Brussels – The European Commission has adopted a new plastics strategy aiming to protect the environment from plastic pollution and foster growth and innovation in the circular economy.
The ‘European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy’ presents plans to increase recyclability of packaging, improve recycling facilities and standardise collection and sorting of waste across Europe.
The Commission has argued that there is a strong business case for transforming how products are designed, produced, used and recycled in the EU. Their calculations show that only 6% of plastic materials come from recycled materials, and that failure to recycle costs the European economy €105 billion per year.
The plan also aims to ensure that all plastic packaging in the EU is recyclable by 2030, that the consumption of single-use plastics is reduced, and that the use of microplastics is restricted.
Additionally, the Commission plans to support national awareness campaigns to prevent littering, will invest €100 million to develop ‘smarter and more recyclable’ materials, as well as technologies and processes to remove hazardous substances from recycled plastics.
For more information, see the Commission Press Release, and the videos below.
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