ABOUT

Early in 2013, in collaboration with the National Association of Catadores (waste pickers), BVRio developed a system of Reverse Logistics Credits to assist companies to meet their obligations under the law while rewarding Catadores for the services of reverse logistics and recycling that they provide to companies, the government and society as a whole.

Reverse Logistics Credits are certificates that confirm that reverse logistics services were provided to ensure that a certain amount of waste was responsibly disposed of. These credits are issued and sold by cooperatives of Catadores and purchased by producers and/or importers who need to comply with the solid waste legislation. Through the purchase of credits, companies effectively subcontract cooperatives of Catadores to provide reverse logistics services.

The sale of Reverse Logistics Credits does not affect the ability of the Catadores to sell the physical material to be recycled. Reverse Logistics Credits only represent the environmental service provided by Catadores, i.e. the collection, screening, and direction of solid waste to recycling and re-utilization in the productive cycle – in other words, the service of reverse logistics. In this way, in addition to the revenue generated through the sale of recyclable materials, Catadores can also sell Reverse Logistics Credits to the companies that need this service to comply with the requirements of the National Solid Waste Legislation.

The system is in operation since 2013 and an initial survey of results was conducted involving 30 waste picker cooperatives and 1000 individual waste pickers that participated in the first year. These cooperatives recovered and sent for recycling ca. 1600 tonnes of solid waste during that year. The income from the sale of Reverse Logistics Credits increased the revenue of these cooperatives by 30%, providing an important social impact additional to the environmental impact of reducing pollution.

Environmentally, the additional value generated by the sale of credits makes it worthwhile for Catadores to collect waste materials with lower raw material value, widening the range of products collected beyond the current high value products, such as aluminium cans.

This effective and socially-inclusive circular economy mechanism paved the way for the creation of the 3R Initiative, the Circular Credits Mechanism and the Circular Action Hub, an international version of the Reverse Logistics Credit system.