EU Strengthens Waste Directive

At their meeting in mid-March, members of the European Parliament supported supplements to the Waste Directive. One of the proposals is to support a circular economy strategy by removing substances of very high concern (SVHC) from the materials cycle. In the future, recycled waste should serve as a good source of raw materials. Both the European Environmental Bureau and the European Parliament issued press releases on the supplements.

Specifically, the EU parliamentarians called for consistent substitution of environmentally critical substances and adding appropriate measures to this approach. First, each member state should ensure transparency in the supply chain and inform consumers and the waste industry about the presence of critical substances. Second, recycling companies should develop appropriate procedures that ensure reliable removal of the substances remaining in circulation.

The member of the leadershipteam of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), Marco Mensink, has already criticized the planned modifications and warned about attempts to regulate the concerns of the chemicals industry through waste policy. The result, he claims, would be an attempt to control global production processes and fastidious inspection of imported products, which would be next to impossible. According to Mensink, this approach would ultimately weaken Europe as a business location because the companies affected by the changes would simply move their production abroad.

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