After an investigative report revealed that recyclable milk cartons from Iceland were being shipped to a cement factory in Europe to be incinerated, the Icelandic Recycling Fund and SORPA have decided to send Tetra Pak cartons to Fiskeby Board in Sweden for proper recycling. An independent party will also be appointed to monitor the implementation to ensure adequate recycling.
Shipped to Sweden
As reported Monday, an investigative report by Heimildin found that SORPA – the municipal association for waste management – was shipping recyclable milk cartons to a cement factory in Europe to be incinerated.
After the story broke, the Icelandic Recycling Fund and Sorpa released a public statement saying that they would modify protocols; Tetra Pak cartons would henceforth be sent to the company Fiskeby Board in Sweden to ensure that recycling was carried out correctly and would deliver the expected results.
“The Recycling Fund and SORPA jointly intend to obtain assurance that the recycling party that will from now on receive containers from SORPA will deliver the expected results,” the statement reads. The statement further notes that the decision had been taken following the discovery that Smurfit Kappa, SORPA’s paper recycling partner, could not recycle cartons in its processing plants.
A meeting with Guðlaugur Þór
The press release also notes that representatives from the Icelandic Recycling Fund and SORPA had met with Guðlaug Þór Þórðarson, Minister of the Environment, Energy and Climate, yesterday. The upshot of the meeting was that the Icelandic Recycling Fund and SORPA would appoint an independent party to monitor the implementation and confirm adequate recycling.
“The Recycling Fund has required other service providers, Terra and Íslenska gámafélagið, who have collected the milk cartons for recycling, for confirmation that adequate recycling has taken place abroad. Information is expected to arrive in the coming days.”
The press release concludes by stating that the Icelandic Recycling Fund had recently revised its terms and conditions vis-à-vis the fund’s service providers to ensure traceability and knowledge of the final disposal of the waste covered by the fund.
