Prevention is a fundamental pillar to achieve an effective circular economy and reduce waste generation. The basic rule of waste management is the principle of hierarchy, which establishes that the first measure is to prevent it from being produced. Next in priority are reuse, recycling, recovery and, as a last option, disposal.
With the adoption of preventive strategies in the production chain, such as eco-design or the use of recycled materials, not only is the volume of waste generated reduced, resource consumption is also minimized, which promotes a more sustainable and responsible economic model.
Prevention in industrial oils
They know this very well at Sigaus, the SCRAP (collective system of extended producer responsibility) that has been leading the management of used industrial oils for 17 years, which come mainly from vehicle engines and industrial machinery. In addition to guaranteeing their collection and treatment to give them a new use as a base for the formulation of new lubricants or as fuel, Sigaus is a key actor in promoting prevention in the field of lubricants. Since 2010, it has been registering measures aimed at marketing lubricants with better environmental performance in any of the phases of their life cycle through its Business Prevention Plans in which it involves the entire manufacturing sector.
Regenerated and longer lasting oils
Thus, within the framework of its IV Prevention Plan, in 2023 alone, the companies participating in Sigaus carried out 557 measures. With them, it was possible, for example, to incorporate more than 21,000 tons of regenerated bases into new oils, maintaining the characteristics of a first-grade oil from petroleum.
More durable oils were also developed, by replacing mineral bases with synthetic ones, which allowed changing periods to be increased; more respectful of the environment, in which dangerous components, such as sulfur or chlorine, have been eliminated; or others that can be more easily recycled. Likewise, the measures promoted by Sigaus include the use of biodegradable oils, which may not generate waste.
Likewise, notable progress is being made in replacing conventional lubrication in certain industrial processes with micro-lubrication techniques, which apply a minimum amount of product at the exact point, minimizing consumption and the generation of waste, which in these processes can be bulky and expensive to manage.
The communication and dissemination of good practices is essential to promote responsible use of the product or adequate waste management. In this sense, in accordance with the Sigaus Prevention Plan, its member companies carried out 231 different initiatives during 2023. Among them, information for customers and distributors, awareness-raising for the end consumer, training in best practices or technical advice. .
Also professional packaging
Sigaus’ experience in the management of used industrial oils led them to create Genci, a scrap for the management of professional packaging. In fact, it already has authorization to begin operating throughout the national territory next January, at which time companies that sell products packaged in this type of packaging will already have to take charge of its management. However, the new scrap starts with the real experience of three years operating in the Balearic Islands, due to regional regulations.
And also in this case Genci will help the participating producers to comply with the prevention requirements.
Likewise, companies are obliged to prepare and apply Business Prevention and Ecodesign Plans (PEPE), if they exceed certain thresholds for marketed packaging, which have become more demanding with the new regulations.
To meet these obligations, Genci has developed a collective prevention and eco-design plan to which its member companies can subscribe. In fact, in 2024 the entity has already collaborated with many affected companies to have an individual prevention plan that integrates objectives, measures and transversal control mechanisms, both for domestic packaging and for industrial and commercial packaging.
In short, Genci tries to provide specialized services, in an agile and simple manner, to member companies, so that they can comply, with legal certainty, with all their new obligations.