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      <title>GARWER WasteXchange News</title>
      <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/RSS/news.phpsc</link>
      <description>GARWER WasteXchange: News about waste management and recycling</description>
      <language>EN-en</language>
      <copyright>GARWER s.r.l. 2008</copyright>
	  <pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
      <lastBuildDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:47:03 +0100</lastBuildDate>
      <managingEditor>GARWER s.r.l. &lt;info@garwer.com&gt;</managingEditor>
      <webMaster>GARWER s.r.l. &lt;info@garwer.com&gt;</webMaster>
      	  <item>
		 <title><![CDATA[A million vehicles taken off the road may be being sold on &#039;illegally&#039; instead of being destroyed]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/971-9F5-4D5</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Online auction house for automotive salvage Bluecycle is calling on the Government to increase enforcement of the European End of Life Vehicles Directive to stop vehicles, which should be scrapped being sold on ‘illegally’ through unauthorised car yards.
A subsidiary of insurer Aviva, Bluecycle claims that up to a million vehicles a year, which are taken off the road and should be destroyed are not due to insufficient resources available to enforce European legislation governing their recycling.
It is thought that this illegal practice may mean that unsafe vehicles are returning to UK roads or are being sold abroad.
Vehicles that are taken off the road should be delivered to an authorised treatment facility (ATF) which issues the vehicle with a Certificate of Destruction (COD). The car is then destroyed and scrapped.
Bluecycle reputation manager Andy Latham said: “We’re caught in a Lazarus effect where something like 50% of vehicles scrapped don’t get a COD. They’re quite literally coming back from the dead.
“Until the audit trail is tightened up and more unauthorised sites are closed down, we cannot expect this figure to reduce by much, which flies in the face of the original legislation and more importantly, could put someone’s life at risk if a car finds its way back onto the road.”
The Government’s Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency figures show that approximately two million cars are taken off the road each year. However, the number of CODs issued is closer to the one million mark.
Introduced by the European Commission, the law demands that 85% of every car leaving the road must be recycled by an ATF.
The Environment Agency shut down 100 illegal scrap yards in England and Wales last year. A spokesperson said the EA will continue to crackdown on unlicensed operators: “[We estimate] that rogue traders could still be netting millions of pounds every year dealing in scrap vehicles.
“Illegal car scrap yards are a huge problem for the environment, as there are no safeguards in place to prevent pollution.”]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:47:03 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[EEE producers no longer required to fund WEEE collections from kerbside]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/D97-2A0-2DF</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Producers of electrical and electronic equipment will no longer have to fund waste electrical and electronic equipment collections from kerbside under new amendments to the recast WEEE Directive.

The long-awaited draft report from the European Parliament’s Rapporteur Karl-Heinz Florenz outlines a number of proposed changes for the WEEE industry including a 65% WEEE collection target for all Member States by 2016. The new target is set at 65% of the average weight of products placed on the market in the “three preceding years”. (see MRW story)

In the European Commission’s original proposal on the recast WEEE Directive (September 2009) it stated that member states should “encourage producers to take full ownership of the WEEE collection in particular by financing the collection of WEEE throughout the whole waste chain including from private households”.

This statement has changed significantly in the current draft report which now states: “All member states should encourage all stakeholders handling WEEE to help achieve the aim of the Directive in order to avoid leakage of separately collected WEEE to sub-optimal treatment and illegal exports.”

The proposals continue to state member states should “encourage” producers to treat all WEEE collected and consumers should have “responsibility for ensuring that WEEE is taken to collection facilities”.

This means that the new target is set at 65% of the average weight of products placed on the market in the three preceding years in that member state.

Speaking about the draft WEEE proposals, logistics firm Wincanton commercial manager Simon Hill said that kerbside should not be ruled out as “a method of helping to achieve our collection targets. It still needs to be considered where financially viable”.

WEEE producer compliance scheme Econo-WEEE director John Kerr added: “It will be welcomed by producers but not local authorities who will have to fund it themselves.” 

The draft proposals also highlight interim targets from 2013 until the end of 2015.
Hill said: “We are supportive of the 65% challenging targets and the interim target which will help countries to achieve that progression to 65%.”

Other proposals in the draft recast WEEE Directive include the separate collection of mercury-containing lamps.

WEEE producer compliance scheme Recolight chief executive Nigel Harvey said: “We have been active in lobbying both at UK and European level through our Brussels body lobbyist to try to get the recast right for our industry. We welcome the number of changes proposed. This includes the statement that it is important to separate collection for lamps, which we have been doing at Recolight already.”

