What am I going to read?
- The challenge of guaranteeing raw materials
- Learning to convert waste into new raw materials
- Designing the cycle from the start
When Russia attacked Ukraine more than four years ago, Europe had to face up to the fragility of its energy dependence. Not only were its energy supplies at stake, but also the security of the continent.
The European Union proceeded to outline a security and resilience plan to reduce its reliance on unreliable third-party supplies, in order to reduce its vulnerability to raw material supplies as well as to price volatility. The key element would be the circular economy, transforming waste products into raw materials to ensure that European industry had stable supply chains.
“Pursue the dual objective of achieving strategic energy sovereignty and comply with the target of climate neutrality in 2050 at the latest” was one of the objectives underlined by the European Council in a meeting in Budapest in November 2024. Two years later, the Circular Economy Act was launched in Europe, a circularity strategy that put the focus not just on the environmental aspect but also the economic and geopolitical areas.
Rising demand for raw materials – and growing resource shortages – have led to the search for alternatives in reuse and transforming waste into new resources, as the fundamental pillars of a more competitive and less dependent model. In recent years, exports of raw materials from the European Union to third countries have been lower than imports, which translates into trade deficits and increased vulnerability. The transformation of end-of-life products into secondary raw materials also reduces the risks associated with supply, in terms of volatility or availability.
Given this reality, the new European circularity has been proposed to promote a single raw materials market where these products not only circulate freely, but supply and demand are also stimulated on a European level for recycled and reusable products.
It is precisely the lack of strong demand for recycled materials in Europe that is one of the pitfalls to achieving a higher circularity rate, an index that indicates the amount of recycled materials that have been used in a product, as well as those that can potentially be reused. The European Union has established that this rate should be 24% by 2030; it currently stands at 12.2%. The biggest challenge is faced by certain sectors – renewables, batteries, robotics, automation – that use greater quantities of critical raw materials such as rare earths, lithium or cobalt.
Together with raw materials, waste is another big challenge, as the European Union produces more than 2.1 billion tonnes of it a year. More specifically, packaging waste accounts for around 80 million tonnes in the form of discarded containers in European countries.
The new European regulation on packaging and packaging waste establishes, among other things, that by 2027 establishments will be required to ensure that they use their own containers to hold food or drinks, and supermarkets must provide bulk product areas.
Furthermore, all packaging must be at least 70% recyclable by 2030, and progressive bans on single-use plastics will be implemented.
Another important part of waste generation consists of products that are manufactured but never see the light of day and then have to be destroyed. For this reason, the European Union is now obliging large companies to specify the number of unsold consumer products disposed of, as well as a detailed breakdown of their weight, the reasons why they are disposed of, or any reuse and recycling measures taken.
When it comes to circularity, product design is an aspect that tends to be pushed into the background, when precisely up to 80% of the environmental impact of products is determined in the design phase. Therefore, the new eco-design regulations for sustainable products aim at durability, safety and energy efficiency, as well as creating products that are easy to repair and recycle, prioritising the use of sustainable elements.
The European Union sets out to make green design requirements a priority in products with a high environmental impact, such as textiles, furniture, or tyres, but also iron, steel or aluminium.
To ensure the traceability, environmental impact, or degree of repairability of products, a Digital Product Passport must accompany everything. This is an electronic record describing the origin, manufacture, composition or recyclability of each item, to improve transparency and facilitate sustainable practices.
Furthermore, the European Union is also determined to combat ‘greenwashing’. The notion of sustainability is on the rise, but the commitments made are not always authentic or translate into real actions. To address this, the new directive seeks to ensure that all so-called ‘sustainable practices’ can be verified and certified, making accurate information available to the public, and thereby empowering citizens in the ecological transition.
Carmen Gómez-Cotta is a journalist with an international career that includes work for publications such as Ethic, La Razón, El País Semanal, El Viajero, Condé Nast, The Ethical Corporation Magazine, and Mining Journal.
She covers topics that have a positive impact, including climate change, energy, and biodiversity, as well as ESG and international relations, with the aim of raising public awareness of the major challenges facing 21st-century societies and exploring possible solutions to each of these challenges with the help of experts in various fields.