The Icelandic Recycling Fund has publicly responded to waste management company Sorpa's recent fee hike announcement. The fund states its fee schedule is completely transparent and available to all partners. Sorpa should have known one fee covered paper and cardboard packaging, with no special handling planned for drink cartons.
The dispute began when Sorpa announced today it would raise household waste collection fees in the capital region. This increase follows the Recycling Fund's refusal to cover retroactive costs for special drink carton processing that Sorpa began in 2023.
According to the Recycling Fund's statement, Sorpa notified them on June 7, 2023 about changed processing methods for drink cartons. These changes would create an additional 75 million ISK in costs. The fund says this expense falls entirely on Sorpa's responsibility.
Sorpa claimed today that the Recycling Fund was originally supposed to cover these extra costs but later refused. The Recycling Fund counters that no request to modify the paper and cardboard packaging fee schedule was received at that time. Sorpa first requested these payments in February 2024, seeking retroactive coverage for 2023 expenses.
The Recycling Fund's board reviewed the request and rejected it. They found no environmental benefit analysis for the specialized processing. Following this, the fund commissioned the University of Iceland's Economics Institute to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of specialized drink carton processing. This analysis would consider environmental benefits.
The study results are expected in September 2025. Sorpa appears to have now decided to abandon specialized carton processing based on preliminary findings. Sorpa announced today it will stop sorting drink cartons from paper waste. The company cited poor results, negative climate impact, and excessive costs as reasons.
This public dispute reveals coordination gaps in Iceland's waste management system. Both organizations now face explaining fee increases and service changes to Reykjavik residents already dealing with high living costs.