Recycling Industry Urges Support of Circular Economy Law

The European Federation of Waste Management and Environmental Services (FEAD), which represents the European waste and recycling industry, has urged the European Parliament to put pressure on the European Commission to retain a circular economy proposal instead of ditching it.

In December, the EC said it planned to dump the waste and recycling legislation.

In a European Parliament committee hearing on Jan.22, FEAD vice president Peter Kurth said the commission’s own impact assessment found that full implementation of the Circular Economy Package would create 180,000 new jobs in Europe and has an economic potential of €600 billion.

“FEAD is therefore convinced that the Circular Economy Package should be supported by the commission not only for environmental reasons, but also because it could be a centerpiece of the new commission’s strategy to create growth and jobs,” Kurth said.

The UK Environmental Audit Committee last year in a report criticized the UK government for cutting back circular economy efforts instead of increasing them, stating that its approach lacked leadership.