The private waste management sector reacts on the Conclusions of the Council of 17 December 2020
Brussels, 18 December 2020 – On December 17, the Environment Council adopted Conclusions on the EU 2030 climate target, as part of the EU Climate Law, the Commission’s proposal on the new Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP), the new Industrial Strategy for Europe, and the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability, all falling under the umbrella of the European Green Deal. The European private waste management sector, represented by FEAD, welcomes the adopted conclusions.
Our sector, a key contributor to the decarbonisation of the European economy, supports the Council Conclusions by endorsing the 2030 climate target of 55% emissions’ reduction towards combating climate change. Regarding the Council’s Conclusions “Making the Recovery Circular and Green” on the new CEAP, FEAD would like to point out the following:
We welcome the highlighted need for mandatory recycled content rules, for mandatory Green Public Procurement criteria, and the need for boosting the market for secondary raw materials (SRMs), and to strengthen separate collection systems and selective sorting systems. FEAD fully shares the Council’s cautiousness on the EU harmonisation of collection schemes. Local and national considerations can be key drivers in how to find the most adapted, efficient, environmentally and economically sound collections systems. Too many practical details should not be set up at EU level. Additionally, data related to the performance of collection systems must be carefully assessed before action is to be taken at EU level.
Higher-up the treatment of waste pursuant to the waste hierarchy is a crucial needed. This should be the occasion to acknowledge the role of Waste-to-Energy in the circular economy, and its complementary role to sorting and recycling.
Peter Kurth, FEAD’s President: “Strong measures to boost the demand for recyclates, public support for investment in selective collection and sorting, and in capacities for recovering non-recyclable waste, are crucial to ensure the success of the CEAP in 2030. By this date there should be a strong move at EU level with no landfilling of recyclable or recoverable waste. Environmentally sound landfilling/disposal must be the last step of the hierarchy for residual, non-recyclable, non-recoverable waste”.
The Council also discussed the new Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability. FEAD would like to highlight on this occasion that it is of paramount importance to our sector that the use of harmful chemicals in EU and imported products be phased out as to guarantee quality recycling and secondary raw materials.
FEAD Secretariat