The building sector accounts for more than half of Germany's waste and at the same time binds enor-mous quantities of mineral and metallic raw materials.

The rising demand for critical raw materials presents Europe with new challenges in supplying its industry. Consequently, in addition to new mining projects, previously underutilized sources are increasingly coming into focus.

The United States recovered at least 5.1 billion pounds of post-consumer plastic for recycling in 2024.

The ETH-Soil project is supporting the development of sustainable fertiliser production in Ethiopia through the use of biochar-based fertilisers.

RecyClass has completed more than 500 RecyClass recyclability tests for plastic packaging features in line with its science-based evaluation protocols.

The Advanced Recycling Conference 2026 will take place on 17 and 18 November 2026 in Cologne, Germany, with the option to participate online.

The Renewable Materials Conference 2026 will take place from 22 to 24 September 2026 in Siegburg near Cologne, Germany, with additional online participation available.

The necessity of the transformation to a circular economy is hardly questioned anymore. Nevertheless, there is no practical implementation. This applies in particular to the plastics value chain. The problem is that climate neutrality by 2045 requires a completely new set-up of the value chain. However, the necessary investments can hardly be made by the players. In particular, the competitiveness of plastics recyclers is threatened. For this reason, the position paper "Options for a Functional Market for Plastic Recyclates" by the Wuppertal Institute on behalf of the German Federal Environmental Foundation examined the framework conditions required for a sustainable market for plastic recyclates.

Glass packaging collection for recycling in the European Union reached a record rate of 82.2% in 2024, according to the latest figures published by Close the Glass Loop.

The circular economy is considered the key to resource and climate protection. But it has long been an important employment factor. A global survey of "Employment in the Circular Economy" by Circle Economy, the World Bank Group, the International Labour Organization and Page shows that up to 142 million people worldwide work in circular activities.

Food waste is one of the biggest unsolved problems of European waste management. Despite clear political goals and the obligation to collect organic waste separately, a large part of organic waste remains in residual waste. The study "The case for Extended Producer Responsibility for food products" by Zero Waste Europe and the Bio-based Industries Consortium brings into play an instrument that has long been established in other waste streams: Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).

Stabilising an increasingly renewable electricity system is a key challenge of the energy transition. Flexible biogas and biomethane plants are coming more into focus, as they already provide considerable controllable power and build on existing infrastructure. According to the position paper "Biogas and Capacity Markets - On the Role of Biomass as a Flexibility Option in the Electricity Sector" by DBFZ and UFZ, biomass plants could make a much greater contribution to security of supply in the future than previously assumed.

On 14 October 2026, International E-Waste Day will focus on fast tech waste, a rapidly growing stream of discarded low-cost electronic products. The annual awareness campaign, organised by the WEEE Forum, aims to draw attention to the environmental, economic and safety challenges associated with these products and encourages organisations worldwide to participate.

The European PVC industry has renewed its commitment to sustainability and industrial competitiveness with the launch of the revised VinylPlus 2030 Commitment. The announcement took place during the 14th VinylPlus Sustainability Forum, held in Genval, Belgium, on 10 and 11 June 2026.

The German steel and metal recycling sector is moving towards a new organisational structure. On 11 June 2026, the BDSV and the VDM signed a merger agreement that creates the legal basis for the Circular Metal Association (CMA). The new organisation will represent companies across the steel and metal recycling value chain in Germany and at European and international level.