The Interzero 2024 Environmental Conference is behind us - what was discussed in Sopot?

On 18-20 September, the Sheraton Hotel in Sopot hosted the The 11th edition of the Interzero Environmental Conference, which was held under the motto Pillars of circularity. The event brought together a wide range of environmental experts, sustainability and GOZ industry leaders and business representatives. Participants at this year's event had the opportunity to listen to dozens of interesting lectures and 2 debates discussing the threats and opportunities presented by the bail-in system and PPWR.

The agenda for this year's Interzero Environmental Conference was dominated by issues relating to the latest regulations that will reshape the environmental industry in the coming months and years. These include, of course deposit scheme, extended producer responsibility (ROP), the PPWR and non-financial ESG reporting.

As a recovery organisation and a leader in the environmental industry, we want to create as many opportunities as possible to discuss current issues and future challenges posed by the legislator. Our aim is to actively participate in shaping a new realitywhich will be governed by the principles of extended producer responsibility. Through events such as the Interzero Environmental Conference, we can drive the debate, give the floor to the most eminent experts and show the effects of new legislation from different, even rather non-obvious, perspectives. - says Agata Ryś, Member of the Management Board of Interzero.

In a similar vein was the lecture given by Paweł Lesiak, Interzero's Executive Vice President, in which he outlined his point of view on the changes that will take place in business and the environment as a result of running PPWR. He also mentioned Interzero's mission, which is to support and relieve the burden on businesses in meeting current and future environmental obligations, albeit those related to the product levy and the implementation of educational campaigns. It was an excellent introduction and also a starting point for the debate PPWR - how much will it cost us?which warmed up the experts and guests gathered at the Sheraton Sopot on the second day of the Conference. The PPWR regulation was also the subject of a lecture by Pavel Sosnowski, Board Agent for Environmental Regulation at Interzero. In his presentation PPWR, or new waste management solutions Interzero's expert detailed the effects that the replacement of the current Packaging Directive with the recently enacted PPWR will have.

As a break from the peri-legislative subject matter, there were talks on solutions, services and tools that bring the environmental industry into the 21st century. and support entrepreneurs in meeting their environmental obligations. In her presentation, Hanna Walczak, Standards Implementation Manager from GS1 Poland, introduced the database for the deposit system, and Marta Szymborska, Head Of Marketing Communications, PR & ESG from GS1 Poland, showed how to data and figures can drive sustainable development. During a talk by Lukasz Czarnowski, Digital Sales Cross Country Function Head Management at Interzero, we learned about the role of digitalisation in optimising waste management. One of the examples he mentioned of innovation in waste management was Interzero waste platform, i.e. intuitive online tool to simplify reporting, management of waste streams and facilitating control of waste management revenues and costs.

An extremely interesting speech, especially in the context of the keynote of the Pillars of the Environment Conference circularity was a presentation by Wiktoria Płocha, Sustainability Leader at IKEA Retail Sp. z o.o., who discussed where circularity actually begins and showed how our thinking about 'second-hand' items has changed over the years. Agnieszka Oleksyn-Wajda, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Development and Environment at Lazarski University, even described this change as a Zero Waste trend, echoed by, among others, the EU strategy for sustainable fashion.

The climax of the first day of the Interzero Environmental Conference was a discussion on the opportunities and threats to the economy from the imminent launch of the bail system. Moderated by journalist Monica Richardson The debate was attended by both business representatives: Dariusz Lizak, President of the National Chamber of Commerce "Bottling Industry", Paweł Sosnowski, Board Representative for Environmental Regulations from Interzero and Joanna Szubielska, Senior Manager for Quality Assurance and Health & Safety | Eurocash S.A., as well as representatives of the environmental protection industry: Joanna Leoniewska-Gogola, Deputy Director Sustainability Consulting Central Europe from Deloitte Advisory Sp. z o.o., Sp. K Maria Andrzejewska, Director General at UNEP/GRID-Warszawa.

Interzero's signature events have always provided a wealth of knowledge and the opportunity for heated discussions among top experts. In this context I am very pleased with the very high attendance and the presence of specialists from different fields to join the discussion and share their thoughts with a wider audience. I was also positively surprised by the level of substance of both debates - while it might seem that almost everything has been said about the bail system and PPWR, the our guests demonstrated that the environmental industry still faces a multitude of challenges and even more problems that will consume us in the coming years. - says Lukasz Czarnowski of Interzero.

During the Interzero Environmental Conference, Jacek Płaza, Chief Sustainability Officer at Decathlon Poland, and Mateusz Grupa, E-mobility manager at BMW Group Polska, also got the chance to present sustainable practices in their companies. The guests gathered in the hall thus had the opportunity to convince themselves, whether waste can be reduced and new business models developed at the same time and learn the facts and myths about electromobility, which often contradict the image created by the mass media.

Przemysław Kuna, Managing Director of Interzero, also referred to the topic of electromobility and, more specifically, to the notorious batteries in his speech, talking about the new battery regulation, which is already knocking on the doors of EU Member States.

Such a great event would of course not have taken place without the support of our partners and the huge commitment of all the speakers and participants in the debate. I would like to thank them warmly for this year's cooperation and at the same time invite them to the next, 12th edition of the Conference. Environmentalthe date of which will be announced shortly. - said Lukasz Czarnowski in conclusion.

The Environmental Conference is an annual event that has been bringing together environmental experts and business representatives for years. During the 2-day talks and lectures, participants have the opportunity to broaden their knowledge of current legislation and its interpretation, learn about news from the environmental industry and about non-obvious issues related to ecology and sustainability. The Interzero Environmental Conference is also an opportunity to make new contacts with industry representatives and to exchange experiences with event participants.