CIWM responds to EU Circular Economy package

In an initial comment on the European Commission's circular economy package launched today, CIWM's Chief Executive Steve Lee said:

"Having waited nearly 18 months for this package, CIWM acknowledges that it seeks to tackle all parts of the material cycle, filling in some gaps in the original 2014 package. In the short term, however, much of the work still sits with the waste and resource management industry and some of the critical elements we had hoped to see, particularly on the demand side, have been hived off into an Action Plan with no clear schedule for delivery.

"That is not to say that the package isn't useful or ambitious. A 65% recycling target by 2030 may not challenge those Member States and municipalities at the very top of the recycling league table, but it does maintain the direction of travel, and there is more emphasis now further up the Waste Hierarchy. 

"Likewise, some will say there is a softer approach to food waste than was expected but this does not detract from the widespread consensus that food waste is the next ‘big bite’ when it comes to recycling and waste prevention. In the UK, we already have three countries with clear ambitions and policies on food waste, demonstrating that unilateral action in this area is possible. If England wants to follow suit, it doesn't need to wait to be told to do so by Europe. 

“There is, indeed, much in the package that recognises subsidiarity by pushing many areas of action back to Member States, such as financial incentives and extended Producer Responsibility initiatives. That, however, relies on national governments having an appetite for these interventions - and this appetite is not consistent across the UK.

"There is also a question mark over the Commission’s promise to develop quality standards for secondary raw materials. Standards that work across a range of different end markets and applications in different countries are highly challenging to set out and agree, a fact that the Commission should be aware of given the protracted difficulties it experienced in trying to developing EU-wide End of Waste criteria. That said, CIWM welcomes the priority focus on plastics as potentially the most diverse and challenging waste stream.

“On the measurement front, CIWM strongly supports the Commission’s commitment to harmonising definitions of waste and calculation and reporting methods.  More and better data will be essential to drive performance across the full range of Circular Economy indicators and in the formulation of smarter targets and interventions in the future.

“There is still a long way to go on this package. This is just the first leg; if we feel that there are elements that need to be added to or strengthened, like market stimulation and 'pull' mechanisms, we are going to have to fight harder for them over the coming months. A Circular Economy just isn't going to happen unless there is a clear value chain pulling materials through the market and back into manufacture. The package acknowledges that EU action to support markets for secondary raw materials "is particularly important" but all the real action is deferred.  All four UK governments need to push Europe on this and commit to action at home. 

ENDS