Eco-Rom Ambalaje Magazine Issue No.9 August - October 2013 | Page 7

ecopractic
In what regards waste management, the
GHG that has the biggest contribution to
global warming are carbon dioxide (CO2),
methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O).
All three are generated by activities
related to waste management.
?e impact of solid waste management at
European level, in what regards global
warming caused by GHG emissions, is
largely caused by methane – CH4
emissions, due to the biodegradation of
waste in waste storage anaerobic
conditions. About one third of the EU’s
anthropic CH4 emissions can be
attributed to this source. On the other
hand, only 1% of N2O emissions and less
than 0.5% of CO2 emissions are
associated with the disposal of solid
waste.
Since GHG related to human activities are
strongly connected to CO2 emissions
(about ¾ of the impact owed to global
warming – by burning fossil fuels (coal, oil)
– and of deforesting), the standard unit
used is CO2e = carbon dioxide equivalent
or “carbon footprint,” a term of reference
that makes it easier to evaluate the
extent to which a particular amount of
gas contributes to the greenhouse e?ect.
?e equivalence describes the same
warming potential in W/m2 (global
warming potential - GWP) for a particular
amount and mixture of gas, when the
measurements refer to a pre-established
time span (usually 100 years).
?e waste industry has an important

position and potential for GHG reduction
activities, a reduction opportunity that
has not yet been fully exploited. ?e
waste sector is o?ering an impressive
portfolio of e?cient and practically
demonstrated technologies that can
contribute to GHG reduction. ?e
technologies must be adapted and
implemented in line with local customs
and needs, thus leading to a signi?cant
global reduction of GHG emissions. Waste
management related activities, by
preventing waste generation and
minimizing, reusing and recycling waste,
also have a signi?cant potential to reduce
GHG emissions, due to the preservation
of raw materials and fossil fuels. Aerobic
and anaerobic technologies of biological
treatment can help with the recovery and
transformation of organic waste,
ultimately using them to improve soil
quality and/or as fertilizers. ?ese
processes reduce GHG emissions by
locking biogenic carbon in the soil,
improving the soil’s physical properties
and enriching it with nutrients.
Waste is an important source of
renewable energy. Incineration and other
“waste-to-energy” thermal processes,
recovery and use of gas from waste
storage and the use of biogas resulted
from anaerobic fermentation can play a
very important part in the reduction of
fossil fuel consumption and GHG
emissions.
?e precise measurement and

quanti?cation of GHHG emissions is
essential to determining realistic targets
and monitoring them on all levels. To
calculate the CO2 footprint of the waste
management sector in general and the
packaging waste management segment
in particular, adequate date is necessary
about the entire material and energy life
cycle. Current calculation methods and
those that are being developed at waste
management level can become a
valuable database for the evaluation of
GHG emissions.
For packaging and packaging waste
management systems, supplying
information to responsible companies,
consistent with the calculation method
adopted for determining the CO2
footprint, is one of the most important
contributions to the evaluation of global
environmental performance and a
consistent informational addition that is
important for the promotion of activities
related to sustainable packaging design
and manufacturing.
Last but not least, one must mention an
increase in ?nancial resilience due to the
fact responsibility for calculating GHG
emissions (carbon footprint) was given
both to waste management companies
and to companies responsible for recycling
and recovering various kinds of waste. ?is
is even more important to mention now, at
this time of crisis, which makes the matter
of energy and raw material consumption a
highly sensitive topic.

revisinG
euroPean
tarGets for
PackaGinG
Liliana nichita
operations manager
?ere is currently an ongoing European project to consult the public
about a revision of the targets set by various European directives in
the ?eld of collection, storage and recycling of packaging waste. ?e
public consultation was held between June 4 and September 10,
2013 and it targeted all parties concerned, including citizens.
?e project is aimed at identifying problems and possible solutions
for the goals set by the Waste Framework Directive, the Waste
Storage Directive, the Packaging and Packaging Waste
Directive.
?e reasons for reviewing the directives are grounded in two major
issues: on the one hand the revision is a response to the revision

clauses included in the directives and on the other hand, it
correlates the targets with the European Commission’s objectives to
promote resource e?ciency. ?e primary goal is to harmonize
recycling goals, both across di?erent directives and in relation to
environmental policy documents at European level.
In what regards the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive, we
expect an increase in targets, both at global level and per type of
material, with more pressure on the plastic goal, which is expected
to reach at least 40%. ECO-ROM AMBALAJE has presented its point
of view on the matter both to the authorities and to interested
professional associations.

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