Company cleared to run waste compliance scheme

GreenPak has become the first company in Malta authorised to run a compliance scheme for any kind of packaging waste.

Producers who sign up to the scheme and whose products carry the Green Dot mark will have their "producer responsibility" for the collection of waste shifted to GreenPak.

Eco tax on their products will still have to be paid, at least for the time being.

GreenPak has filed an application so that products carrying the Green Dot mark be exempted from eco tax once it was shouldering the responsibility for the collection and recycling of such products. This application is currently being considered by the Finance Ministry.

GreenPak promoter Mario Schembri told a news conference yesterday that although there were indications that the application would be approved, the process was not finalised yet.

He said that according to EU legislation, all traders have the obligation to collect and recycle discarded packaging. Yet, this obligation was very difficult to implement on an individual basis.

Mr Schembri said Malta was not implementing this legislation because of practical difficulties presented by the fact that there were no compliance schemes traders could adhere to. Now that there was the Green Dot scheme, Mepa was expected to start enforcing the law, Mr Schembri said.

Malta has bound itself with the EU to recycle 20,000 tonnes of packaging waste by the end of this year. While the likelihood of this materialising was remote, the establishment of GreenPak augured well for Malta to be closer to reaching its packaging waste recycling targets in the coming years, Mr Schembri said.

Suppliers of products carrying the Green Dot mark were paying GreenPak to recover and recycle their packaging.

In an eight-week trial project GreenPak organised in Valletta some months ago, over 15 per cent of the estimated total packaging glass, plastic and metal generated by households was recovered. This was very encouraging when compared to the national current figure of one per cent.

Discussions with other councils for a similar separate collection scheme in their respective localities are already underway and GreenPak will be offering performance related incentives to councils which will also be paid to run awareness campaigns.

The company is also to embark on a public awareness campaign of its own to get more people involved in separating their waste so that materials can be recycled.

To date there are 34 companies in Malta that have signed up with GreenPak.