China to ban recovered plastic and paper imports

China notified the World Trade Organization (WTO) on 18 July that it would stop accepting shipments of 24 types of plastic, paper and metal recyclables, including PET, PVC, polyethylene, polystyrene and other scrap polymers.
For nearly 3 decades, China has been the world's biggest importer of waste. Each year, 8 million tons of foreign waste is imported into China to be reused as raw materials for new products. A total of 87% of Europe's waste plastic, for example, ends up in China.
Globally, 56% of waste plastic is exported to China, according to a report by the International Solid Waste Association (News Item website Chinese government, 11 August 2017).
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Click here for the notification document (68 kB).
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