He said that the lamp market was a fast growing industry market and sales of lamps had increased over the past two or three years. However, he added that it may be difficult to reach a 65% target because the sales of lamps six years ago have been smaller than the sales that have occurred this year.

The proposals have also taken out the requirement for a gas discharged lamp re-use target stating that they “cannot be re-used”.

Other proposals include the development of a “harmonised standards for the collection, treatment and recycling of WEEE” because the Rapporteur states that recycling standards have still not been developed. He states that “different standards result in distortions of competition, which is why a level playing field needs to be created”.

MRW understands that the next stage involves a vote on the amendments by the EC on April 7. Hill said that there may be a significant way to go before the proposals are transposed into EU legislation.

Other proposals from the draft recast WEEE report include:

    * Producers should be allowed to show purchasers, on a voluntary basis at the time of sale of new products, the costs of collecting, treating and disposing of WEEE;

    * The scope of RoHs and WEEE should be separate and “differ in their scope”; and
    * Member states need to stem the leakage of WEEE that is being shipped illegally to countries outside the EU by carrying out more checks at ports and border crossings; and
    * Photovoltaic modules used for solar panels should be excluded from the WEEE Directive.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:29:08 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[Brussels suggests new EU waste management agency]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/6A4-03D-C88</link>
         <description><![CDATA[A new European Union agency could be created to enforce and implement EU waste control legislation. That is the proposal of a new European Commission report, which says the standard of waste disposal in some EU countries remains low.
An EC spokesman said: “Illegal dumping of waste continues on a significant scale, many landfill sites are sub standard.” He noted that in some EU countries “basic waste infrastructure is still missing”.
Outgoing EU environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said: &#039;Compliance with EU legislation is essential if we are to achieve the overarching goal of EU waste legislation, which is to protect the health of European citizens and the environment.” He said the Commission, which he leaves on February 9, should “look at all the options, including setting up an EU agency or body which could enable EU legislation…”
His country Greece has been one of the worst offenders in flouting EU waste laws, being taken to the European Court of Justice over the issue. And the report said across Europe, waste management problems have grown in recent years with the EU taking in 10 new members in 2004 and three in 2007: this has sparked increases waste trafficked across the union’s open borders.
An agency would review waste legislation enforcement in member states, coordinating controls and inspections. It would work with a special EU body staging direct inspections and controls of waste facilities “in serious cases of non-compliance”. It would work with national waste management bodies from the 27 member states.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:35:07 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[British Airways set to produce jet fuel from waste]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/D19-516-92A</link>
         <description><![CDATA[British Airways has teamed up with American bioenergy company Solena Group to establish &quot;Europe&#039;s first&quot; sustainable jet fuel plant, which is set to turn domestic, agricultural and industrial waste into aviation fuel to help power the airline&#039;s fleet.
The self-contained gasification plant, which is likely to be sited in east London, will convert 500,000 tonnes of waste per year into 16 million gallons of green jet fuel. British Airways claims this volume of fuel would be more than twice the amount required to make all of its flights at London City Airport carbon-neutral.
The renewable fuel will be produced by feeding waste into a patented high temperature gasifier, producing BioSynGas. An established process known as Fischer Tropsch will then convert the gas into biojet fuel and bionaphtha - which is used as a blending component in petrol and also as a feedstock for the petrochemicals industry.
According to British Airways, the Fischer Tropsch process offers greenhouse gas savings of up to 95% compared to fossil-fuel derived jet kerosene.
The airline has confirmed that it aims to use waste with a high carbon biomass content - including domestic, agricultural and industrial waste - but added that other waste, including paper and food scraps, may also be used in the plant.
Four sites in the east of London are among those under consideration for the construction of the bio-jet fuel plant. Once a site has been chosen, British Airways will be entering into negotiations with waste companies and local authorities for the waste supply.
The partners also claim that the project will make further savings in greenhouse emissions by reducing the volume of waste sent to landfill, therefore avoiding production of methane, as well as significantly reducing local authority landfill tax bills.
