Relatively complete industrial chains formed for China's renewable resources

China's renewable resources industry has developed a relatively complete and well-defined structure of industrial chains, said a report released by the China National Resources Recycling Association (CRRA) on Friday.

Focusing on the development of green supply chains for recycled resources, the report pointed out that the overall competitiveness of the industry still needs to be strengthened.

It also said that the country's renewable resources industry has flourished based on the previous efforts in the recovery and utilization of waste materials, which has basically formed an integrated industrial system including collection, classification, sorting, resource processing, reuse, and sales, with the scale of the industry continually expanding.

In 2023, the total recovery of ten types of recycled resources in China, including waste steel, discarded electrical and electronic products and waste batteries, reached approximately 376 million tons, an increase of 1.5 percent over 2022.

Among these, waste steel continues to be the most recovered resource, accounting for over 60 percent of the total renewable resources. The recovery of scrapped motor vehicles has seen the most notable increase, with a year-on-year growth of 29.2 percent.

With the introduction of supporting policies for the recycled resources industry and the application of digital technologies, traditional high-value-added renewable resources have essentially established a complete industrial chain for recycling and re-utilization.

"The recycling and utilization of renewable resources is an important part of a low-carbon and green circular economy. Through the recovery, reuse, and processing of waste materials, it is able to achieve resource recycling, reduce the extraction and processing of primary resources, and consequently lower carbon emissions. For low-value-added renewable resources, there is an urgent need to establish a stable and reliable recycling and utilization system and model to promote effective resource circulation," said Xu Junxiang, president of the CRRA.

Relatively complete industrial chains formed for China's renewable resources

The European Union on Wednesday approved a new round of sanctions against Iran, targeting 19 individuals and entities.

The sanctions were approved by EU ambassadors earlier that day, according to a social media post by Kaja Kallas, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and European Commission Vice-President.

In a strongly worded statement on Wednesday, Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesman for Iranian Foreign Ministry slammed the punitive measures.

He said that the EU is attempting to penalize Iran for resisting "brutal and unlawful aggression of the United States and the Israeli regime."

At the same time, Baghaei added, the EU is arming and supporting the U.S. and Israel and providing them with the means to act.

EU approves new sanctions on Iran