The R2 Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) held an in-person meeting last month to continue work on revisions to the R2 Standard. A number of suggested revisions were considered for inclusion in the upcoming draft of the R2 Standard revision. A draft of the revised R2 Standard is anticipated to be released for public comment in late 2017.

During the course of its discussions, the TAC agreed on the following issues (any proposed changes must be approved by the Consensus Body, be posted for public comment, and ratified by the SERI Board before taking effect):

The R2 Standard should remain broadly written, applicable to all materials and processing within the scope of R2. Exceptions for managing specific materials should not be written into the standard.

The hierarchy under Provision 2 should not add a “beneficial use” level between Materials Recovery and Energy Recovery or Land Disposal.

Life-cycle analysis is helpful when make recycling decisions, but too subjective (because of variations in the factors considered) to incorporate into the R2 Standard at this time.

Enhance the FM Management Plan (Provision 5.a) requirements.

Improve the transparency of the downstream recycling chain (Provision 5.e.6).

Require notification to upstream suppliers when vendors in the downstream recycling chain are added or removed.

Reorganize Provision 6 to improve clarity of the testing and reuse requirements, including renaming of the reuse categories.

Improve Provision 7 with requirements to ensure consistency and clarity of throughput records, including demonstrated proof of receipt.

Require maximum inventory levels in Provision 7 consistent with the closure plan.

The TAC also agreed to changes to the Guidance for Provision 11 regarding sufficient financial instruments, closure planning, and insurance, which will be published in the coming months.