British Airways calculates that the plant could save £36 million in landfill costs for local authorities by utilising 500,000 tonnes of biomass feedstock per year. This is based on local authorities paying the 2013/2014 landfill tax of £72 per tonne for the disposal of waste to landfill.
Solena Group Inc will be building the biomass plant and British Airways has signed a letter of intent to purchase all of the fuel it produces.
It is hoped that the scheme will lead to the creation of up to 1,200 jobs in the chosen area and the plant is also expected to generate 20MW of excess renewable electricity a year for export to the national grid.
Unique
Willie Walsh, chief executive of British Airways, said: &quot;This unique partnership with Solena will pave the way for realising our ambitious goal of reducing net carbon emissions by 50% by 2050.
&quot;We believe it will lead to the production of a real sustainable alternative to jet kerosene. We are absolutely determined to reduce our impact on climate change and are proud to lead the way on aviation&#039;s environmental initiatives.&quot;
Dr Robert Do, chairman and chief executive of the Solena Group, said: &quot;The Solena - British Airways BioJetFuel project will efficiently convert biomass into clean renewable fuels and electricity and is completely carbon neutral.
&quot;The plant will be a state-of-the-art renewable fuel manufacturing facility, distinct from a standard waste to energy incinerator facility. It will not produce any polluting emissions or undesirable by-products.&quot;
Vision
The partners believe their project could help towards the Mayor of London&#039;s &quot;Foodwaste to Fuel Alliance&quot; vision, set out last year, to speed up the development of infrastructure to convert London&#039;s food waste into eco-fuel to cut landfill rates and carbon emissions (see letsrecycle.com story).
Commenting on the project, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: &quot;I welcome this fantastic new &#039;carbon lite&#039; fuel production facility in London.
&quot;City Hall has been working with British Airways and Solena to drive this project forward to help untap the massive potential to generate cleaner, less polluting energy from waste, otherwise destined for landfill. We are working to bring together more organisations in this way to harvest the capital&#039;s rubbish to fuel homes, businesses and even transport.&quot;
Principal consultant
International consultancy, design, engineering and management services company ARCADIS has also announced today (February 15) that it has been given the role of principal consultant, advising on and managing the delivery of the project.
Stephen Didcott, managing director for ARCADIS in the UK, said: &quot;The advanced biopower and biofuels processes now being developed will be fundamental in shaping the industrial sector of the future.
&quot;Projects like this demonstrate that the technology is viable and the end results are extremely desirable and we are proud to be a part of this important development.&quot;
ARCADIS is currently working on identifying potential sites for the new facility which will require approximately 20 acres of land.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:31:12 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[Major packaging study calls for aluminium and plastics focus]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/947-CA3-98F</link>
         <description><![CDATA[More needs to be done to capture aluminium and plastics from the household waste stream to ensure the UK meets its packaging recycling targets over the next few years, according to the latest research published by the PackFlow group.
And, the body - which includes organisations and experts such as Valpak, INCPEN, Alupro, Corus, British Glass, RECOUP and WRAP - claims that increasing capture rates from existing collections rather than extending kerbside coverage will be key to achieving this.
Projected packaging recycling rates by 2012
Aluminium        42-44%
Glass                82-83%
Paper &amp; board   80-88%
Plastic               25-28%
Steel                 74-77%
Wood                     92%
Total recycling  68-72%
The research study, entitled ‘PackFlow 2012&#039;, was prepared by Valpak Consulting and builds on research published by the PackFlow group since 2005. Defra, BIS and the devolved administrations have followed the project closely, using it to inform the implementation of the Packaging Strategy.
Using reports and published statistics alongside complex predicative modelling techniques, the study maps the flow of packaging by material into UK waste streams and predicts future recycling trends. It also projects the gap between what is presently collected and what we need to recycle in the future.
Writing in the foreword to the report, environment minister Dan Norris said: &quot;In our recent Packaging Strategy, we set out our aim of being amongst the best in Europe over the next 10 years by moving towards a 70% recycling target.
&quot;This highly detailed PackFlow study by Valpak and its partners show some of the practical implications of this challenge. It is an important contribution, and will be extremely useful as we start work on our detailed plans.&quot;
