European Commission wants better implementation of waste legislation

A leading figure at the European Commission says the current focus is on better implementation and enforceability of waste policy rather than new biowaste legislation. Karolina Fras, acting deputy head […]

A leading figure at the European Commission says the current focus is on better implementation and enforceability of waste policy rather than new biowaste legislation.

Karolina Fras, acting deputy head of the unit for sustainable production and consumption at the commission, said: “We’re looking at having a dedicated group of people to work with member states, to work with their customs people or to work with landfill people, to train them and share best practice.

“Currently we have a very small group of people but we need to have people who can go there and check what is happening on the ground.”

Ms Fras highlighted figures which showed that 19% of the cases started by the Environment Commission in the European Court of Justice related to waste.

She told delegates at the Futuresource conference that there was the potential for biowaste targets to be looked at as part of the commission’s planned review of the targets in 2014.

She said: “We might look at separate collection or treatment of biowaste targets when we look at other targets.”

Ms Fras said current goals, such as all EU member states reaching a 50% household recycling rate by 2020 were not cast in stone and said they would be looked at in 2014 along with commercial and industrial waste and biowaste.

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