China Adds Ferrous and Nonferrous Scrap Grades to Restricted List

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The announcement by Chinese Ministry of Ecology and Environment indicates that additional scrap grades are being added to restricted list for imports effective July 1, 2019. This includes six grades of steel scrap and one each of aluminum and copper. The above scrap grades will be moved from the list of “Catalogue of Solid Waste Not Restricted to Import as Raw Materials” to the list “Catalogue of Solid Waste Restricted to Import as Raw Materials”.

The below table provides the details of the eight scrap grades.

Earlier in April 2018, the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) had warned that China is likely to impose import restrictions on 32 types of recyclable materials, as part of standardizing the administration and management of solid waste imports and controlling environmental pollution. 16 of these grades including waste electrical appliances, waste ships, baled cars, smelt slag, plastic waste from industrial sources, etc. were affected effective 31^st December, 2018. BIR had said that imports of additional 16 scrap types including stainless steel scrap, titanium waste and scrap, wood waste, etc. would be impacted on or before end of 2019.

Incidentally, China plans to impose outright ban on imports of all solid wastes by end of 2020.