Anita Boros, Gyula Koi (eds): Sustainability and Law
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7. Questions of environmental law and environmental administrations (Anita Boros-Petra Stankovics)
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7.1. Waste management (Anita Boros)
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7.1.3. Regulation of waste management in the European Union

7.1.3. Regulation of waste management in the European Union

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The construction industry (37.1%) was responsible for the largest amount of waste generated in the European Union in 2020, while the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector produced the least amount of waste (1%).1 The minimisation of waste generation and the development of appropriate waste management methodology have long been among the focus areas of EU legislation. As a result, an intensive strategic and legislative process has taken place in recent decades.

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The Council Resolution of 24 February 1997 on the Community’s waste management strategy confirmed that the first priority of waste management is waste prevention and reuse, and considered recycling to be more favorable than energy recovery from waste. Decision 1600/2002/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 July 2002 on the establishment of the sixth Community environmental protection action program2 required the development of EU waste legislation that would cover the differentiation between wastes as well as measures for the prevention and management of waste generation. In 2003, in its announcement on the thematic strategy for reprocessing, the Commission stated that it is necessary to consistently define the concepts of recovery and disposal, as well as reprocessing.

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The European Parliament and Council Directive 2006/12/EC of April 5, 2006 on waste defined the legal framework, goals and main tools for community waste management, however, due to deficiencies in the definitions of waste, recovery and disposal, the measures to be taken in relation to the prevention of waste generation, and the rules about the entire life cycle of products and materials, this directive was repealed in 2008. It was replaced by Directive 2008/98/EC on waste and repealing certain Directives.3 The new legal regulation referred to as the Waste Framework Directive created the legal framework for waste management in the European Union, introducing, among other things, the concept of waste hierarchy into EU law, strengthening the ‘polluter pays’ principle, introducing the concept of extended producer responsibility and delimiting waste and by-products. In addition, the framework directive also introduced recycling and utilisation targets that had to be achieved by 2020 for household waste (50%) and construction and demolition waste (70%).

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In 2015, the European Commission adopted its first action plan for the circular economy, namely the sustainable and competitive operation of the Union. It also had the intention to create a strategic basis for the transition to a circular economy. In January 2018, the Commission adopted the circular economy package, which, among other things, required the development of a circular economy monitoring framework, defined the role of plastics in the circular economy, and the reduction of certain chemical substances in products and improved monitoring.

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The framework directive was amended by Directive 2018/851 as part of the package of measures focusing on circular economy and stipulated, among other things, the encouragement of the design, manufacture and use of resource-efficient, durable, repairable, reusable and developable products, primarily with regard to products containing critical raw materials. In addition, it outlined new Member State goals4, such as reducing per capita global food waste by 50% at the retail and consumer levels, as well as food loss along the production and supply chains by 2030. By 2025, at least 55% of the mass of municipal waste must be recycled. This target will increase to 60% by 2030 and 65% by 2035. In addition, it required Member States to establish separate collection systems for textile and hazardous waste generated in households by January 1, 2025, and separate collection of organic waste by December 31, 2023.

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In addition, a number of other EU laws have been adopted. Examples include: the European Green Agreement in 2019, which was aimed at making the EU economy sustainable;5 the executive decree on environmentally friendly design; the directive on single-use plastics;6 and the revised regulation on fertilizers.7 Furthermore, the Commission adopted the circular economy package in 2025.

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In 2020, the European Commission8 adopted a new action plan for circular economy, which confirms the need to reduce the pressure on natural resources through the transition to a circular economy, supporting the EU’s 2050 climate neutrality objective and the biodiversity reduction target system for products through life-cycle initiatives and sustainable consumption. In 2021, the rules on persistent organic pollutants in waste were updated,9 as well as the proposal for new rules related to waste transport.10

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In 2022, the European Commission adopted the package of measures proposed in the circular economy action plan and, among other things, the initiative for sustainable products, including the proposal for a regulation on the environmentally friendly design of sustainable products, the EU’s strategy for sustainable and circular textiles,11 and the revision of the construction products regulation.12 This year also saw the revision of EU rules on packaging and packaging waste13 and the development of a policy framework for bio-based, biodegradable and compostable plastics.14 On a European level, packaging materials lead to the production of almost 180 kg of packaging waste per person per year on average.15 The purpose of the new regulation is to support reusable packaging, to eliminate unnecessary packaging and overpackaging, and to develop the foundations of a certification system for adequate recycling.

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In 2023, the Commission adopted proposals on green claims and common rules promoting the improvement of goods, revised the circular economy monitoring framework and extensively addressed the reduction of microplastic pollution.

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In the summer of 2023, the Commission also presented a proposal for amending the Waste Framework Directive, with two main focus areas: on the one hand, reducing environmental and climate impacts, improving the quality of the environment and improving public health related to textile waste management in accordance with the waste hierarchy, and on the other hand, food waste reduction, i.e. lessening environmental and climate impacts related to food waste generation.16
 
1‘EUROSTAT 2022. Waste statistics.’ https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Waste_statistics (accessed 29 October 2024)
2Official Journal of the European Communities, (2002) 45. L 242 Document L:2002:242:TOC ISSN 0378-6978
3Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (November 19, 2008) on waste and repealing certain Directives. OJ L 312, 22.11.2008, 3–30.
4 Kecskés, G. (2022). A fenntartható fejlődés mint alkotmányos érték és államcél. [Sustainable development as a constitutional value and state goal]. Jog Állam Politika [Law State Policy], 14(Separated Issue), 227-234.
5Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions The European Green Deal, COM(2019) 640 final.
6 ‘Ecodesign: new EU rules to make sustainable products the norm.’ <https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/hu/press-room/20240419IPR20576/ecodesign-new-eu-rules-to-make-sustainable-products-the-norm> (accessed 29 October 2024) ; Such planning refers to the waste-free production, recovery and reuse of the product, in which the environmental effects of the product over its entire life cycle are taken into account, especially in the production process, packaging and logistics, use and disposal stages.
7‘Packaging waste. EU rules on packaging and packaging waste, including design and waste management.’ https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/packaging-waste_en#review (accessed 29 October 2024); Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down rules on the making available on the market of EU fertilising products and amending Regulations (EC) No 1069/2009 and (EC) No 1107/2009 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2003/2003.
8Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. A new circular economy action plan for a cleaner and more competitive Europe. COM/2020/98 final.
9 Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Annexes IV and V to Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 of the European Parliament and of the Council on persistent organic pollutants. COM (2021) 656.
10Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on shipments of waste and amending Regulations (EU) No 1257/2013 and (EU) No 2020/ 1056. COM/2021/709 final.
11Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles, COM/2022/141 final.
12
13‘Packaging waste. EU rules on packaging and packaging waste, including design and waste management.’ https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/waste-and-recycling/packaging-waste_en#review (accessed 29 October 2024)
14 Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions EU policy framework on biobased, biodegradable and compostable plastics. COM(2022) 682 final.
15
16Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2008/98/EC on waste. COM/2023/420 final.
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