Experts from Member States are currently working on conclusions that will link digitalisation and the environment for the first time. These conclusions will be submitted to European Environment Ministers at their meeting scheduled for 17 December.
According to a first draft text seen by EUROPE, the idea is to see how the two themes can support and strengthen each other. While it is recognised that technology can contribute to Green Deal goals, it can also have the opposite effect by increasing pollution.
This draft, covering just under 20 pages, requests that the European Commission, for example, produces an analysis of the environmental impacts of digitalisation by 2022. It urges the Commission to put forward a proposal to improve the repair of ICT products, including updates for obsolete software, as was envisaged in the action plan on the circular economy.
It also calls on the European Commission to present a proposal on a digital product passport; this would collect information on the origin of the product and its components, its composition (including hazardous products), its reusability, repairability and recyclability, as well as its environmental footprint and performance. The document notes that the Commission could start in 2021 with a pilot project on batteries.
It also suggests guidelines and recommendations for various sectors on the environmentally and climate-friendly use of digital solutions. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)