After the opening speech of Cinzia Vezzosi, EuRIC President, Maria SPYRAKI, Member of the European Parliament, stressed the importance of a holistic approach, starting from eco-design to the effective implementation of targets, in order to deliver on the new Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP). Mattia Pellegrini, Head of the Waste Management and Secondary Materials Unit at DG Environment, joined the keynote session to highlight the ambitious agenda of the Commission in delivering the set of regulatory measures foreseen in the European Green Deal and the new CEAP.
Moving to the panel discussion, Catherine Chabaud, Member of the European Parliament, stressed the vital role played by recycling in protecting the marine environment. Olivier Francois, Vice-President of EuRIC and Director in charge of Market Development and Innovation at the Galloo Group, highlighted the importance of eco-design to ease end-of-life recycling coupled with incentives and recycled content targets to level the playing field with virgin materials. Stephane Arditi, Director of Policy Integration and Circular Economy at the EEB, echoed this call by emphasizing that it is essential to better reward the well documented environmental benefits of secondary raw materials, in terms of GHG and energy savings, but also reminded that waste prevention should always come first. Hans van de Nes, President of EuRIC Recovered Paper Branch (ERPA), made the point about the need to make progress on harmonized end-of-waste criteria for paper to boost a well-functioning market for secondary raw materials and reward quality.
Emmanuel Katrakis, Secretary General, wrapped up the debate by stressing the crucial importance of ensuring that the right measures are taken to make sure that Europe’s recycling industry stays competitive both in the EU and globally. Eluding to the economic crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, he reminded how critical it is to ensure that Europe’s Recovery Plan is effectively implemented across Member States to scale up recycling capacity and invest in industrial value chains which are both circular and climate neutral.
