The Parliament voted 394 in favour and 13 against (amid three abstentions) to adopt a compromise struck between MEPs and member-state representatives last month (EurActiv 30/03/09). The agreement was reached at first reading, allowing the EU to speed up the move towards a low-carbon economy.
In the future, the Commission could set minimum efficiency standards for products which impact on the final energy household consumption, such as windows, insulation materials, showers and water taps. The directive currently only applies to products which use energy directly, such as fridges, hairdryers and televisions.
The agreement makes no immediate changes to the products covered by eco-design rules. In October 2008, the Commission presented its next batch of ten product groups for which it is considering adopting eco-design standards (EurActiv 24/10/08). New product groups will thus not be considered until 2011, when the Commission will publish its revised working plan, which affects energy-related products as well.
Romanian MEP Magor Imre Csibi, who steered the legislation through the Parliament, wanted to stretch the scope of the directive to feature all other products apart from means of transport. The proposal was nevertheless rejected by his colleagues (EurActiv 18/02/09).
Moreover, the Parliament failed to obtain a clear timetable for extending the product list. The revised directive will now merely oblige the Commission to review the effectiveness of the current implementation measures in 2012, and to assess whether it is "appropriate" to extend the scope of the directive to non-energy related products.
"An improved product design would avoid waste and provide consumers with more efficient, more reliable and longer lasting products," Csibi said. He added that it would be necessary to apply eco-design rules to all consumer products in the future, as the design phase represents 80% of products' environmental impact.
Lifecycle approach still wanting
The Parliament congratulated itself for introducing more of a lifecycle focus into the directive. As part of the review in 2012, the Commission will look at the methodology for identifying environmental parameters, such as resource efficiency, for the whole lifecycle of products.
Consumer groups ANEC and BEUC said, however, that apart from resource efficiency, the revamp of the directive had ignored many other relevant environmental impacts of products' lifecycle phase. They singled out the use of dangerous chemicals, waste production and recycling.
"Eco-design means designing a product taking into account its environmental impacts during the whole life cycle," said Stephen Russell, ANEC's secretary-general. He added that the directive would continue to favour energy efficiency over the chemical content and recycling potential of products.
The agreement now needs the final seal of approval from the Council of Ministers.
