EC publishes resource efficiency manifesto

The European Commission's European Resource Efficiency Platform (EREP), launched earlier this year by EU Environment Commissioner, Janez Potocnik, has published a ‘Manifesto for a Resource-Efficient Europe’ following a meeting on Friday (14 December).

According to the EC, the manifesto came about in response to ‘growing pressures on resources and the environment’, which has given the EU ‘no choice but to go for the transition to a resource-efficient and ultimately regenerative circular economy’.

Now, the EREP – the body responsible for providing high-level guidance to the European Commission and members states on the ‘transition to a more resource-efficient economy’ – is calling on businesses, labour and civil society leaders to support the resource efficiency manifesto and help see the ‘reindustrialisation of the European economy on the basis of resource-efficient growth that will last’.

The manifesto outlines that a ’circular, resource-efficient and resilient economy’ could be achieved through the following actions:

• Encouraging innovation and accelerating public and private investment in resource-efficient technologies, systems and skills, through a ‘dynamic and predictable political, economic and regulatory framework, a supportive financial system and sustainable growth enhancing resource-efficient priorities in public expenditure and procurement’;
• Implementing and adopting ‘smart regulation’, standards and codes of conduct that create a ‘level playing-field’, reward front-runners and accelerate the transition to a resource-efficient economy while taking into account the social and international implications of actions;
• Abolishing environmentally harmful subsidies and tax-breaks that ‘waste public money on obsolete practices’ while addressing affordability for people whose incomes are hardest-pressed, and using taxes and charges to stimulate innovation;
• Creating better market conditions for products and services that have lower impacts across their life-cycles and are ‘durable, repairable and recyclable’ by progressively taking the worst performing products off the market and encouraging sustainable sourcing etc;
• Integrating policies on scarce resources at national, European and global level
• Setting targets to achieve a resource-efficient economy and society by 2020 and ensuring that all organisations ‘above a meaningful size and impact‘ are held accountable to measure and report key non-financial progress indicators on a comparable basis.

Speaking of the release of the manifesto, EU Environment Commissioner, Janez Potocnik told Resource: “This is an important step because the platform brings together civil society, NGOs, industry and policy-makers in order to address one of the most important issues facing Europe and the world. In addition to the economic and financial crisis, we face an impending crisis in resource availability. It is essential for Europe’s competitiveness that we move towards a circular economy where nothing is wasted and where environment and economy go hand in hand.”

President of the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) and member of the EREP, Mikael Karlsson, said: “The fact that participants from a broad spectrum of political parties and institutions, as well as from civil society and business, were able to reach consensus on the importance of setting targets, adopting regulations, phasing out harmful subsidies and reforming the tax system to encourage resource efficiency and to promote the circular economy was a significant achievement.“

EEB Policy Director Pieter de Pous, added: “The Platform needs to provide ambitious and clear political support and guidance to the Commission’s ongoing work to prepare new regulatory instruments in the field of waste and products that rewards front runners and helps build an economy that respects planetary limits.”

The EREP is now working on a set of short-term policy recommendations to address the issues listed in the manifesto for June 2013.

Read more about the ‘Manifesto for a Resource-Efficient Europe’.