By Paul Davies and Michael Green

A new European Parliament briefing highlights the benefits of, and difficulties associated with, transitioning the chemicals industry to a circular economy.

The traditional economy typically involves purchasing and using a product, and then disposing that product when it no longer has utility (i.e. the “take-make-dispose” approach to resources). Conversely, a circular economy seeks to extend the life cycle of products by aiming to both extract and retain the maximum value of their component materials.

A greater emphasis on product re-use and mechanical recycling in the chemicals industry requires developing new solutions and manufacturing products intentionally designed for re-use. This presents a growth opportunity and a new source of competitiveness for European operators compared with raw material-rich regions, whilst providing the more obvious benefits of preserving increasingly scarce resources and injecting renewed value into waste products.

By Paul Davies

The launch of the Ecodesign Working Plan 2016-2019, covering the eco-design and energy labelling framework last month is another key milestone in the Commission’s plan to transition the EU to a more circular economy.

Key points to note from the Working Plan include:

  • The current state of play is that the Commission have adopted 28 Ecodesign Regulations, 16 Energy Labelling Delegated Regulations and three recognised Voluntary Agreements. A number of these regulations will be subject to review in 2019.
  • Going forward, the Commission shall publish a working plan outlining an indicative list of energy related product groups which will be considered priorities for the next three years.
  • Further measures to be adopted include: (i) an eco-design measure for heating and cooling products; (ii) an eco-design and energy-labelling measure on verification tolerances to improve product testing and reduce the scope for cheating; and (iii) a Recommendation for self-regulation to support industry in the pursuit of voluntary agreements as an alternative to regulation.