When dealing with packaging there seems to be confusion between reuse and prevention. Despite the fact that both contribute to reducing waste arisings, from a policy-making perspective they should be treated as different concepts.
Available in English.
This paper compiles evidence of the boundless aspects of packaging pollution, and demonstrates how solving the packaging issue can help tackling other major world problems, such as global warming, toxicity in our food and beverages and waste trade.
Available in English.
When dealing with packaging there seems to be a confusion between the actions referring to reuse and to prevention. Despite the fact that both contribute to reducing waste arisings, from a policy-making perspective, they should be treated as different concepts.
In view of the upcoming revision of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD), this paper aims to clarify what should be defined as packaging reuse and what should be defined as packaging waste prevention and which are the policy measures that encompass one and the other.
Available in English.
Well-managed pool systems for reusable packaging are a key instrument to make efficient and effective reuse systems work, and should be an essential accompanying tool to any reuse targets. This paper intends to provide guidance on this topic and propose policy proposals to take into account when creating EU legislation on reuse.
Available in English, German, French, Dutch and Spanish.
In the first half of 2022, the European Union (EU) will take the first steps in becoming a global leader in taking on an ugly problem: fast fashion and its mountains of waste.
The EU will become the first world region to target the flaws in fashion so directly, with regulations that promise to improve the circularity of textiles; stop overproduction; empower consumers to make more responsible choices; and make fashion brands accountable for their massive waste problem.
This political briefing by Changing Markets Foundation, the European Environmental Bureau, and Zero Waste Europe focuses on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), a powerful market-based tool that is expected to be at the centre of the European Commission’s upcoming Textiles Strategy.
Available in English.
Zero Waste Europe welcomes the European Commission’s initiative to revise the Waste Framework Directive with the aim to improve the overall environmental impact of waste management in the EU. The focus on qualitatively improving the recycling system, as well as the focus on waste prevention, are of high importance as, so far, the EU efforts on the circular economy have only led to a quantitative increase in recycling. This approach has led to significant progress, but these remain insufficient with regard to the EU environmental ambitions.
Through this revision process, Zero Waste Europe hopes to see the EU complementing its existing legislation with an integrated waste prevention framework, enabling high-quality recycling and a set of concrete tools to reduce resource use and enable waste prevention on the ground.
Available in English.
The objective of this briefing is to provide a recommendation for categorising thermal decomposition of plastic waste into feedstock molecules as chemical recovery. This covers mainly pyrolysis and gasification techniques.
The European waste hierarchy for a circular economy must be operationalised to favour reduction, reuse, and, as a last resort, recycling. It is, thus, essential to distinguish plastic waste recycling operations from recovery techniques. As such, pre-treatment of plastic waste into feedstock molecule shall be classified as chemical recovery and not chemical recycling.
Available in English.
Zero Waste Europe welcomes the initiative of the European Commission to start the process to set-up binding food waste reduction targets across the EU. Food waste is a multifold problem that not only causes environmental and climate damage but is also morally unacceptable.
Therefore, it is essential to properly address this issue by adopting efficient and ambitious targets for the coming years.
Available in English.
To ensure the EU is having a neutral impact on climate change by 2050, the European Commission is currently reviewing all relevant EU policies, including the Emissions Trading System (ETS), and proposing extending the ETS to new sectors of the economy. This revision is a crucial opportunity to subject this carbon-intensive municipal waste incineration industry to the “polluter pays” principle by pricing in the carbon cost of burning waste to progressively reduce emissions from the sector.
Available in English
We cannot aim to achieve a truly safe circular economy with ambitious reductions in resource use, while we continue to offload the burden of our plastic waste elsewhere. This manifesto is a call to EU institutions to legislate, through the Waste Shipment Regulation, an end to plastic waste exports from the Union and intra-EU management of European plastic waste that is in line with a genuine circular economy.
In the context of #ReusableNappyWeek 2021, we throw the spotlight on baby nappies by exposing the impacts related to the production and consumption of conventional single-use baby nappies; showcasing the reusable solutions and their benefits; and demanding policy change at the European, national and local level.
Available in English
One third of reported plastic packaging recycling is actually shipped outside of the European Union! Exporting waste externalises the problem, placing the burden on other countries. The revision of the Waste Shipment Regulation offers an opportunity for change! Read our recommendations.
Available in English.
Together with the University of Utrecht and Reloop we released a report highlighting that reusable packaging produces far fewer carbon emissions than their single-use counterparts. Read our policy recommendations to reduce packaging waste and to build efficiently reusable systems.
Available in English
Greenhouse gas emissions from Waste-to-Energy are currently hidden in the energy sector and therefore overlooked in waste sector accounting, giving us the false impression that WTE is an effective low-carbon waste solution. Our latest briefing shows that the trends across Europe are telling a different story.
Available in English
We are asking the European Commission to act by setting the necessary policy framework to support and empower menstruators to access safe, fair & circular menstrual products – in line with the EU’s circular economy objective. Our manifesto is open for signatures at the following link: http://bit.ly/signmanifesto
Zero Waste Europe released a policy briefing to act as guidance for the European Commission. In light of their proposals on accounting methodology for potential greenhouse gas emissions from so called ‘recycled carbon fuels’.
Available in English
Zero Waste Europe released a policy briefing to act as a tool for those working at the city and municipal level in Europe. The briefing provides an overview of the key targets related to waste management that EU governments must achieve and by when, whilst also acting as a tool to help local zero waste groups and activists in their advocacy work.
Available in English and Czech.
Drawing from the findings of the pioneer study on the state of packaging free shops in Europe, Zero Waste Europe makes the case for the European Union to put in place a set of legislative and economic measures to support expanding the packaging free shops market.
Available in English
