Ministry of Environment: "Recovery in Waste Clothing Exports... Promoting Quality Improvement in Apartment Separate Collection"

Recovery in Plastic Recycled Material Exports... Continued Impact of Oil Price Decline
Distribution of Proper Separation and Disposal Guide... Improvement of Recyclable Quality
Over 6,000 Resource Management Assistants to Be Deployed On-Site from the 8th of Next Month

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of Environment announced on the 27th that the prices of recycled polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) raw materials have slightly increased compared to the same period last year over the past 21 days since the 1st, but the price of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) continues to decline.

In the case of waste clothing, exports to Southeast Asia and other regions have increased, and as of the end of July, the export volume is showing levels similar to last year, indicating a gradual market recovery.

According to the Ministry of Environment, among plastic recycled raw materials, the selling prices of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) slightly increased as of the third week of August, but PET prices have continued to decline since June.

Regarding the distribution volume of plastic recycled raw materials, domestic sales slowed somewhat in August due to heavy rains and the industry's summer vacation. However, exports appear to have recovered to levels exceeding last year as cross-border export-import procedures, delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of this year, resumed.

Despite the recovery in sales volume including exports, the reason recycled raw material prices have not recovered is believed to be due to the decline in international oil prices.

Waste clothing exports recovered to last year's levels as of the end of July, with exports to major export countries showing significant recovery compared to April this year.

Accordingly, the waste clothing export stockpiling support project, which the Ministry of Environment has been promoting since the 14th of last month with a support target of 9,575 tons, has received a total of 1,032 tons, but continuous shipments have reduced the current stock to 544 tons.

The Ministry of Environment plans to distribute the "Guide to Proper Separation and Disposal Methods" to nationwide apartment complexes through local governments by the end of this month to improve the profitability of collection and sorting companies by reducing residual waste and to enhance the quality of recyclables.

The guide introduces items that are easily mistaken as recyclables but are difficult to recycle, instructing that such items be disposed of in volume-based waste bags, and provides guidance on often overlooked separation and disposal methods to prevent recyclable items from being discarded as residual waste, thereby improving the quality of recyclables.

There have been frequent cases where foreign substances such as tape and stickers were not removed from recyclable items like waste paper, or non-recyclable items were mixed in and disposed of, lowering sorting efficiency and burdening sorting companies.

The Ministry of Environment expects that the distribution of this guide will improve the quality of recyclable resources at the collection stage and partially alleviate the burden on sorting companies whose profitability has deteriorated due to the impact of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment plans to soon complete the hiring contracts and training for 6,021 recruits of the first phase of resource management assistants recruited through the third supplementary budget and will deploy them to the field starting from the 8th of next month.

The first phase of resource management assistants will conduct proper separation and disposal promotion and campaign activities along with the distribution of this separation and disposal guide. The Ministry of Environment will conduct recruitment for the second phase of resource management assistants from the 28th of this month to the 11th of next month to deploy additional personnel.

Lee Young-gi, Director of the Resource Circulation Policy Division at the Ministry of Environment, said, "We will spare no effort in promotion and support so that the proper recyclables separation and disposal guide, effectively linked with projects such as the resource management assistant program, can help resolve the difficulties of collection and sorting industries through the public's efforts in separation and disposal."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.