Used Beverage Cartons: Experts discuss ways to manage waste

The All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG) in partnership with United Nations Center for Regional Development (UNCRD), Action Alliance for Recycling Beverage Cartons (AARC) and 3R Waste Foundation organised a webinar titled “The Road to Beverage Cartons Recyclability- Pre-event of UNCRD Japan’s 11th 3R & Circular Economy Forum 2021” on 1st February, 2022.

The webinar addressed the issue of consumed beverage cartons as a significant portion of the waste generated worldwide. The participants discussed the magnitude of the problem, possible ways of reducing the waste generation including reuse, recycling and best practices in the industry. The introductory note was given by Dr Kulwant Singh, CEO, 3R Waste Foundation, who was also the moderator of the session. He enlisted goals of the webinar – disseminating information among different target groups on beverage carton recycling, enhancing capacity of policymakers, to mend any misconception regarding the recycling of used beverage cartons (UBC), assessing regulatory policies which affect recycling of UBCs, challenges faced by stakeholders and improving the recyclability quotient
of UBCs.
The first speaker, NB Maazumdar, an international waste expert, specialising in municipal waste, discussed about ‘Recycling Beverage Carton: Policy and regulated issues’. Discussing the composition of the tetra pack – 75 per cent long fiber paper, 21 per cent plastics and 4 per cent Aluminum, he said the strength of the carton is derived from the long fiber which gets shortened during the recycling process.
Therefore, UBCs can’t be re-used to store food items because of contamination. One solution is limiting the use of recycled material, with strict quality control since recycled cartons may contain harmful chemicals. The current policy framework divides waste into three categories – biodegradable, non-biodegradable and domestic hazardous; there is no separate category for UBCs. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Government of India has prepared National Resource Efficiency Policy 2019, which focuses on UBCs as a separate category of waste. What makes this policy effective, is the creation of a dedicated institution National Resource Efficiency Authority (NREA) to provide regulations, and a National Resource Efficiency Board (NREAB) to implement them.
Dr Anupam Khajuria, UNCRD discussed ‘Opportunities for Recyclability and Circular Economy’. In the waste hierarchy, priority should be given to minimisation, reuse, and recycling; disposal should be the last resort. We can move towards circular economy and sustainable development goals (SDGs) through the 3R approach, that is, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. She stresses the need to recycle, as it protects ecosystems and wildlife, conserves natural resources, saves energy and reduces carbon emission, thereby mitigating climate change. She then goes on to explain the concept of circular economy which is an ‘upstream’ solution (at the source), which involves reducing use of raw materials, reuse, repair, etc. while recycling is an ‘end-of-pipe’ solution. The implementation of a circular economy is not possible without the use of technology. The four technological needs are interactive platforms like apps, websites and databases, production to support design for circularity like repairability and disassembly, efficient collection, sorting through sensors and apps and efficient material processing using AI. AI can be used to collect data efficiently, analyse it and recommend action based on algorithms. Apart from circular economy, Bio Economy and Green economy would also help achieve sustainability.
Sumit Jugran discussed about how Tetra Pak, the biggest company which creates beverage cartons, has established a recycling ecosystem for UBCs. Used cartons are not waste, rather a valuable raw material for new products. There are two main recycling processes used in India. One is ‘Pulping’ wherein the paper component of the tetra pack can be used to create other paper-based products like stationery.
Aluminum components can be used to make roof sheets which reduce the temperature of a building. Polymer and aluminum can be used to make pellets which can further be used for making toys, etc.
The second process is ‘Full Carton’ wherein tetra packs are compressed thermally and turned into boards. They created a recycle ecosystem by investing in partnerships with environmental NGOs and waste collectors. According to a survey conducted by The Energy and Resource Institute in 20 cities, nearly half of all the paper cartons are recycled by virtue of Tetra Pak’s efforts during the last 18 years.
Ashish Shah, MD and CEO, Deluxe Recycling Pvt Ltd. discussed how the company recycles pre and post consumption multi-layered packages into various products like boards, doors and pellets.
Dr KD Bhardwaj spoke about need to incentivise producers and business owners to take responsibility for recycling UBCs. This is possible through Extended Consumer responsibility (EPR) which is a policy option to make the producers and brand owners responsible for disposal of waste generated post consumption. So far, urban local bodies have been handling consumer waste unsuccessfully. The main issue, according to him, is that waste isn’t being collected. There are multiple stakeholders in the EPR system, like the Center for Pollution Control Board, recyclers, retailers, etc., who are working independently. In order to be effective, all of them need to come together on one platform including the community and ensure transparency of working.
Ravi Singh Beniwal, Environment Planner, Waste to Wealth Mission, GoI presented on ‘Beverage Carton Recyclability: Waste to Wealth Perspective’. Talking about the steps of ‘segregation’ and ‘processing’ in the recycling process, he discussed various technologies. Some of the recycling options for UBCs are making construction materials, pyrolysis (generation of gas, oil and char) and recovery of paper fibers through pulping, while recycling options for PolyAl residuals are mechanical, chemical and thermal. Beniwal then shed light on the ‘Waste to Wealth’ mission which is one of the nine scientific missions of the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology & Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC) and will maintain a repository of the best waste technologies.
Sahithi Snigdha, a social entrepreneur, spoke on ‘Challenges in Collection of Used Beverage Cartons for Recycling’. She introduced the work done by Waste Ventures and the role of social enterprises in UBC recovery and recycling. They connect the informal sector to the formal part of the supply chain, by enabling source segregation. They partner with waste pickers and incentivise them to collect waste and also partner with brands with EPR requirements. She stressed the importance of waste pickers, who are mostly neglected, in this entire value chain.
The last speaker in the session was Dheeraj Kumar, Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Karnal (Haryana). He presented on ‘Role of Urban Local Bodies in facilitating collection of Used Beverage Cartons for Recycling’. His presentation encapsulated some of the key points mentioned in earlier presentations. He proposed an action plan for local bodies to manage UBCs, which involves segregation at source (separate bins for UBCs), effective collection, cost-effective recycling and collaborating with start-ups in
the sector.
The session concluded with a Q&A session. Dr Kulwant Singh gave the closing remarks, thanking all the participants .
The panel comprised of Dr NB Mazumdar, Chairman International Academy of Environmental Sanitation and Public Health (IAESPH); Dr Anupam Khajuria, Researcher United Nations Center for Regional Development (UNCRD) Japan; Sumit Jugran, Sustainability Manager, Tetrapak for South Asia Markets; K D Bhardwaj – Regional Director National Productivity Council, Government of India; Ashish Shah, MD and CEO of Deluxe Recycling Pvt Ltd; Ravi Singh Beniwal, Environment Planner, Waste to Wealth Mission, GoI; Sahithi Snigdha Bhupathiraju – COO and Director, Waste Ventures India; Dr Praveen Kumar, CEO AARC project; and Dheeraj Kumar, Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Karnal.