EuCIA, together with partners Cefic UP/VE, Epoxy Europe, European Boating Industry (EBI), Glass Fibre Europe, WindEurope, and Cement Europe, has published a joint position paper on the upcoming Circular Economy Act.
By championing secondary raw materials and incentivising circular business models, the Circular Economy Act represents a pivotal opportunity to unlock the full potential of composites for a sustainable future. The industry has already demonstrated the feasibility of the collection and reuse of composite components and several technologies to reuse or recycle these materials are technology mature, making composites circularity a viable and realistic option. However, in the absence of a supportive regulatory framework and incentives, most end-of-life composite materials are not yet recycled.
Our associations believe in the environmental and economic value of composite circularity and we have been working collaboratively to improve the circularity of composite materials. Together, we have identified several regulatory solutions that could enable the deployment and commercialisation of sustainable waste treatment solutions for end-of-life composites.
The position paper presents three priorities:
- Support the business case of recycled materials, making it economically rewarding;
- Strengthen waste classification and traceability, to enable efficient collection, reuse and recycling of composite parts;
- Ensure technology neutrality in recycling pathways, recognising and supporting all proven solutions.
Read more about these priority areas and related policy asks in the position paper The Circular Economy Act and composites.
The new EuCIA sectorial alliance, the European Circular Composites Alliance (ECCA), is bringing stakeholders together to drive collective action and realise the composites industry’s circular future.
