Resource Efficiency/Circular Economy: Launch of Circular Economy Package
The Commission’s new Circular Economy Package has been launched on the 2nd of December. The Package consists of a Commission Communication ‘Closing the loop – An Action Plan for the Circular Economy’, accompanied by its annex, and a revised legislative proposals on waste, packaging waste, landfill, and electrical and electronic waste. The Action Plan stresses that actions on circular economy at the EU level should be intertwined with other EU key objectives related to jobs and growth, the investment agenda, climate and energy, social policy, industrial innovation, sustainable development etc.
Key actions (proposed in the Action Plan)
• Promotion of reparability, durability and recyclability of products through future Measures in the Ecodesign Work Plan 2015-2017
• Development of quality standards for secondary raw materials to increase the confidence of operators in the single market
• a legislative proposal on minimum requirements for the reuse of wastewater
• funding of over €650 million under Horizon 2020 and €5.5 billion under the structural funds;
• set-up of a monitoring framework for the circular economy
• Promotion of reparability, durability and recyclability of products through future Measures in the Ecodesign Work Plan 2015-2017
• Development of quality standards for secondary raw materials to increase the confidence of operators in the single market
• a legislative proposal on minimum requirements for the reuse of wastewater
• funding of over €650 million under Horizon 2020 and €5.5 billion under the structural funds;
• set-up of a monitoring framework for the circular economy
Key elements in the revised legislative proposals on waste
• A common EU target for recycling 65% of municipal waste by 2030;
• A common EU target for recycling 75% of packaging waste by 2030;
• A mandatory landfill target to reduce landfill to maximum of 10% of all waste by 2030;
• A ban on landfilling of separately collected waste;
• Promotion of economic instruments to discourage landfilling ;
• Simplified and improved definitions and harmonised calculation methods for recycling rates throughout the EU;
• Concrete measures to promote re-use and stimulate industrial symbiosis, i.e. turning the by-product of one industry into another industry's raw material;
• Economic incentives for producers to put greener products on the market and support recovery and recycling schemes (e.g. for packaging, batteries, electric and electronic equipment).
• A common EU target for recycling 65% of municipal waste by 2030;
• A common EU target for recycling 75% of packaging waste by 2030;
• A mandatory landfill target to reduce landfill to maximum of 10% of all waste by 2030;
• A ban on landfilling of separately collected waste;
• Promotion of economic instruments to discourage landfilling ;
• Simplified and improved definitions and harmonised calculation methods for recycling rates throughout the EU;
• Concrete measures to promote re-use and stimulate industrial symbiosis, i.e. turning the by-product of one industry into another industry's raw material;
• Economic incentives for producers to put greener products on the market and support recovery and recycling schemes (e.g. for packaging, batteries, electric and electronic equipment).
References
• EC Communication: “Closing the loop – An EU action plan for the Circular Economy" and Annex
• A revised legislative proposal to amend the Waste Directive
• Revised proposals to amend a number of waste stream specific Directives such as Packaging Waste, Landfill and WEEE.
• EC Communication: “Closing the loop – An EU action plan for the Circular Economy" and Annex
• A revised legislative proposal to amend the Waste Directive
• Revised proposals to amend a number of waste stream specific Directives such as Packaging Waste, Landfill and WEEE.
