— By Plasteurope.com correspondent — 

Brussels-based waste management group Chemical Recycling Europe (CRE, www.chemicalrecyclingeurope.eu) has announced the publication of a framework that it says will help a wide range of stakeholders assess the environmental performance of chemical recycling processes.

Working with US consultancy and software provider Sphera (Chicago, Illinois; www.sphera.com), CRE said the framework was designed to “evaluate key environmental indicators such as greenhouse gas emissions, energy demand, and resource efficiency”.

The 73-page guide “provides methodological clarity and practical recommendations tailored to the specificities of chemical recycling, contributing to greater consistency in environmental reporting and comparability across technologies”, it added.

The document highlights that, of the more than 30 mn t of post-consumer waste plastics generated in 2022, less than 0.2 mn t was chemically recycled – a situation that needs to change.

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“While many life cycle assessments (LCAs) have been performed of chemical recycling technologies to better understand their environmental performance, there is a need for a standard set of guidelines to ensure that LCAs provide consistent and meaningful results that can be used to improve decision-making,” the group said.

Describing the publication of the framework as a “milestone”, CRE said it marked “a key step in advancing transparent and science-based assessment methodologies for chemical recycling technologies”.

The waste management group added that the LCA Guideline is “designed to support stakeholders across the plastics value chain in accurately assessing the environmental performance of chemical recycling processes.”