Two important projects for the circular economy are on the agenda of next week's plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. For one, the preliminary schedule for 9 September includes a vote on the amendments to the EU End-of-Life Vehicles Regulation (ELVR) which were adopted at the beginning of July by the Environment Committee and the Internal Market Committee.
Following the vote, representatives of the Parliament and the Council can begin negotiations on those aspects of the Regulation where the positions of the two legislative bodies diverge, with the objective of reaching a compromise on the final version of the Regulation. The Council’s negotiating position on the Regulation on "circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles" was agreed at the EU environment ministers' meeting in June.
For amendments to the EU Waste Framework Directive (WFD) related mainly to textiles and food waste, a provisional agreement was reached in February in the "trilogue" negotiations between representatives of Parliament and the Council moderated by the European Commission. On 9 September, Parliament is scheduled to give its final approval to the negotiated compromise. If the Council subsequently endorses the negotiation outcome, a process commonly regarded as a formality, the amended Directive will be adopted and will enter into force following its publication in the Official Journal of the EU.
Associations in the recycling and waste management sector as well as environmental organisations had pressed for the swiftest possible adoption of the Directive in view of the crisis in the textiles reuse and recycling market. The Directive will introduce mandatory extended producer responsibility (EPR) for clothing and other textile products.
