Under following link you find the “Legislative Train”: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/

One of the most influential European legislative initiatives is the Circular Economy Action Plan.

In the following a brief overview is provided on how this initiative may be of relevance to which stakeholder group.

Circular Economy Action Plan

EU’s new circular economy action plan (CEAP) was adopted in 2020 and it is one of the main building blocks of the European Green Deal. The transition to a circular economy will reduce the demand of natural resources and create sustainable growth and jobs. CEAP affects the entire life cycle of products: it promotes circular design and circular economy processes, encourages sustainable consumption, and aims to ensure that waste is prevented and the resources used are kept in the economy for as long as possible.

CEAP affects various stakeholders in the flooring value chain:

Floor covering manufacturer:

• Required to design products that are more durable and easier to reuse, repair and recycle
• Increasing use of recycled content in products
• High focus in the substitution of hazardous substances and safe-by-design chemicals.

Recycler:

• Increased demand for recycled materials in manufacturing of new products
• Increased opportunities due to higher recycling targets

Producer responsibility organizations:

• Extended producer responsibility schemes to cover more product categories

Innovators:

• Incentives for developing circular economy solutions and new business models such as product as a service
• Opportunities in areas like product design, recycling technologies, and digital solutions
• Support for research and innovation in circular economy practices

Consumers:

• Empowering consumers to make informed choices with better information on product sustainability and repairability
• Access to more durable and repairable products
• Increased availability of reuse and repair services

Procurers:

• Promotes minimum mandatory green public procurement criteria and targets in sectoral legislations
• Promotes using Level(s) to integrate life cycle assessment of buildings in public procurement and the EU sustainable finance framework