Plastics Europe welcomes vote on plastic pellet loss regulation

Iranpolymer/Baspar  The European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) has adopted the provisional agreement on stricter rules on plastic pellet loss.

The committee voted 66 in favour, six against, and 15 abstentions. ENVI’s adoption of the text clears another hurdle towards formal adoption at EU level.

The new rules, which amend a proposal for regulation published on Dec. 11, 2024, lay down obligations for the handling of plastic pellets to prevent losses at all stages of the supply chain. Where spills and losses occur, entities are responsible to take immediate action to contain and clean-up those spills and losses.

The compromise text requires economic operators to establish a risk assessment plan for each installation handling pellets, including a clear set of measures relating to, amongst others, packaging, loading and unloading, staff training, as well as necessary equipment. National authorities will have to conduct environmental inspections and take other verification measures as part of a risk-based approach.

Operators handling over 1,500 tonnes of plastic pellets annually will be required to obtain a compliance certificate issued by an independent third-party. Small companies also handling above 1,500 tonnes per year will benefit from lighter obligations, such as one-off certification to be done in five years after the regulation enters into force. Companies handling less than 1,500 tonnes annually and microenterprises will only need to issue a self-declaration of conformity.

Plastics Europe welcomed ENVI’s endorsement of the new rules.

“It is encouraging to see parliamentarians support policy which builds upon our industry’s previous efforts to prevent plastic pellet losses, while accommodating for the operational complexity of preventing pellet losses,” said Virginia Janssens, managing director of Plastics Europe. “We appreciate that policymakers have arrived at solutions that are comprehensive, adjustable to circumstance and applicable across the full value chain—from production and transport to storage, conversion, and recycling.”

Plastics Europe has been working to prevent pellet loss to the environment for many years via Operation Clean Sweep (OCS). This initiative has seen industry actors voluntarily establish suitable pellet management systems, and continuously invest in technologies to prevent pellets from being lost to the environment.

The plastics industry introduced the first-ever European pellet loss prevention certification scheme in February of 2023. The OCS Europe certification scheme adds extra accountability to the industry’s actions by establishing unified processes and procedures for effectively managing and documenting pellet loss throughout the entire plastics supply chain.

“This political agreement reflects a smart and pragmatic approach to policymaking,” Janssens continued. “By drawing on existing best practices and voluntary industry action, it ensures tangible progress without placing disproportionate regulatory burden on an industry which is already under severe competitiveness pressures.”

The industry association is now calling on the European Council to swiftly endorse the compromise text. Once formally adopted by the Council alongside the Parliament, the text will be published in the Official Journal of the EU. The regulation will then become applicable two years after publication.

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