ACE hosts circular economy event in European Parliament

Leaders from the European Parliament, the European Commission, NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) and industry agreed that “more can be done” to build on the European Commission’s Circular Economy Package during a debate 23 February 2016 co-hosted by European Parliament member (MEP) Giovanni La Via, the Parliament’s Environment Committee Chair, and MEP Simona Bonafè, the rapporteur on the Circular Economy legislative proposals on waste, in cooperation with ACE (Alliance for Beverage Carton and the Environment).

La Via told the audience that Bonafè’s report is scheduled for completion by 21 April and that Parliament’s vote in plenary is scheduled for 7-8 November.

The Parliament says it expects further commission proposals by the end of 2016 as foreseen in the Commission’s Action Plan.

La Via highlighted elements that could be introduced, including a mandatory product passport and a legally binding indicator for resource efficiency.

Daniel Calleja Crespo, director general of the European Commission’s DG Environment, emphasised how the Circular Economy Package is a “key contributor” to the priorities of Juncker Commission as well as to Europe’s response to the UN climate change agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, ACE reports. The package of measures “looks at the whole cycle and not just at waste.” Indicating a strong level of ambition, Calleja Crespo confirmed that for waste “the aim is to phase out landfilling completely.”

Speaking about the need to do more, senior representatives of the European beverage carton industry put forward specific proposals to raise the level of ambition. Karl-Henrik Sundström, CEO of Stora Enso, stated that the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive should encourage the use of materials from renewable sources. Per Lindberg, president and CEO of BillerudKorsnäs, underlined the importance to responsibly source raw materials, while Kristian Hall, president of ACE and director for environment at Elopak, called for the introduction of a requirement that extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes ensure effective collection and recycling of all packaging materials and a landfill ban for packaging materials.

Kari Herlevi from Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra put forward the case to prioritise renewable resources for the sake of reducing Europe’s resource dependency on imports.    

Finally, Pieter de Pous, EEB policy director, supported a landfill ban for recyclable and compostable material.

Other elements where “more can be done” included the role of biobased materials needed to meet climate targets and the transparency and cost efficiency of EPR schemes for waste collection.

Closing the event, Erika Mink, ACE board member and vice president for public affairs at Tetra Pak, agreed that strategic alliances between stakeholders and regulators are significant for the implementation of the package and highlighted three ways to build upon the Commission’s proposals: “The circular economy concept should start with responsible sourcing of primary materials; the EU should promote the use of renewable materials; and the legislative waste proposals must ensure that what can be recycled will be recycled,” she said.