The Rhineland-Palatinate Council for Sustainable Development has presented a position paper on the circular economy. The recommendations go well beyond the measures envisaged in the planned federal packaging legislation and have met with a nationwide response from associations and environmental organisations.
In the 18-page document, the panel of experts outlines key areas of action to establish the circular economy as a key pillar for climate protection, resource security and economic resilience. Associations and non-governmental organisations see this as a signal effect that extends beyond national borders.
The timing of the publication is explosive: at the same time, a decision on the new Packaging Law Implementation Act is pending at federal level. According to several experts, however, the planned regulations fall short. Central approaches of the ZNE paper - such as strengthening recycling markets and ensuring the economic viability of recycling - are not reflected in the current draft law.
The position paper has received support from the German Sustainable Economy Association (BNW) and the Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU), among others. Both organisations are calling on the German government to take the recommendations of the Council for the Future into account when further developing its circular economy policy. They point to the increasing economic pressure on recycling companies, particularly in the plastics sector, and to structural competitive disadvantages compared to the use of virgin materials.
Members of the Council for the Future also emphasise that the technical feasibility of a high-quality circular economy has already been proven many times over. The real challenge lies less in the technology than in the lack of political and economic incentives. Among other things, they call for a reliable regulatory framework, clear standards and greater consideration of circular solutions in public procurement.
The paper also emphasises the importance of education and training. The principles of resource conservation and the circular economy must be anchored throughout the entire educational landscape in order to secure the transformation in the long term. The Council for the Future believes that the federal and state governments have an equal responsibility here.
The following measures are called for in the position paper at federal level:
1. instead of consumers ultimately bearing the European plastic tax, in future the distributors of climate-damaging new plastic will be responsible for the levy - while post-consumer recyclates will remain tax-exempt. This measure creates an economic incentive for increased investment in recycling technologies and at the same time relieves the German state coffers by 1.4 billion euros.
2. in order to create a „one-level playing field“, i.e. fair competitive conditions, it is important to stop subsidising unecological single-use plastic. This requires a ban on environmentally and climate-damaging subsidies by ending the exemption of new plastic production from the German mineral oil tax. New plastic must not be made artificially cheaper than recyclate through the EEG levy exemption. The mineral oil industry in Europe receives 128 billion euros in subsidies every year - a disaster from an ecological point of view.
3. it is also proposed that a fund be set up, for example within Section 21 of the German Packaging Act, into which all companies that use virgin plastic pay. Only those who use recyclates should receive a refund. The funds should be channelled specifically into research, development and the expansion of modern, high-quality recycling processes. At the same time, statutory minimum quotas for the use of recyclates should be introduced, coupled with incentives for exceeding these quotas by up to 100 per cent and binding quality standards for imported recyclates.
4. recycling plants in third countries should be obliged to prove compliance with European quality and environmental standards by means of independent audits. Only equivalent recyclates may enter the European internal market. In addition to ensuring fair competitive conditions, it is also important to promote regional value chains and improve the infrastructure for waste management.
Source: Werner & Mertz
