waste-to-energy is a key enabler of the circular economy by recovering energy
from waste that would otherwise go to landfill. Our members facilities play an
important role in the decarbonisation challenge by not only producing renewable
energy, but have plans underway to produce low-carbon heat and hydrogen for the mobility sector.

WASTE POLICY

  • New Green Deal : The European Green Deal, approved in 2020, is a set of policy initiatives by the European Commission with the overarching aim of making the European Union climate neutral in 2050.
  • The Circular Economy Action Plan. The EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) was a comprehensive body of legislative and non-legislative actions adopted in 2015, which aimed to transition the European economy from a linear to a circular model.
  • EU ETS. The EU Emissions Trading Scheme is a cornerstone of the EU’s policy to combat climate change and its key tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Following a revision of the ETS as part of the “Fit for 55” package, the European Commission aims to update several regulatory acts for the implementation of the ETS. This include the potential inclusion of WtE in the EU ETS from 2028.
  • IED. The Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) is the main EU instrument regulating pollutant emissions from industrial installations. In 2023, the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) was revised to enhance protection for human health and the environment by cutting emissions from industrial sites, including livestock farms, into the air, water, and soil.

ENERGY & CLIMATE

  • RePowerEU. In response to the hardships and global energy market disruption caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Commission is implementing its REPowerEU Plan. This aims to rapidly reduce the EU’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels. As part of this plan, the EU proposed a Green Deal Industrial Plan for Europe in February 2023.
  • The Green Deal Industrial Plan. As an addition to the 2019 EU Green Deal, the Green Deal Industrial Plan was introduced in 2023. The goal is to scale up manufacturing of clean technologies in the EU and make sure the Union is well-equipped for the clean-energy transition.

This plan is composed of three main initiatives:

    1. The Net Zero Industry Act. The European Commission proposed the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) in March 2023. The NZIA will aim to help strengthen the European manufacturing capacity of net-zero technologies and overcome barriers to scaling up the manufacturing capacity in Europe.
    2. Electricity Market Reform. The reform of the electricity market is the EU’s long-term response to the energy crisis experienced in 2022. Through common energy market rules and cross-border infrastructure, the goal is that energy can be produced in one EU country and delivered to consumers in another.
    3. The Critical Raw Materials Act. With the European Raw Materials Act, the EU aims to ensure secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials for Europe’s industry and significantly lower the EU’s dependency on imports from single country suppliers.
  • Fit for 55. The Fit for 55 package is a set of proposals to revise and update EU legislation and to put in place new initiatives with the aim of ensuring that EU policies are in line with the climate goals agreed by the Council and the European Parliament.
  • The Renewable Energy Directive. The Renewable Energy Directive is the legal framework for the development of clean energy across all sectors of the EU economy, supporting cooperation between EU countries towards this goal. Given the need to speed up the EU’s clean energy transition, the Renewable Energy Directive EU/2018/2001 was revised in 2023. It sets an overall renewable energy target of at least 42.5% binding at EU level by 2030 – but aiming for 45%.
  • EU Hydrogen Strategy. The EU strategy on hydrogen was adopted in 2020. It focusses policy action in key 5 areas for the development of hydrogen: investment support; support production and demand; creating a hydrogen market and infrastructure; research and cooperation and international cooperation.
  • Hydrogen Delegated Acts. The Delegated Act on a methodology for renewable fuels on non-biological origin, defines under which conditions hydrogen, hydrogen-based fuels, or other energy carriers can be considered as renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBO).