Excluding financial support to these obsolete technologies within the Cohesion Fund post-2020 will allow to free resources to support waste prevention, reuse and recycling, and help Member States to meet the 2035 circular economy targets.
Janek Vahk, Development and Policy Coordinator at Zero Waste Europe, said: “This is a significant step towards a more efficient use of resources, which will bring substantial net savings for businesses, public authorities and consumers, while creating jobs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions”.
However, Zero Waste Europe is concerned about the exemptions allowing to subsidise waste burning plants in Europe’s peripheral regions, which could result in an enormous financial burden on those already economically restrained communities, and interfere with their recycling objectives.
Vahk said: “Nothing prevents these regions from achieving ambitious waste reduction and recycling targets – but waste incineration can slow them down. Why would we promote in our islands the same antiquated technologies that we phasing out in mainland Europe?”.
Zero Waste Europe calls on the European Parliament’s plenary to confirm the exclusion of waste disposal and incineration practices from the scope of the Cohesion Fund, and to strengthen the proposal by removing unjustified exemptions.
