With only around 12% of material resources stemming from recycled materials, the European economy remains largely linear up to this date and there is significant room for improvement through ecodesign criteria. âThe ESPR will drive proper design that will not only allow for products to be easily repaired and reused, but it will also facilitate disassembly and recycling at the end of life. Ultimately, it shall boost the use of recycled materials back into products through ambitious recycled content targets that are essential to drive ecodesign and boost circular value chainsââ, said Emmanuel Katrakis, Secretary General of EuRIC.
However, while EuRIC believes that the European Parliamentâs report on the ESPR plays a pivotal role in the adoption of an appropriate legal framework for ecodesign of products, it remains concerned by a provision that introduces recycling as a form of destruction within the framework of banning the destruction of unsold goods. âWe fully support the ban on the destruction of unsold goods and the emphasis placed on following the waste hierarchyââ, highlighted Katrakis. âHowever, we strongly believe that equating recycling with destruction is conceptually wrong.â EuRIC believes that where remanufacturing or preparation for reuse is not possible, recycling should not be excluded as an option to treat unsold goods as recycling is also a recovery operation, unlike incineration and landfilling which are both disposal operations.
