The Trump era has kicked off with all the subtlety of a bull in a china shop! The EU now finds itself split into two camps: those tripping over themselves to pledge undying loyalty to The Donald and his entourage, and those clinging to the hope that the EU’s collective strength will hold firm. Meanwhile, Trump’s Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has been busy dialling up foreign ministers across EU Member States, but mysteriously, EU officials are still waiting by the phone. Looks like the first shots have been fired…
European Commission Competitiveness Compass: On 29 January, following a press conference given by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy, Stéphane Séjourné, the Competitiveness Compass was published.
FEAD has published a press release in response to the publication of the Compass in which we call for a circular economy financing from the European Competitiveness Fund to support the transition away from primary raw materials, ensuring that Europe’s strategic autonomy is reinforced, while contributing to the EU’s green and digital transition. Read it here.
Commission 2025 report on the Single Market and Competitiveness: In addition to the Compass, the European Commission published its annual report on the Single Market and Competitiveness.
Circular Economy Act (CEA): The Commission’s Expert Group on Circular Economy and Sustainable Production and Consumption met on 23 January 2025. The Commission made a presentation on the expected Circular Economy Act.Waste Framework Directive: The next trilogue on the waste framework directive will take place on 18 February and may be the last one.
Textiles: In a press release published on 23 January, a French PRO, Refashion announced, a 6 million euros help package for textile sorting facilities currently going through a ‘structural’ crisis.
Water Resilience: On 30 January, the European Parliament published their own draft report drawn up by MEP Thomas Bajada (S&D, Malta) on Water Resilience.
PFAS Study: On 29 January, a study titled ‘The Critical Role of Commercial Analytical Reference Standards in the Control of Chemical Risks: The Case of PFAS and Ways Forward’ was published in the review Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP).
Strengthening the battery industry – European Parliament Briefing: On 24 January, the European Parliament Think Tank published a briefing on batteries.
JRC Study on plastic waste recycling: On 17 January, the JRC published a study titled ‘Environmental and economic assessment of plastic waste recycling and energy recovery pathways in the EU’. It provides a comparative environmental and economic assessment of plastic waste recycling (mechanical, physical, chemical) and energy recovery, using primary data complemented with external information.
RecyClass Recyclability Evaluation Protocols: On 28 January, RecyClass announced that ‘following 18 testing campaigns commissioned in 2024, RecyClass strengthened its Recyclability Evaluation Protocols and Design for Recycling Guidelines to address the impact of various packaging features on plastic recycling streams’.
Innovation Fund – Funding for decarbonisation projects: The Innovation Fund awards grants through calls for proposals and competitive bidding procedures. A call for proposals of small-scale and large scale decarbonisation projects has been launched. The deadline for applications is 24 April 2025 (17:00 CET).
InvestCEC Call for Circular Entrepreneurs: The Horizon Europe-funded project InvestCEC has recently launched call for circular entrepreneurs. InvestCEC is developing a model to connect circular businesses, particularly startups, with cities and public service providers. They are looking for entrepreneurs in renewable energy, waste management, wastewater valorisation and recycling. The second call for entrepreneurs is now open (deadline: 15 February).
Renew Position paper on Clean Industrial Deal: On 29 January, Renew published a position paper on ‘Key demands on Clean Industrial Deal’.
FEAD News: FEAD is participating to the organisation of a series of events in February:
- PFAS in Waste: a webinar about Current Challenges and Future European Initiatives in collaboration with Mérieux Nutrisciences on 6 February. More information here.
- Hazards Out | Workshop 1 on 11 February from 2pm to 3.30pm. More information here.
- The GRINNER Project and Batteries Roundtable Members (WEEE Forum, EuRIC, FEAD, EUCOBAT, Municipal Waste Europe, WEEELABEX) are organising a roundtable on ‘The challenges of lithium battery fires in the management of e-waste’ on 18 February in Brussels. More information here.
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