CIrcular Economy as an industry strategic pillar - ACCIRCULATE your boutique consulting firm for enabling circular supply chains

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CIRCULAR ECONOMY IN EU (*)

There is only one planet Earth, yet by 2050, the world will be consuming as if there were three. The transition to a circular economy will reduce pressure on natural resources, create sustainable growth and jobs, and is necessary to achieve the EU’s 2050 climate neutrality target and to halt biodiversity loss.

Moving away from the linear “take-make-use-dispose” model and transitioning to a regenerative growth model is essential to keep resource consumption within planetary boundaries. In a circular economy, the value of products, materials and resources is maintained in the economy for as long as possible, and the generation of waste is minimized.

The current linear economy continually increases its demands of scarce natural resources. By using and consuming in a more circular way, we can substantially reduce the impacts of human economic activities on the environment, including on biodiversity.

The circular economy will help us decouple economic growth from resource use, protecting Europe’s natural resources while boosting sustainable growth. It will help the European Union to strive to reduce its consumption footprint and double its circular material use rate in the coming decade.

The circular economy will:

enable an healthier planet and reduce pollution
reduce pressure on natural resources such as water and land use
reduce emissions to help the EU become the first climate-neutral continent
create new business opportunities and local quality jobs
enable more resilient value chains

11.8%

Up to 80%

the current circular material use rate in the EU (*)

of products’ environmental impacts are determined at the design phase (*)

100%

The EU is dependent 100% on imports from China for refined rare earth elements and refined magnesium (**)

For many specialty metals and rare-earth elements, such as lithium, gallium and neodymium, the end-of-life recycling input rate is only around 1% (**)

THE EU CLEAN INDUSTRIAL DEAL (***)

A plan for EU competitiveness and decarbonisation

Faced with high energy costs and fierce global competition, European industries need urgent support. The Clean Industrial Deal outlines concrete actions to turn decarbonisation into a driver of growth for European industries. This includes lowering energy prices, creating quality jobs and the right conditions for companies to thrive.

The Deal presents measures to boost every stage of production, with a focus on:

energy-intensive industries such as steel, metals, and chemicals, that urgently need support to decarbonise, switch to clean energy, and tackle high costs, unfair global competition, and complex regulations
the clean-tech sector which is at the heart of future competitiveness and necessary for industrial transformation, circularity, and decarbonisation.

Another element of the Deal is

circularity

which aims to reduce waste and extend the life of materials by promoting recycling, reuse, and sustainable production. Maximising EU’s limited resources and reducing overdependencies on third-country suppliers for raw materials is crucial for a competitive and resilient market.