War on waste: how the EU is tackling illegal shipments to developing countries

euronews (in English)

Every year Europe exports millions of tonnes of waste to developing countries, and not all of it legally. Cyril Fourneris explores EU efforts to combat the illicit waste trade and initiatives to make better use of it in Europe.

Transcript

00:00Has your rubbish bag or old phone ended its journey on the other side of the world?

00:10Every year, Europe exports millions of tons of weight to developing countries.

00:14So what's the impact on the environment?

00:21In this highly lucrative business, it's estimated that a third of shipments are illegal.

00:27Organizations are making billions.

00:29It's essential not only to stop a container, but to identify the network behind it.

00:35The European Union has therefore decided to limit waste exports and encourage recycling

00:39across the EU.

00:41But is it that easy?

00:42That's what we're going to find out.

00:50To film this episode, we cross the Mediterranean to Tunisia.

00:59An infamous case of illicit household waste trafficking is well-remembered as the Italian

01:04waste affair.

01:25Houssem is the founder of an association promoting recycling in Tunis.

01:31He's one of the whistleblowers of the Tunisie Verte network, which has fought to have waste

01:35sent back to Europe.

02:08trafficking continues.

02:10This year, Italian customs seized another 82 tons of waste on route to Tunisia.

02:15This former member of parliament has been sounding the alarm for years.

02:41Waste management is a thorny issue in Tunisia.

02:44The country has launched a major modernization plan, but in practice, waste is often buried

02:49unsorted in huge landfill sites.

02:52Some are controlled, others are illegal, like this one in the southern suburbs of the capital.

02:58A

03:23new European regulation has just come into force.

03:27Countries that are not OECD members, such as Tunisia, will have to prove that they have

03:32the capacity to treat waste sustainably in order to receive it.

03:36The export of plastic waste outside the EU will be banned.

03:45The regulation also includes new tools to combat these eco-mafias.

03:50We head back to Europe to find out more.

04:01More than a million containers pass through these docks every year.

04:04Some of this waste is exported under false customs declarations.

04:10Officers stopped this container before it left for Thailand.

04:14It's full of burnt rubber.

04:29Italian customs participate in a new European rapid alert system.

04:59Which is activated when they identify suspicious cargo.

05:02It can be scanned and inspected.

05:06Another example is this container, supposedly carrying new equipment to Malaysia.

05:11But these old TV decoders intrigue the customs officers.

05:15They are in reality e-waste.

05:40The European Union has also strengthened the law on environmental crime, with tougher

05:44penalties and an extended list of offences.

05:47OLAF, the European Anti-Fraud Office, plays a key role in coordinating investigations.

05:53In particular for environmental cases, it's essential to put together not only customs

05:58authorities that are our natural counterpart, but also environmental authorities.

06:03So we try to build a bridge between EU from one side and the country of destination, and

06:08then investigate in the country of export, if there is a network behind, and work in

06:14order to dismantle the network.

06:17It shouldn't be forgotten that waste is often a precious resource.

06:21The new rules encourage the transfer and recovery of waste within the EU.

06:26We left Italy for northern France.

06:32So what are the challenges and opportunities for better waste management?

06:36Let's ask one of the European recycling leaders.

06:39This new plant recycles old electronic cables.

06:43It has a capacity of 20,000 tonnes a year, the equivalent of two Eiffel Towers.

06:56Copper was listed by the EU as a critical material to boost the electrification of industry

07:01and economic output.

07:02The group received funds from the French recovery plan to relocate this activity.

07:18The circular economy is a Green Deal priority, but less than 12% of the materials consumed

07:23in the EU today come from recycling.

07:31We have ambitious recycling goals, to have incentives for industrialists to consume

07:36recycled materials.

07:37And today it is still very insufficient.

07:39We must consume and develop the incorporation of recycled materials in the new products

07:43that we consume on the European territory.

07:49This is the end of this episode.

07:50We will meet again next month.

07:52We will talk about the fight against greenwashing.

07:54See you soon.

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