Following the informal meeting of European environment ministers, on Friday 6 February in Nicosia, the Commissioner for Environment, Jessika Roswall, recalled that the European Commission had presented an initial package of measures before Christmas in response to the difficulties encountered by the European plastics recycling industry.
This package is a first step towards the future regulation on the circular economy, which she will present later this year in order to make Europe “more circular, more competitive, and also more resilient”, the Commissioner told the press.
To achieve this, the Commission intends to “identify and tackle key barriers” to boost the economic model for secondary raw materials in the internal market. These are recovered, recycled or reused materials that can replace primary raw materials extracted from nature (ores, oil, new wood, etc.) in industrial production.
The circular economy initiatives currently in the pipeline mark a major strategic shift, according to Cypriot Minister, Maria Panayiotou. “It’s not just an environmental policy, but also a lever for competitiveness, a security issue and a tool for economic resilience”, she explained.
A document from the Cyprus Presidency of the Council, consulted by Agence Europe, sets out the expectations for the future Circular Economy Act, which is set to become a central pillar of the European strategy for competitiveness, economic security and sustainability.
The aim of this text is to remove structural obstacles to the circular economy, create a single market for waste and secondary raw materials and stimulate supply and demand for circular products and materials, while strengthening the EU’s strategic autonomy, according to the Cypriot document.
Last December, the Commission presented a set of pilot actions focusing on the plastics sector (see EUROPE 13779/10).
The Cyprus Presidency of the Council highlights the strong pressures on the European plastics recycling industry: high costs, low prices for virgin plastic, unfair competition from imports. It calls for the rapid adoption of measures at EU level to ensure a level playing field and stimulate demand for recycled plastics.
The document also presents the Trans-Regional Circularity Hubs project, designed to strengthen cross-border cooperation, secure the supply of secondary materials and mobilise large-scale public and private investment to complement national approaches. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)