Europe needs to embrace the closed loop model, says Belgian EU Presidency

Just two weeks after taking office, Mrs Schauvliege hosted a Council on Sustainable Materials Management in Ghent, formulating her objectives- se artikel her:

Mrs Joke Schauvliege, Flemish minister for Environment, Nature and Culture and President of the EU’s Environment Council.

“We must start to think cyclically: using waste as a raw material for new products. At the informal Council meeting on Sustainable Materials Management, we also want to convince Europe about this cradle-to-cradle approach to materials.”

“With sustainable materials management, we are placing a new theme on the agenda. We must deal with our materials, and with our energy, more efficiently. At the end of their life we must be able to reuse materials as new raw materials. This is called completing the cycle.”

The idea, already taken onboard by the Dutch government and the authorities of certain Chinese provinces, is gaining many converts and thanks to Joke Schauvliege’s initiative, it is now finding a new platform. Taking advantage of the European Union Council’s rotating presidency, the Flemish minister for Environment, Nature and Culture aims to make the issue a political one, presenting the closed-loop vision to all 27 EU member states.

The paradigm shift necessary to make the transition towards a sustainable economy involves profound changes, which can only be made in a reasonable timeframe if a strong political will is at work. Looking at specific targets, the Belgian Presidency has identified four major phases that will need a combined set of policies: extraction, production, consumption and waste. These areas need a re-think to break away from the linear “take – make – dispose” model our current economy still relies upon.