The European Commission has adopted a new Circular Economy Action Plan – one of the main blocks of the European Green Deal, Europe’s new agenda for sustainable growth.

Building on the work done since 2015, the new Plan focuses on the design and production for a circular economy, with the aim to ensure that the resources used are kept in the EU economy for as long as possible.

The new Action Plan announces initiatives along the entire life cycle of products, targeting for example their design, promoting circular economy processes, fostering sustainable consumption, and aiming to ensure that the resources used are kept in the EU economy for as long as possible.

It introduces legislative and non-legislative measures targeting areas where action at the EU level brings real added value.

Actions

The new Circular Economy Action presents measures to:

• Make sustainable products the norm in the EU;
• Empower consumers and public buyers;
• Focus on the sectors that use most resources and where the potential for circularity is high such as: electronics and ICT; batteries and vehicles; packaging; plastics; textiles; construction and buildings; food; water and nutrients;
• Ensure less waste;
• Make circularity work for people, regions and cities,
• Lead global efforts on circular economy.

Key documents

• Communication: A new Circular Economy Action Plan for a Cleaner and More Competitive Europe – publication – press release – questions and answers – factsheet
• Communication: A new Circular Economy Action Plan for a Cleaner and More Competitive Europe – annex
• Implementation tracking table
• Staff working document ‘Leading the way to a global circular economy: state of play and outlook’