Steve Gough, Valpak chief executive, said: &quot;The PackFlow project is an impressive piece of work, with each member of the stakeholder group bringing its own knowledge and support to the project.
&quot;I am sure you can see that the findings of the report are significant and provide direction to many involved in this sector in facing the problems of reducing waste and thinking of packaging as a resource to be reclaimed, recovered and recycled.&quot;
In general, the report says that total UK packaging recycling has reached 60-62% and is projected to reach 68-72% by 2012 - with compliance expected for both the overall recycling target (set to be exceeded by 1.4 million tonnes) as well as most material-specific targets.
However, it predicts that achievement of the aluminium and plastics targets will be tight- with a potential gap of 7,000 tonnes of plastics recycling in 2011 and 22,000 tonnes in 2012 if the flow of plastics onto the UK market is high.
While the European packaging recycling targets have not been set beyond 2008, this analysis is based on targets set under the Packaging Regulations up until this year and on targets for 2011 and 2012 which are anticipated to be included as part of a Defra consultation later this month.
Outlining its recommendations to guarantee compliance, the report said: &quot;Additional measures should be put in place to assure compliance in plastics (2011 and 2012) and in aluminium (2010 and 2011).&quot;
Recommended measures for aluminium include industry helping local authorities improve capture rates - with education and widening the types of material accepted from existing schemes from beyond just cans to include aerosols and foil. It says this is particularly important due to the potential carbon savings from collecting more aluminium.
For plastics, the report claims that bottles provide more potential in terms of recyclable tonnage (182-192,000 tonnes) than for instance mixed plastics collections (107,000 tonnes) - but says that those councils which can incorporate mixed plastics should be encourage to do so.
The study also recommends changing the existing PRN system to encourage additional collections of plastics, through setting sub-targets to enhance the value of specific types of plastic packaging, such as bottles or trays.
Valpak Consulting suggests that the highest growth rates in recycling of all material streams is likely to be in away from home collections - contributing as much as 21% of growth for glass and 12% for aluminium, plastics and steel.
For all materials, it stresses that the highest untapped recyclable quantities remain in the household waste stream - with the priority untapped materials by weight being glass and plastics. In 2007, this included 709-886,000 tonnes of glass, 417-430,000 tonnes of mixed plastics and 348-364,000 tonnes of plastic bottles.
Notably, the authors point out that there is more benefit in improving capture rates from existing household collection schemes than from extending kerbside coverage- with carbon benefits as well.
It claims that 100% capture rates from households which already have a kerbside service would improve collection levels by 63%, compared to 58% if all households received a kerbside service and continued to participate at current capture rates. This difference is exaggerated further in the case for aluminium, plastic bottles and steel.
The report says: &quot;There is greater scope for increasing recycling rates through improving capture rates, then kerbside coverage.&quot;
Transparency
The study also highlights how the financial contribution of the packaging industry towards packaging recycling is relatively unknown, with only 15% of the public aware of it, and suggests more is done to advertise the fact.
It recommends that reprocessors should publicly report how the money is spent and that an ongoing industry-wide ‘positive packaging&#039; campaign should be delivered to inform the public of achievements and the benefits of packaging.
Impressive
Jane Bickerstaffe, from INCPEN, added: &quot;INCPEN has been pleased to be involved with this important piece of work. It provides useful guidance for future planning by forecasting the quantity of products and packaging which is likely to be put on the market.&quot;
Rick Hindley, executive director of the Aluminium materials organisation Alupro, commented: &quot;This has been a huge piece of work, involving many stakeholders, evaluating many factors which will have an impact on increasing the volumes of packaging collected for recycling between now and 2012. It provides a unique insight into the opportunities for boosting collection levels for all materials.
&quot;For the aluminium sector it has reconfirmed our view that we must focus on boosting collections of aluminium cans consumed away from home and boost the capture rates of drinks cans, aerosols and foil collected at kerbside.&quot;]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:26:20 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[WRAP awards first mixed plastics recycling grant]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/CD2-559-FB4</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Redcar-based plastic recycling firm Greenstar Waste Exchange Services (WES) has become the first company to receive a grant from WRAP to help boost the UK&#039;s mixed plastic processing capacity.
