Plastics industry and recycling groups respond to UK PM's recycling comments

"People shouldn't recycle plastic, they should Reduce the consumption of plastic products
.
" This triggered a strong response from British plastic recyclers and related industries
.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "Reusing plastic does not start to solve the problem of plastic pollution, recycling is not a means to alleviate the climate crisis
.
You can only recycle plastic a few times, really
.
What you have to do to stop plastic production
.
"

Tanya Steele, chief executive of WWF's UK office, who was also present at the event, chimed in, "We have to use less and of course we have to reuse, and I think we need to do a little bit of recycling and build some systems for that
.
"

But Johnson thinks it's a "mistake" that society can recycle to solve the problem
.
And added: "It's not going to work
.
"

The plastics industry and recycling groups responded quickly
.

Philip Law, director-general of the British Plastics Federation, said in a statement that improving recycling within the UK is part of the government's strategy to tackle plastic waste and recycle plastic, reduce carbon emissions and preserve valuable materials for use in for functional use
.
"We are delighted that BP's recycling roadmap was endorsed by a government minister earlier this year
.
" He added that the BPF wants the government to invest in the UK's future recycling infrastructure so that recycling can be done within the UK by 2030 more plastic
.

He said: “This will create jobs, reduce the use of fossil fuels, make a circular economy a reality and enable the government to meet its goal of eliminating avoidable plastic waste by 2042.
The
plastics industry employs 180,000 people, including recyclers.
, they should be proud of the important role they play in enabling an innovative, low-carbon, modern economy
.
"

Recoup, a recycling charity, pointed to the discrepancy between the Prime Minister's rhetoric and the policy measures the government was implementing, noting that "when the government itself taxes packaging that does not contain 30% recycled content, it relies heavily on citizens to do the right thing and Recycling, this remark by the Prime Minister will lead to an even greater challenge of collecting enough plastic from households to recycle to meet demand
.
"

Recoup works with members from across the plastic recycling value chain to drive plastic recycling in the UK
.
Stuart Foster, chief executive of Recoup, said: "The UK has achieved a lot in increasing recycling capture rates and the industry continues to invest in UK infrastructure and recycling capacity
.
"

In contrast, the PCEP polyolefin circular economy platform responded less cautiously
.

The group put it bluntly: "It's very disappointing to hear Prime Minister Boris Johnson speak to young children who really want to do their part to save the planet's future, especially as much of what he said was fundamentally fundamental.
Not really
.
Also, there is simply no solution to stopping the production of plastics, as polyolefins are essential and valuable materials used in a variety of industries and applications
.
”

"Polyolefins protect your food, they bring water safely into your home, they keep power cables safe within your walls, they are your kitchen tools, they even dress you, they are also a way to bring products to the store.
Reusable boxes, they equip scientific laboratories, produce medicines and form protective clothing to protect you from disease, they make toys for entertaining and teaching young children and school equipment
," the organization emphasized
.

The challenge, PCEP continued, is not to recycle plastic, but to have the national infrastructure to do it efficiently
.

“Recycling technologies already exist
.
The problem in the UK is that the government has not invested in infrastructure to enable plastics to be collected, recycled and reused on a sufficient scale,
” he noted
.

The group said the Prime Minister's suggestion that plastic should be made from some non-fossil resources was good, but it was not the answer to plastic waste
.
In its conclusion, the group said the solution is for governments to ensure that there are simple and effective collection systems in place so that industry can sort, recycle and reuse all these valuable materials, and that politicians encourage and engage consumers in these collection systems.
Playing a role is also crucial
.