New circular economy package disappoints

4 December 2015

The European Commission has released a set of proposals aiming to make Europe more resource-efficient, but most of the legally binding targets have been watered down compared to the previous 2014 package.

Proposals issued include a legally binding recycling rate of 65% across the EU by 2030 and a maximum limit to the amount of household waste that can be landfilled at 10% by the same year. The package will include a new Ecodesign working plan aimed at setting product design requirements for manufacturers so that goods are made to last longer and are more repairable and recyclable.

However, the waste targets are all weaker than those proposed in the 2014 version of the package, which the Commission withdrew with the sole argument that this was necessary to deliver more ambition.

This is a non-exhaustive comparison table on the major differences between the 2014 and 2015 Circular Economy Packages:

What	2014 proposal	2015 proposal	Result
Recycling target of household waste	70% by 2030	65% by 2030 Estonia, Greece, Croatia, Latvia, Malta, Romania and Slovakia may apply for 5 additional years to meet the target
Recycling target of packaging waste	80% by 2030	75% by 2030
Indicative target for food waste	30% food waste reduction in 2025 from 2017 level	No target although proposal for a harmonized methodology and reference to Sustainable Development Goals
Landfilling target	Aspirational target for a maximum of 5% non-hazardous household waste that can be landfilled in 2030 if not recyclable or compostable + ban on recyclable and compostable waste going to landfill	Maximum limit of 10% of household waste can be landfilled in 2030 (binding restriction) but that can include recyclable and compostable waste
Separate collection of biowaste	Ensure separate collection of biowaste by 2025	Ensure separate collection of biowaste as long as technically, economically and environmentally possible
Resource efficiency target	Indicative 30% target based on Raw Material Consumption	No mention
Focus of reducing resource use in Ecodesign policy	Covered although no deadlines set	Covered with indicative deadlines
Preventing obsolescence of products	Not mentioned	Independent testing programme on identification of issues related to planned obsolescence (2018) as part of non-binding action plan.
Quality standard for recycling	Mentioned as exemplary feature of circular economy, but not addressed as such	Development of quality standards for secondary raw materials (in particular for plastics) but as part of the non-binding action plan.
Information on resources in a product	Already covered in the WEEE Directive of 2012	Improve exchange of information between manufacturers and recyclers on electronic products