry's recycling model for paper and board packaging.

December12,2022

Aproposal for a revised Packaging and Packaging Waste

Regulation which has been tabled by the European Commission builds on the performance of the EU industry's recycling model for paper and board packaging. The paper industry now calls for a science-based evaluation of recyclable andreusableoptions.

Recycling is today the first source of fibres for the pulp and paper sector and 'circularity' is part of a business model that places Europe as the global recycling champion. In the EU, paper and board packaging is recycled more than all other materials combined. Paper and board also already far exceed legal recycling targets set for 2025, which are the most stringent among all materials. Nevertheless, paper producers and recyclers have pledged to reach a 90 percent recycling rate by 2030, which is higher than the current legal requirement of 85 percent. To achieve this, one prerequisite would be to improve the separate collection of paper and board throughoutEurope.

The paper and board industry acknowledge that the EU could achieve higher circularity by supplementing the recycling model with reuse systems.

The paper and board industry recognises that recyclable and reusable options are complementary and that the EU could also achieve higher circularity by supplementing its successful recycling model with reuse systems. But the performance of reuse systems will now have to match that of the paper and board industry's recycling model. Notably, targets set in the new proposal should concentrate on markets where circularity performance needs to be improved, and decisions to go for either recyclable or reusable packaging should be based on independent science-based proof of their respective environmentalbenefits.

“It is important to understand that we are not against reuse. Independent environmental impact evaluation, as established in theWaste Framework Directive, should be how we decide to go for recycling or reuse. Neither recyclers or 're-users' would want to bear responsibility for a failing environmental model,” says Mr. Jori Ringman, Director General – Cepi (Confederation oftheEuropeanPaperIndustries). n

Cepi Welcomes European Commission's Fossil-Averse Proposal on Carbon Removal Certification

Through this paper, Cepi expressed its willingness to contribute to a methodology for the certification of carbon storage in products, to be included in a specific act in the European Commission's proposal.

December9,2022

The proposal for a regulation on carbon removal certifica- tion released today by the European Commission recognizes several essential principles preventing such mechanisms to devolve into greenwashing. The upcoming regulation builds on the synergies between the potential of carbon storage products and the development of a circular bioeconomy.

In a circular bioeconomy, CO is naturally removed from the 2 atmosphere and stored in growing forests. Before ageing trees starttodecayandreleasegreenhousegases,woodisharvested tobetransformed intowoodproductsandby-productssuchas pulp and paper, and the lifetime of fibres is further extended by well-established recycling systems. They store carbon for as long as their wood fibres are re-used, before re-entering biogenic carbon cycles. Carbon goes back from the atmospheretoplants,thenproducts,cyclically.

This has been coined under the term of 'renewable biogenic carbon', defined in international standards. Cepi, the Confederation of European Paper Industries, has recently published a position paper explaining how the concept of renewable biogenic carbon relates to the proposal tabled today.

Other 'carbon cycles' are based on the capture and re-use of carbon from finite, fossil resources. While these can also be sustainable under certain conditions, Cepi welcomes that the EU Commission's proposal for the certification of carbon removal allows for a clear differentiation between fossil and renewablebiogeniccarbon.

The proposed regulation plans for the further definition of different types of certification schemes via several delegated acts. As a precursor in the measurement of product-embedded carbon, and with extensive expertise in the field, Cepi is ready to contribute to a methodology for the certification of carbon storage in products, to be included in a specific delegated act mentionedintheEuropeanCommission'sproposal.

Forest-based products, together with forests' carbon sink, already have an overall positive net climate effect of -806 million tonnes of CO equivalent annually. This corresponds to 2 avoiding 20% of all EU fossil emissions. An expansion of carbon removals via the substitution of fossil carbon by“recycled […] carbon from sustainable sources of biomass”, foreseen by the newregulation,couldfurtherincreasethispositiveeffect.

“If we are ready to leave a fossil-based economy behind us, EU regulation supporting renewable biogenic carbon would have to offer a predictable framework, enabling investments needed to reach climate neutrality. This, together with avoiding fossil emissions in the first place, would bring EU closer to reaching its ambitious 2030 and 2050 goals,”says Mr.

Jori Ringman, Director General – Cepi (Confederation of the EuropeanPaperIndustries).

“It would also make bio-based 'made in Europe' industries an essential part of the EU's climate policy and would allow

Europe to make the best of its home-grown raw materials, in a way that is compatible with our suppliers' as well as our own efforts to continuously increase carbon storage in forests,”adds Mr.Ringman.n

Voith: Sustainable Fabrics and Roll Covers for Significant Energy and Cost Savings

Presently, Voith's R&D team is working on new possibilities with the help of Life Cycle Analyses (LCAs).

December23,2022

Voith has a range of specific solutions for sustainable paper production, the advantages of which are proven by many positive customer references. A German graphic papers manufacturer, for example, reported that Voith's SolarPress roll covers have enabled energy savings due to a 1.5 percent point higher dry content after the press section. Efficiency add-ons for press fabrics are another example. In particular, +Peak technology, a specially developed elastomer material, optimizes nip dewatering and increases the service life of a press fabric. For one paper producer, +Peak resulted in higher dry content in the tandem press and reduced the average amount of steam by 11 percent, from 1.6 t/ton to 1.43 t/ton. In addition to energy savings, significant water savings are also enabled. For example, customers worldwide benefit from HydroSeal, the modern version of sealing strips for suction rolls. At a board mill in the USA, HydroSeal reduced water usage by 80 percent and saved the papermaker more than USD 30,000 per year in sealing strip lubrication.

“In addition to production that conserves resources as much as possible, it is important that the products themselves are also manufactured sustainably,” says Ms. Lidia Loskan, R&D Project ManagerSustainabilityatVoithPaper.

Here, it is important to be able to offer the same product propertiesaswithpetroleum-basedrollcoversandfabrics.

To further optimize the product portfolio in terms of sustainability,Voith's R&D team is working on new possibilities with the help of Life Cycle Analyses (LCAs). As an example, Dr. Robert Hilbing, Senior Vice President R&D FRS at Voith Paper, mentions the newly launched roll cover AiroGuideTune Green. The innovative roll cover is certified according to the international DIN CERTCO standard for bio-based products. The fiber composite roll cover is manufactured with bio-based raw materials and was specially developed for the wet-end section.

Italsohasimprovedcorrosionpropertiesandalongservicelife. This makes AiroGuide Tune Green the first DIN CERTCOcertified sustainable roll cover on the market with the same performancedataasthepetroleum-basedalternatives. Furthermore, Voith is increasingly focused on the entire manufacturing process of wear parts.The company has already been systematically measuring its own energy, water and waste volumes since 2012 and reducing them in a targeted manner.

In the words of Dr. Robert Hibling, “As part of Voith Paper's sustainability program Papermaking for Life, Voith is working intensively on sustainable solutions to strengthen the circular economy and reduce its carbon footprint. Our goal is to offer our customers an optimal portfolio of fabrics and roll covers that increases performance and sustainability while reducing operatingcosts.”

As part of the innovation and development offensive "Papermaking for Life,"Voith Paper presents versatile technologies and initiatives that lead to more efficient and sustainable processes in papermaking. The emphasis is on the topics of water, energy and fiber savings as well as digitalization, innovations and partnerships as levers for more sustainable production.n