> METALS
BIR Takes Action Following Italian Decree Affecting Exports
The Bureau of International Recycling has officially approached the European Commission and the Italian Environment Minister after having been informed of far-reaching amendments to the Italian waste shipment regulation. The BIR says that the Italian decree, which adds new requirements to the previous regulation, seriously affects shipments of recyclables from Italy, including ferrous and nonferrous scrap metal, to countries outside the European Union.
According to the decree, dated April 4, 2012, each international waste shipment must be accompanied by a certificate issued by the authorities in the destination country confirming that the environmental standards applicable in that country are comparable to those prescribed in the EU.
In its letter to the EU Commission, BIR expresses strong concern that the amended Italian legislation differs from the EU regulation 2006 on waste shipments, which is applicable in all EU member states and which should be enforced in the same manner everywhere in the European Union.
BIR also wrote to the Italian Environment Minister Corrado Cini, highlighting the negative impact the legislation would have on Italian operators, while jeopardizing the supply of steelworks, nonferrous metals smelters, foundries and paper mills around the globe. At least one BIR member federation has said the decree’s requirements not only conflict with EU legislation but are also unpractical. The association has said it will continue to monitor this issue and take action as appropriate.
> PAPER
Cascades to Close Board Mill
Cascades Inc., headquartered in Kingsey Falls, Quebec, has announced plans to close its Norampac containerboard mill in Trenton, Ontario, Canada.
The company says the decision follows the rejection of its final offer to the mill’s employees regarding a new collective bargaining agreement. Cascades says it will close the mill, which has an annual production capacity of 150,000 tons of corrugated medium, no later than June 1, 2012.
In a statement, Marc-André Dépin, Norampac president and CEO, says, “We are deeply disappointed that the Norampac-Trenton employees have turned down a positive and reasonable offer.”
“Despite substantial investments made by Cascades/Norampac to help increase its profitability, the Trenton mill has incurred significant losses over the years. These losses, combined with unacceptable labor relations, have left us with no other choice but to close the mill,” Dépin adds.
Nearly 130 employees will be affected by the closure, Cascades reports.
The Norampac-Trenton mill consumes 60% wood fiber and 40% recycled material to produce its corrugated medium. The mill is a customer of local wood suppliers, and its closure could lead to losses of nearly $9.5 million to the local forest industry, Cascades reports.
> ELECTRONICS
Nokia, EEG Renew Joint Mobile Phone Recycling Program in UAE
Nokia and the Emirates Environmental Group (EEG), Dubai, United Arab Emirates, have announced the renewal of their joint collaboration to operate Nokia’s “Take Back” mobile phone recycling initiative in the United Arab Emirates.
“EEG and Nokia have been working together on the “Take Back” campaign since May 2009 and a total of 2,920 various brands of mobile phones have been collected as of December 2011,” says Habiba Al Marashi, EEG chairman. “As recycling figures indicate, the Middle East region is still in its infancy when it comes to responsible recycling of mobile phones. This joint collaboration with an environmentally friendly brand such as Nokia, assures the direct reach of both a recycling channel as well as dedicated awareness campaigns for the society.”
Al Marashi says EEG will ramp up the campaign this year in its member schools and universities to engage students’ active participation in green environmental initiatives.
Ulrike Vott, Nokia regional sustainability manager, notes, “We aim to contribute to the long-term creation of a recycling society. This initiative will offer a channel for secure, protected and responsible mobile phone recycling. In addition, the initiative will educate the next generation on the importance of commitment to environmental actions every day.”
> SCRAP RECYCLING
EU Nonferrous Scrap Dealers Report Sharp Drop in Orders
During the annual general assembly of the Brussels-based European Metal Trade and Recycling Federation (Eurometrec), held March 15, 2012, in Brussels, attendees discussed issues affecting nonferrous scrap metal recyclers.
According to Eurometrec, discussions surrounded current market conditions. Attendees said the sovereign debt crisis in the Euro zone is continuing to have an adverse effect on the EU’s general economic well-being and the confidence of Europeans. In this uncertain environment there have also been negative consequences for the order books of an EU manufacturing sector already confronted by the issue of overcapacity.
As a result, the EU’s scrap collection and processing sector has witnessed a significant reduction in orders for its secondary raw materials from mills and foundries in the EU. Scrap metal prices have weakened as a consequence, which are working to provide a disincentive to collect and process scrap due to unattractive margins.
According to Eurometrec, the volume of manufacturing scrap available in the EU has declined significantly in light of production cutbacks triggered by reduced demand for finished products. At the same time, there has been no evidence of a shortage of obsolete scrap because of the efforts of recyclers to increase their collection rates.
> KERBSIDE
City of Edinburgh Extends Palm Recycling Contract
Palm Recycling, a U.K.-based recycling firm, has received a one-year extension to the kerbside recycling service it provides to the city of Edinburgh, Scotland. The city council has extended the company’s contract through 2013.
Last year Palm Recycling was awarded an interim contract to provide additional kerbside recycling services to 135,000 homes in the city. The company also added plastic bottles and batteries to the list of items it collected, which included paper, cardboard, glass, cans and textiles. The additional commodities are hoped to increase the city’s recycling rate toward its goal of 75% by 2020.
