The importance of extended producer responsibility and the national policy of solid waste in Brazil

This paper presents an overview of the current situation of the reverse logistics schemes in Brazil and the importance of the National Policy of Solid Waste enacted in 2010, the main regulatory milestone in the country. In addition, the work intends to comprehend extended producer responsibility (EPR) in Europe as an environmental principle, the representative directives related to this issue, the targets, the economic incentives and their consequences. Assuredly, Brazilian cities can use the European EPR schemes as parameters to set up the guidelines in short and long terms. This article leads to the conclusion that the EPR regulation and economic instruments can promote diverting of waste from landfills to reusing, recycling and recovering treatments. The recommendations of this study are to introduce the possibility of a circular economy in Brazil modelled on the European EPR concept, through public policies and economic instruments in order to upgrade the waste hierarchy.