Members of the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety committee (ENVI) have amended the EU waste package legislation to raise the recycling rate to 70% from 2030.
Currently, the recycling and composting rate across the EU is 44%, compared to just 31% in 2004, but the members of the committee want to be even more ambition by 2030.
MEPs on the committee would also like to see a 50% reduction in food waste by the same date.
ENVI lead MEP Simona Bonafè said: “The ENVI committee has shown it believes in the transition towards a circular economy. We decided to restore the ambitious recycling and landfill targets in line with what the commission had originally proposed in 2014.
“There will no longer be the possibility for Member States with the lowest recycling rate to have a blanket derogation. They will be able to request a derogation, but it will be subject to specific conditions.”
Under the amendments, 70% by weight of municipal waste should be recycled or prepared for reuse, against European Commission proposals of 65%.
For packaging materials such as paper and cardboard, plastics, glass, metal and wood, MEPs propose an 80% target for 2030 with interim 2025 targets for each material.
Proposals from the committee will now be put to a full vote of the European Parliament on 13-16 March.
