EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY AS TOOL ON THE WAY TO THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY

EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY AS TOOL ON THE WAY TO THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY

7^th International Conference on EARTH SCIENCE, RECYCLING & SPACE TECHNOLOGY
May 22-23, 2019 | Rome, Italy

Joachim Quoden

EXPRA-Extended Producer Responsibility Alliance, Belgium

Keynote : J Environ Waste Management and Recycling

Abstract:

The European Union has decided to move from a linear business approach to a circular economy. A circular economy is a regenerative system in which resource input and waste, emission and energy leakage are minimized by slowing, closing, narrowing energy and material loops; this can be achieved through long-lasting design, maintenance, repair, reuse, remanufacturing, refurbishing, recycling and upcycling. This is in contrast to a linear economy which is a ‘take, make and dispose’ model of production. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a policy tool to direct companies the way into this circular thinking by passing the responsibility for the end of life management of their used products to those companies putting packaged products on the market. The presenter will explain this concept by highlighting best practices in the packaging sector, taking also into account the new obligations for the 28 EU Member States coming from the circular economy package, including higher recycling targets and new minimum requirements for EPR systems.

Biography:

Joachim Quoden has extensive experience in packaging and municipal waste management, dating from 1992 when he spent four months in the German Ministry of Environment working on packaging issues including the German Packaging Ordinance. From 1993 to 2006, he worked with Der Grüne Punkt - Duales System Deutschland GmbH (DSD), where he was appointed Head of International Affairs in 2001. He acts as Managing Director of EXPRA, a new alliance of 25 PRO’s from currently more than 23 countries since 2013. He is working as independent lawyer in Germany specializing in international EPR legislation since 1995; Chairperson of ISWA’s Governance & Legal WG; Member of the OECD EPR expert group and has served as an expert in ISO global standardisation project SIS/TK 165/AG 10 Packaging and Environment. He also became Secretary General between 2001 and 2013, later Managing Director of PRO EUROPE-the umbrella organisation of 35 packaging recovery organisations.

E-mail: joachim.quoden@expra.eu

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