New coalition agreement encourages more Circular Economy in Germany
The upcoming German government encourages more Circular Economy (CE) within their coalition agreement as an efficient protection for climate and resources and for sustainable economic development and jobs. The designated government consisting of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), The Green Party (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) and the Free Democrats (FDP) published their coalition agreement under the headline “Daring more progress”.
One of the goals is to reduce primary raw material consumption and closed material cycles. The coalition wants to adapt the existing legal framework, define clear targets and review waste legislation.
See below further plans concerning CE within the agreement.
The new agreement is a good step in the right direction and will hopefully support and drive Circular Economy within Germany.
Further plans for CE within the new agreement
- Bundling of existing raw materials policy strategies in a "National Circular Economy Strategy". Advocate uniform standards in the EU
- Define Europe-wide uniform requirements for products in dialog with manufacturers.
- Products must be durable, reusable, recyclable and, if possible, repairable
- Strengthening extended producer responsibility at European level
- Introducing digital product passports, supporting companies in their implementation and upholding the principle of data economy
- Strengthen waste avoidance through legal targets and ecologically beneficial reusable, return and deposit systems as well as industry agreements
- Support innovative, sustainable ideas such as shared use
- Establishing an incentive system to dispose of certain electrical appliances and hazardous lithium-ion batteries in an environmentally friendly manner and to feed them into the circular economy
- Reduce the destruction of returned goods
- Reward resource-conserving and recycling-friendly packaging design and the use of recyclates with a fund model anchored in law
- Introduce a recycling label
- Creating new high-quality material cycles by accelerating the development of quality standards for recyclates
- Quality-assured waste products are to be released from waste legislation and gain product status
- Stipulating higher recycling quotas and a product-specific minimum quota for the use of recyclates and secondary raw materials at European level
- Include chemical recycling as a recycling option in the Packaging Act
- Advocate a Europe-wide end to the landfilling of municipal waste
- Taking decisive action against illegal waste exports. Under European law, the export of waste should only be possible in certified recycling facilities
- Level playing field for plastic recyclates
Read the whole agreement
here.