The environmental association criticises the Portuguese model for paying the European Union a sum annually for the amount of non-recycled plastic packaging waste.

Each member state delivers €800 for each ton of non-recycled waste and Portugal will disburse more than €200 million next year, according to the State Budget proposal report for 2025 (OE2025).

For the environmental association, this is an “unacceptable practice”, because it will be “all citizens and companies who will pay for the unsustainability of the current packaging model”, instead of being paid only by those who place them on the market.

Furthermore, adds Zero, this obligation removes resources from the OE that are essential for investing, for example, in the area of ​​waste, “where Portugal faces very significant challenges in achieving the community goals to which it is obliged”.

The measure by the European Commission (EC) also “cancels the signal effect to the market that was intended with this measure, which aimed to reduce the amount of packaging waste and promote Europe’s transition to a circular economy”, adds the association in a statement.