During the lunch meeting with journalists on Tuesday, 1 October, the European Commission announced the adoption of ten implementing regulations on eco-design for appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, and televisions.
Aiming both to reduce the EU’s carbon footprint and to reduce European consumers’ energy bills, these new measures include, for the first time, repair and recyclability requirements, such as an obligation to ensure that spare parts are available for a long period of time after purchase.
According to European Commission, these measures will thus be able to “[contribute] to circular economy objectives by improving the lifespan, maintenance, re-use, upgrade, recyclability, and waste handling of appliances”.
As part of the EU’s objective to improve energy efficiency, these rules—combined with energy efficiency labels according to the standards adopted on 11 March last (see EUROPE 12211/11)—should result in 167 TW/h of energy savings per year by 2030. This is equivalent to Denmark’s annual energy consumption and corresponds to a reduction of more than 46 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent.
As far as consumers are concerned, the European Commission estimates that these measures will save European households an average of €150 per year.
“Whether it is by fostering repairability or improving water consumption, intelligent eco-design makes us use our resources more efficiently, bringing clear economic and environmental benefits,” enthused European Commission Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment, and Competitiveness Jyrki Katainen.
For its part, the European Consumers’ Organisation (BEUC) welcomed the news but lamented that the measures did not go further. For BEUC Director General Monique Goyens, the rules should have sought to make it easier for consumers to get spare parts and maintenance advice, so they would be able to repair their appliances themselves without too much difficulty. (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)