The company has been awarded £1.187 million from WRAP&#039;s £2 million mixed plastic capital grant competition, which was set up in June 2009.
Greenstar WES intends to use the funding to add a 20,000 tonne-a-year capacity facility to its plant at Redcar on Teesside, which will be used to reprocess mixed plastic material from households and local authorities in the surrounding areas.
James Donaldson, founder and managing director of Greenstar WES, said: &quot;Our new mixed plastics plant will be able to process natural and mixed colour polypropylene, polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate in addition to PVC and PS, all sourced from domestic recycling collections.&quot;
The WES facility at the Wilton Industrial Complex on Teesside currently has a 12,000 tonnes-a-year capacity and mainly processes polypropylene, polyethylene and polystylene. Construction of the mixed plastic facility is set to begin in 2011, with the firm hopeful of having it fully operational by 2013.
Greenstar WES was formed in March 2007 when waste management firm Greenstar UK purchase a 75% share in Waste Exchange Services as part of a strategic array of purchases undertaken by the Irish-owned firm.
Mixed Plastic
The mixed plastic capital grant scheme was launched off the back of research published by WRAP that showed that the collection and reprocessing of mixed plastics - such as margarine tubs, yoghurt pots and meat trays - was economically and technically viable. Traditionally, mixed plastics have not been widely collected for recycling.
Marcus Gover, director for market development at WRAP, said: &quot;We were delighted with the quality of the bids for this grant. Mixed plastic packaging is an extremely visible waste stream, and householders increasingly want it to be recycled in the same way as other packaging materials such as glass, paper, plastic bottles and cans, which are widely recycled.&quot;
WRAP hopes that the capacity added to the Greenstar WES facility will encourage other plastics recycling facilities in the region to contemplate the addition of mixed plastic reprocessing capacity.
Mr Gover added: &quot;It has a value as a recycled material and it does not make economic or environmental sense to dispose of it in landfill. We&#039;re looking forward to the extra domestic capacity WES Greenstar will add with this new facility.&quot;
The grant issued to Greenstar WES is part of WRAP&#039;s long-term aim to boost the recycling of mixed plastics, which the organisation said is &quot;still limited&quot; despite 216,000 tonnes of plastic bottles being collected for recycling in the UK annually.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:20:25 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[17th EUROPEAN CONFERENCE ON TYRE RECYCLING]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/DE1-3F7-A31</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The 17th Annual ETRA Conference, ‘Innovation in Tyre Recycling’ will take place from 17 to 19 March 2010. The venue is the Crowne Plaza Europa Hotel in Brussels.
The programme includes a variety of plenary sessions and special activities. Data on EU tyre arisings and treatment options will be compared and analysed in terms of the three types of collection systems in force in different areas. Discussions will include the results of several research projects and new application developments that are ready for market. 
Special activities include the creation of a series of market scenarios for the future, a Recyclers round table, debates, meetings which will give you extra opportunities to express your opinions, increase awareness and knowledge and expand your relationships. 
For further information, Conference registration and to download the program www.etra-eu.org]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:49:09 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[Germany, France cut support for solar power]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/EDA-5B1-C04</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Germany said that it would cut its subsidies for solar power in line with the rapid take-up of the photovoltaic market. The news follows a similar announcement by France.
German Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen (CDU) announced that the government was proposing to cut feed-in tariffs for new roof-mounted solar power by 15% from April.
Open-field sites and farmland installations would follow in July with 15% and 25% cuts respectively.
People who mount solar panels on their rooftops and utilise the energy for personal use would, however, receive higher tariffs.
The environment minister said that the planned cuts were due to the success of the solar sector, which had led to over-subsidisation of the industry. The feed-in tariffs have come under pressure, as the price of solar panels has dropped by around a third due to oversupply in the past year.
But the solar industry warned that the cuts, which will come on top of annual reductions under the German Renewables Act, would lead to job losses. Moreover, concerns were raised about the wider paralysis of the global solar market, which is largely driven by Germany, by far the biggest market in the world.
The Federation of Renewable Energy (BEE) said that coupled with the standard reductions under the Renewables Act, these additional cuts would bring down subsidies by at least a third by early 2011.

