'Ambitious' EU eco standards in the making[fr][de] 

Air-tight

Brussels wants to expand the scope of the EU's Eco-Design Requirements for Energy-Using Products (EuP) Directive to include non energy-using products as a central part of a new action plan on SCP and SIP. 

A "framework for the setting of eco-design should be available for all products which have a significant impact on the environment", according to a draft directive to revise the scope of the 2005 EuP Directive. The draft is dated 18 March, and has since been submitted for consultation to the different services (DGs) of the Commission.

The Commission has not yet specified which products would be affected by the new rules, and extending the scope of the existing directive "makes it necessary to introduce the definition of 'product'".

Nonetheless, windows, baths, showers and taps are cited in a separeate draft communication on the SCP and SIP action plans. The greenhouse gas (GHG) impact of windows, for example, could be reduced by one-third through better insulation standards, it says.

The climate imperative

Brussels laments that existing rules for 'energy-using products only account for 35/40% of the environmental impacts of products', and that there is a lack of coordination between regulatory instruments and voluntary initiatives, as well as a disconnect between different national and regional schemes. 

In addition, current EU standards regulations and labellings schemes - notably the Ecolabel Regulation, the Energy Efficiency Labelling Directive, and the Energy Star Programme - have had only limited successes in reducing EU CO2 emissions while lessening the environmental impact of production and consumption patterns, according to the Commission. 

And growing resource scarcity and rising raw material costs are threatening to put a damper on prospects for Europe's economic growth, it says.

'Virtuous circle'

Along with new labels and standards, the Commission is set to propose fiscal incentives and more 'greener' public procurement rules in order to stimulate demand and uptake of cleaner products. 

These incentives will be based on voluntary benchmarks that will "identify the best environmental performance" of a given product or product range, according to the draft communication on the action plans. 

Coming storm?

The Commission has received "generally positive" feedback from stakeholders about the action plans, according to one EU official close to the dossier. Brussels has also welcomed clean product initiatives by large retailers, the official said in reference to a 10 March initiative by the European Retail Round Table. 

But there are concerns in Brussels circles that the action plans will spark a contentious debate between industry sectors about the scope of a new definition for products that will be affected by the standards. And a repeated delay of the action plans, originally scheduled for December 2007, has given rise to speculation that the Commission has struggled to define a coherent strategy (EurActiv 21/02/08). 

The proposal for a revised EuP Directive and the communication on the action plans are due to be submitted to Council and Parliament on 14 May. These will be accompanied by proposals to revise the Ecolabel and Eco-management and Audit (EMAS ) schemes, according to stakeholder sources, with a proposal to amend the Energy Efficiency Labelling Directive due in July. 

A communication on Green Public Procurement (EurActiv LinksDossier) is also expected on 14 May, with proposal for a new directive on the issue forecast for September.