The British Metals Recycling Association has launched Agenda for Change, a policy document calling for government support for the development of the UK’s metals recycling sector. The announcement was made at the British House of Commons at a gathering of ministers, backbench MPs and industry leaders.
At the kick off, Michael Wright, president of the BMRA, stated that the BMRA will be campaigning to persuade government to support the growth and development of the UK’s metals recycling sector by reviewing regulation, enforcement, and capacity-building requirements.
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| BMRA chairman Michael Wright, environment minister Dan Norris and BMRA director general Ian Hetherington (l-r) launch BMRA’s new Agenda for Change |
Speaking at the launch, Environment Minister Dan Norris MP said: “As we try and move towards a World Without Waste, I have seen for myself the important role that metals recycling can play in protecting the environment and diverting materials from landfill. The launch of BMRA’s Agenda for Change is a valuable opportunity to hear from metals recyclers and fellow parliamentarians about how industry and Government can work together to strengthen that contribution and help the UK meet its producer responsibility targets.”
Commenting on Agenda for Change, BMRA president Michael Wright said: “Metals recyclers already contribute £5 billion a year to the UK’s balance of payments and are essential to the UK’s ability to hit EU recycling targets for End-of-Life vehicles, packaging, batteries and WEEE. We believe we can do a lot more, with the right policy and regulatory framework in place,” Wright added.
In Agenda for Change, BMRA sets out four key areas in which metal recyclers need government support if the sector is to increase the contribution it makes to the country’s economic and environmental ambitions. BMRA will be working with politicians and policymakers to develop proportionate and risk-based approaches to regulation; introduce consistent regulatory enforcement across the UK, and explore opportunities for increasing recycling capacity by addressing planning and land use issues, incentivizing investment in research and development of post-shredder technologies, and investigating the potential of Energy from Waste as a means of diverting commercial residual waste from landfill. BMRA will also be working to ensure the swift adoption of the reclassification of metals as secondary raw material, under the revised EU Waste Framework Directive.