The Ministry of Energy Transition breaks its silence and clarifies the issue of importing waste from European countries

Agadir24

The Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development broke its silence regarding the import of more than 2.5 million tons of household waste and rubber tires from European countries.

In this context, the Ministry confirmed that the import of non-hazardous waste is framed by the provisions of the UN Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Waste and is regulated in accordance with the applicable legislative and regulatory texts.

The ministry explained, in a statement, that the import of non-hazardous waste is governed by the provisions of the UN Basel Convention on the Transboundary Movement of Waste, which Morocco signed and ratified and published in the Official Gazette No. 4892 dated April 19, 2001, pursuant to Royal Decree No. 1-96-92 and codified in accordance with the legislative and regulatory texts in force, in particular Law No. 00-28 on waste management and disposal, as well as its implementing texts and Decree No. 2-17-587 on determining the conditions and methods for importing, exporting and transiting waste by submitting a file containing a set of documents specified by this decree.

The same source considered that what was recently published on this subject falls within the scope of misleading and incorrect data, especially the comments and criticisms that were circulated regarding the administrative and governmental bodies supervising the management of the energy and environment sectors.

The statement added that the number of licenses granted to companies importing non-hazardous waste for energy or industrial valuation has reached 416 licenses since 2016 to date, noting that granting licenses to import non-hazardous waste is subject to a precise and strict administrative procedure, which requires the submission of physical and chemical analysis documents and technical cards to identify the imported waste and its source, as well as obtaining the opinion of the ministries concerned with the field of waste use that is the subject of the license application.

The same source stressed that Morocco focuses on importing from European countries that are characterised by high quality waste sorting and treatment systems and methods, which ensures obtaining a product that does not have a harmful effect on the environment or the public health of citizens, noting that Morocco is considered among the countries that only receive a small percentage of the share of imported waste (non-hazardous waste) compared to other countries classified as similar economies.

The same source concluded that the exploitation and recycling of non-hazardous waste components requires the provision of devices supported by advanced technologies to monitor and control gas emissions resulting from the combustion process, which enables the preservation of air quality and ensures that the environment and public health are not harmed.

The ministry added that the international trade in non-hazardous waste is subject to strong competition between specialized international companies and other players in this sector, especially with the growing development in the field of recycling and reusing waste within the framework of what is known as the green economy and the circular economy, noting that the tangible evidence of this is that the global trade in non-hazardous waste has achieved significant transaction figures and also contributes to creating job opportunities on a steady basis in addition to the contribution of the aforementioned activity to reducing the trade balance deficit.

On the other hand, the Ministry highlighted that Morocco is among the countries that benefit from this international market by importing plastic and iron waste and shredded rubber tires in order to recycle them and use them as a raw or complementary material in the industrial and energy fields (such as the manufacture of pipes for liquid purification, drip irrigation pipes, plastic boxes, etc., in addition to using shredded tires as an effective material for producing alternative energy in cement factory kilns).

At the economic and social level, the same source indicated that the import, recycling and valorization of non-hazardous waste is one of the concerns of a new generation of economic actors, as it is a profitable, inexpensive and environmentally friendly process, and it also strengthens the green economy and the circular economy in the Kingdom. He pointed out, in this context, that waste valorization chains concern 13 areas, and have great potential to create added value for the national economy, such as improving the trade balance and providing more than 9,500 direct and indirect jobs in the iron industries, with a view to creating no less than 60,000 job opportunities by 2030.

The ministry stated that recycling waste and using shredded rubber tires contributes to reducing the energy bill by reducing the amount of hard currency needed to import fuel by more than $20 per ton of fossil fuel, and in reducing the emission of some air pollutants and greenhouse gases, as recycling waste contributes to maintaining air quality compared to using fossil energy due to the biomass content.

Environmental activists had called on the Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali, to reverse the decision to license the import of more than two and a half million tons of household waste and rubber tires from European countries, given the negative effects of this step.

These activists expressed their rejection of Minister Benali’s decision, warning of its dire consequences on the environment, citizens’ health, air pollution, and emissions of toxic gases and greenhouse gases, which are the basis of climate change, not to mention radioactive waste.

The discussion on this topic was not limited to environmental activists, but extended to include parliamentarians, some of whom rushed to question Minister Leila Benali and demand that she attend the discussion of the topic in the relevant parliamentary committee.

This, called on the movement team in the House of Representatives to interact with the repercussions of Minister Benali’s decision and clarify the consequences of her authorization to import waste on the environment and health, considering that the import of more than 2 and a half million tons of household waste and rubber tires from European countries raises questions about the circumstances of this decision and its economic feasibility, especially since the import of this waste has unmistakable consequences on the environment and health.