The contract extension ensures a continuance of the additional material collections, which last year helped reduce the city’s landfilling costs, Palm Recycling says.
Palm Recycling says its involvement has made it easier for residents to recycle more materials and reduce the levels of household garbage. The company has worked with the Edinburgh City Council for more than 15 years and introduced a source-segregated kerbside recycling scheme in 2005.
Ross Johnstone, business manager for Palm Recycling, observes that the plan “sets out a vision for a zero-waste society where all waste is considered a valuable resource.”
> PAPER
SAICA Acquires Houghton Waste Paper
The Spanish multinational paper and packaging manufacturer SAICA has acquired Houghton’s Waste Paper Ltd., a Manchester, U.K., recycling company, which has more than 35 years of experience in the recycling sector.
According to SAICA, the acquisition is a continuation of the expansion of SAICA Natur’s business in the U.K. The company acquired two other U.K. paper recycling firms—Cutts Recycling and Stirling Fibre Group in 2011.
SAICA says the acquisition is likely to add about 25,000 metric tons of recovered fibre to its paper network collection. SAICA estimates that it presently handles around 425,000 metric tons of recovered fibre via its U.K. collection arm.
The new facility will help supply SAICA Paper’s recycled paperboard mill in Partington, U.K., which SAICA began operating in early 2012.
In a statement following the acquisition, Simon Dymoke, managing director of SAICA Natur, says, “I am pleased to see the continuation of SAICA Natur’s expansion. The acquisition of Houghton’s Waste Paper Ltd. will provide our PM11 project in Partington with a local supply of raw material, which helps us in our aim to cut carbon emissions across the SAICA Group.
More information is available at www.houghtons-wp.co.uk and www. saica.co.za.
> METALS
Scrap Metal Imports to China Slump
According to a report by China Daily, the growth rate for the value of imports and exports in China’s nonferrous metals industry dropped by 20.5% during the first two months of 2012 compared with the same time last year.
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The report says the drop brought the total value of trade in that industry to a level of €19.08 billion (US$24.71 billion) for the period, which was viewed as a bearish economic sign.
Furthermore, statistics provided by the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association indicate that the value of the country’s imports and exports was only 8.7% higher in January and February than the same time last year. The comparable growth figure for 2011 was 30%.
China Daily reports that Jia Mingxing, secretary-general of the association, said that the decrease was the result of declines in domestic output and overseas demand and an increase in the number of trade disputes in the industry.
He estimated that domestic demand for nonferrous metals and production of those metals in China will increase steadily this year but that the value of imports and exports of the materials will rise at a slower rate.
“The world’s economic recovery remains weak, which will greatly influence the nonferrous metals industry this year,” Chen Quanxun, chairman of the association, told China Daily. “The competition in the industry in the international market is getting fierce while new emerging economies are developing rapidly.”
China’s total imports and exports of nonferrous metal in 2011 came to more than $160 billion, showing a 28% growth rate year-on-year. According to the China Daily, China increased its nonferrous production by 10% in 2011.
> PAPER
Recycling UK Acquires Oswestry Waste Paper
Nantwich, U.K.-based Recycling UK Ltd. has acquired Oswestry Waste Paper Ltd., headquartered in Shropshire, U.K. Oswestry collects and recycles more than 30,000 metric tons per year of recovered fibre, plastic and other recyclables. In addition to a facility in Shropshire, Oswestry operates facilities in Cheshire, North and Mid Wales and The West Midlands.
Recycling UK, which started in 1998 as Fibre Recycling UK Ltd., sold more than 250,000 tonnes of recyclables in 2011. The company changed its name to Recycling UK Ltd. in 2005.
In announcing the acquisition, Neil Clarke, Recycling UK’s managing director, says, “Although we are traditionally a trading company, in recent years we have seen a large growth in the source materials that we handle and we have tried to feed such into processors that we buy from throughout the U.K. and Ireland.”
> METALS
WTSA Proposes Additional Rate Increase
The Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (WTSA), Oakland, U.S., has called for additional rate increases to dry and selected refrigerated commodities. The WTSA says the adjustment is part of a comprehensive rate restoration effort it is attempting to accomplish this year.
The adjustments, scheduled to take effect May 15, will raise dry commodity rates by $50 per 40-foot container (FEU) from the California ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Oakland, and by $100 per FEU for all other cargo, moving via all-water or intermodal service from Pacific Northwest ports, inland U.S. points and from the U.S. East and Gulf Coasts.
In a statement, Brian Conrad, WTSA executive administrator, stresses that successive rate adjustments taken in recent months have been modest and aimed at incrementally restoring rates after a period of significant erosion.
Conrad adds that the diverse nature of westbound traffic makes it necessary to adopt multiple increases for cargo moving under contract throughout the year.
WTSA is a voluntary discussion and research forum of 10 ocean and intermodal container shipping lines serving the trade from ports and inland points in the U.S. to destinations throughout Asia.
More information is available at www.wtsacarriers.org.
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