Action Plan Circular Economy: Closing the Loop

Optimising the use of resources to ensure that growth is green and inclusive is a concept that makes sense and should lead to a major shift in the entire economy. 

Together with the Energy Union, Digital Single Market and the Internal Market for Products and Services, the Circular Economy is one of the core pillars, which, if well designed and part of a joined up and coherent policy approach will contribute towards the core overall sustainable jobs and growth objective as well as European technology leadership.
Orgalime´s industry, with its output of 1825 billion euro in 2014 and 10.3 million employed in Europe, supports it and does attach significant importance to the development of a Circular Economy policy, which is integrated with all other policy areas currently under development. 

We see particular potential in “working with the ongoing digitalisation trend in European manufacturing” as it is fit to simultaneously boost productivity, energy efficiency and resource efficiency in Europe. At the same time, European citizens will enjoy higher quality jobs at all levels. We attach a list of examples in the annex to demonstrate quickly achievable results. 

The present Commission Action Plan unfortunately falls short in tapping into these promising policy synergies. We therefore call on regulators, European and national, to exploit such synergies as a matter of priority in the transition to a more Circular Economy.