Recently, the Beijing Society for Environmental and Resource Law hosted an expert symposium on the national standard for recycled pulp. Attendees thoroughly examined issues with the current standard and released the Beijing Consensus, calling for stricter standards and rigorous oversight to drive the industry toward green, safe, and high-quality development.
Core Issue: Dry Process Becomes "Disguised Foreign Waste" Entry Point
The meeting focused on imported recycled pulp produced using the "dry process." Experts pointed out that the dry process relies solely on mechanical pulping and sorting, failing to effectively separate contaminants such as plastics, adhesives, heavy metals, and pathogens from waste paper raw materials. Professor Jin Yongcan of Nanjing Forestry University emphasized that this is an "immature process" whose products often exceed heavy metal limits. Shi Huixiang, Vice Dean of Zhejiang University, warned that this "contaminant-laden" dry pulping essentially "repackages" foreign solid waste for import. Pollutants accumulate through domestic circulation, severely hindering the industry's green transition.
Standard Shortcomings: Current National Standards Feature Low Thresholds and Weak Constraints
The core controversy centers on the recommended national standard implemented in November 2023. Primarily tailored for domestic scenarios, this standard lacks explicit mandatory limits on critical indicators for imported products-such as biosafety and microbial content-allowing substandard raw materials to enter easily and posing challenges for customs oversight.
Industry Consensus: Strengthen Defenses and Advance Standard Upgrades
To address these risks, the Beijing Consensus explicitly proposes:
Enforce Rigorous Standards: Imported recycled pulp must meet mandatory requirements including absence of foreign odors, impurities ≤0.50%, and no radioactive or hazardous waste.
Revise National Standards: Recommend explicitly labeling production methods (dry/wet processes) during standard revisions and raising quality metrics like strength to provide grounds for strict oversight of substandard products.
Resolutely Plug Loopholes: Severely crack down on illegal imports of "foreign waste" disguised as "recycled pulp," establishing national standards as an inviolable red line.
Regulatory Actions and Industry Outlook
Relevant ministries have responded swiftly: In October, the General Administration of Customs issued a notice requiring import declarations for recycled pulp to specify production methods (dry/wet). Subsequently, six departments jointly released guidelines to further standardize oversight. Concurrently, the revision plan for the national standard on recycled pulp was approved by late October.
Data indicates that dry-ground pulp imports accounted for approximately 3.8% of total domestic pulp supply in 2024. Experts assert that with expanding domestic chemical pulp capacity and the maturation of non-wood pulp alternatives like bamboo fiber and straw pulp, ample high-quality fiber sources can fully replace substandard dry-ground pulp, underpinning the industry's high-quality development.
