“As my mother used to say: you can only give it your utmost best,” says Jan te Bos. Sitting in his sunny 7th floor Brussels office, the Director General of the European Insulation Manufacturers Association EURIMA is reflecting on the many challenges in the way of decarbonising the EU, in particular its building stock.
European Commission plans to include mandatory recycled content targets for all plastics in a makeover of packaging laws expected this summer risk derailing attempts by plastic bottle manufacturers to reach closed loop recycling, the industry has warned.
The European Commission will soon decide whether to allow the use of recycled plastics in food packaging despite some suggesting this could endanger consumer health.
With the European Commission due to present its Sustainable Products Action Plan on 30 March, Emmanuel Katrakis takes stock of the EU's push for a more circular economy in an interview with EURACTIV France.
The European Commission is working on a revision of the regulation on recycled plastics for food packaging, which according to Jane Muncke, raises concerns about food safety.
Simple design and using at least 90% of the same plastic is the key to easy-to-recycle packaging for foods like crisps and chocolate, according to the industry.
Lightweight soft packaging such as crisp packets or wrapping for chocolate bars are giving headaches to European recyclers who currently have little incentive to buy the collected material. The European Commission will seek to address this in July with its planned revision of the EU’s packaging and packaging waste directive.
To make the production of beer more sustainable, European brewing companies have started making use of blockchain technology. However, NGOs warn that single-use packaging still contributes to a large carbon footprint for many beverages.
Consumers' craving for ever-increasing sustainable products is leaving its mark on the textile industry, creating a shift toward a 'greener' manufacturing process that requires new ways to assess its impact on the environment.
Eleven European countries have called on the European Commission to put forward ambitious measures to crack down on waste in the textiles industry in its textiles strategy, expected to be proposed in the coming months.
Europe aims to cut down on waste as quickly as possible in order to halt the overconsumption that is damaging the planet and adding to climate change. But despite previous attempts, waste packaging is still on the rise in Europe.
While certain metals, like lithium and cobalt, are essential for decarbonisation, Europe needs to shift the focus away from mining these materials towards reducing the amount needed and recycling what is used, writes Ann Dom.
A new carbon removal approach in agriculture will contribute to stepping up Europe's climate ambition, the European Commission reiterated at the launch of its massive plan to cut carbon emissions by 55% before the end of the decade.
Increased recycling has come at the expense of greener activities like reuse. The European Union now needs to adopt a multidimensional approach to tackle Europe's waste problem and move towards circularity, writes Joan Marc Simon.
Only two European countries are anywhere close to being on track to achieving the EU's recycling targets for electronic waste – or e-waste – the European Court of Auditors warned on Thursday (20 May).
The European Commission on Wednesday (21 April), tabled a first set of implementation rules under the EU's sustainable finance taxonomy, but changes made since a draft leaked last week have weakened criteria on waste management, campaigners say.
An EU regulation on tyre labelling due to come into force on 1 May will not cover the rate at which tyres shed particles – a major contributor to microplastics in Europe – as an agreed method for the calculation of abrasion is still not in place.
Europe has an opportunity to use the textiles strategy, due to be published this year, to build on its history of textile manufacturing and switch to a more sustainable industry, benefitting citizens and the environment, writes Valérie Boiten.
Lawmakers in the European Parliament adopted a set of ambitious proposals on the EU’s circular economy action plan on Tuesday (9 February), including calls to introduce mandatory targets to reduce waste.
As the European Union seeks to transition to a ‘circular economy’, the policy focus in 2021 will turn to products: how they are designed, and why so many seem to be made to throw away.
Companies doing business in Europe may soon have to ensure their packaging contains a minimum amount of recycled plastic. But getting their hands on quality recycled materials in sufficient quantity is currently difficult.
Electric car and industrial batteries sold in Europe will soon face legally binding environmental standards, the European Commission said on Thursday (10 December), as it seeks to give local producers an edge in a rapidly growing global market.
Deposit return and extended producer responsibility schemes are everywhere in the EU but have very different rules. Does this present a barrier to meeting the EU’s recycling objectives?
Jan Huitema, who is in charge of guiding the circular economy strategy through the European Parliament, says his report will include requirements for products to contain a minimum amount of recycled material.