&quot;The proposed cut threatens the foundations of the German solar industry and the shift to an age of renewables. If the environment minister wants to implement his ambitious plans to base Germany&#039;s energy supply almost entirely on renewable energy by 2050, he must provide for reliable subsidy conditions instead of spooking investors,&quot; the BEE said in a statement.
France pricks a bubble
France also announced that it would cut its feed-in tariffs for rooftop systems by 24%, from 55 euro cents to 42 euro cents per KWh.
The move was part of a larger overhaul of renewable subsidies, which also saw adjustments to tariffs for geothermal and biomass plants.
The world&#039;s highest tariff at 58 euro cents per KWh was reserved for panels integrated into residential buildings or hospitals and schools. Other constructions like offices and industrial sites would get lower tariffs: 50 cents for existing buildings and 42 cents for newly-built ones.
The government said the new tariffs &quot;would apply only to new projects&quot; and were aimed at pricking a &quot;speculative bubble&quot; that had been developing in the market since November 2009. Therefore, the government said it would not accept applications handed in by generators after 1 November if they had not already applied for a grid connection. They could reapply under the new tariff conditions.
Photovoltaic industry for sustainable tariffs
The European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) stressed that it would be important for both France and Germany to follow the evolution of market prices in their feed-in tariff systems.
&quot;We are advocating the implementation of sustainable policy support schemes. That support should lead to an accelerated penetration of solar energy but avoid a market overheat and possible speculation,&quot; said Adel El Gammal, secretary-general of EPIA.
He warned, however, that if feed-in tariff cuts were too high, this would have a detrimental impact on the industry. &quot;It would for instance eliminate smaller actors too early, which in some cases would have innovative ideas,&quot; he said.
&quot;I believe that this reduction in France will allow sustainable development,&quot; the EPIA chief argued. Moreover, he said the French move would encourage the development of integrated PV, which focuses on added value downstream and creates local jobs.
When setting the level of feed-in tariffs, all financial elements and the market structure need to be considered, El Gammal stressed. This includes looking at the amount of red tape, investment subsidies and tax rebates as well as the system price, he said.
All things considered, the attractiveness of investment in national markets should be high enough to allow rapid but sustainable growth but below levels that would create a speculative bubble, according to El Gammal.
&quot;The range we would be looking for is that the attractiveness of PV investment is typically 6-10% for private investors and 8-12% for business investors,&quot; he said.
EPIA hopes to see each member state&#039;s support policy converge within these ranges. Although higher support at an early stage could create demand, feed-in tariffs would then be progressively adapted to sustainable levels, El Gammal said.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:40:16 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[Paper and board recovery rose in 2009, despite recession]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/35C-0A3-2FC</link>
         <description><![CDATA[Waste paper and board recovery rate continues to rise despite the recession.
The Confederation of Paper Industries preliminary data shows that last year the collection rate rose to 78% even though paper consumption in the UK diminished by 10% to a mere 11.5 million tonnes.
Because of limited domestic use, UK paper exports saw an increase of up to 90% that were using fibrous raw materials coming from recovered paper and board.
Recovered paper sector manager at CPI, Peter Seggie said that the fact that the new UK capacity is based 100% on recovered paper is “good news” for the industry.
He added: “The successful St Regis conversion of a machine to lightweight recycled packaging paper, the new Palm newsprint mill and the progress on the SAICA packaging mill all show that there is scope for a vibrant, modern paper industry in the UK where demand for paper products is much greater than that produced domestically.”
Further details on the 2009 performance of the paper industry will be available in March.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:35:19 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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		 <title><![CDATA[Defra continues to invest in waste research]]></title>
         <link>http://www.wastexchange.co.uk/detailNews.phpsc?doc=/GARWER/DOCS/news/EBC-F94-9AB</link>
         <description><![CDATA[The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has launched a new Evidence Investment Strategy and will continue to invest in evidence gathering for waste programmes.
Defra’s new EIS provides an agenda to prioritise and manage Defra’s investment in evidence from 2010 to 2013. It highlights the need to focus efforts on climate change and protecting ecosystems.
The strategy will ensure that Defra has access to the “best evidence” when developing policies including waste.
There are areas of Defra’s portfolio where it sees its future needs for evidence growing or shrinking but waste is an area which will see continued investment.
Defra currently spends under £5 million on research and development for waste. In contrast, it spends nearly £10m on R&amp;D for exotic diseases and more than £20m on farming for the future [Government farming programme].
The EIS report states that Defra can use evidence investment to foster innovation in a number of ways to deliver sustainability by encouraging technical innovations through co-operation with the Waste &amp; Resources Action Programme and others.
Defra also hope to increase co-operation and communication with its external partners to share its evidence investment, knowledge and expertise through promoting joint programming with delivery partners such as the Environment Agency on waste.
Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said: “There has never been a time when there was a greater need for good quality evidence to contribute to policy making and sound decisions, yet this need comes in the midst of a global economic downturn, the speed and ferocity of which has taken us all by surprise.”
Defra chief scientific adviser Professor Bob Watson added: “It is absolutely essential that all the policies that we formulate are based on sound evidence.
“Defra recognises this and invests heavily in evidence, spending approximately £240m to evidence-related activities, including research, surveillance and scientific specialists in 2009 -10.”
The EIS will build on the progress made by Defra’s first evidence strategy – Evidence and Innovation 2005-2008 – by encouraging better use of evidence for policy making.]]></description>
         		 		 <pubDate>Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:33:21 +0100</pubDate>      		  </item>
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