"Regulating Consumer Products for a Circular Economy“

Rosalind MalcolmEnvironmental Regulatory Research Group, School of Law,

University of Surrey

Integrated product policy

•Life-cycle thinking

•Whole life not just end-of-life

•Regulating products for life (not just for Christmas)

Circular economy

‘Circular economy’, (International Society for Industrial Ecology, the Royal Society of Arts, Ellen MacArthur Foundation)

‘Performance Economy’ (Walter Stahel) where economic activity restructured to use labour rather than energy as the main economic factor. 

Some recent reports

• McKinsey Global Institute Resource Revolution: Meeting the worlds energy, materials, food and water needs

• Green Alliance / CBI Reinventing the wheel: a circular economy for resource scarcity

• Ellen MacArthur Foundation Towards the circular economy: Economic and business rationale for an accelerated transition

EU approach to an integratedpolicy for products“Integrated Product Policy applies to all products. There is no single policy tool that can be used to encourage the greening of all products at all stages of the life cycle, but a combination of a number of policy instruments. These policy tools construct the IPP toolbox. They should be used in coherence with each other, in a way that they reinforce each others’ effect.”

Controlling the process or the product?• Salami approach• Current regulatory approach controls the

process - not the product• Disconnect between production and

consumption• Need to build a closed loop (circular)

economy with a zero waste strategy

Process controls

• Materials and Energy Extraction

• Distribution

• Manufacturing

Process controls

Use?

Waste

Three key documents

•EU Strategy on Sustainable Development• Sustainable consumption and production

•EU’s Sixth Environmental Action Programme

• Business and consumers should play greater role in achieving more environmentally sound products and consumption.

•UN Ten-year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production

IPP documents

• Green Paper on Integrated Product Policy COM(2001)68

• And expert panel reports

IPP Toolbox

• State Aid• Voluntary Agreements• Standardisation• Environmental Management System• Eco-design• Labelling and Product Declarations• Eco-label • Energy labelling• Greening Public Procurement• Patenting

Some Practical Application of Life-Cycle Thinking Within the EU

• Sustainable Consumption and Production and Sustainable Industrial Policy (SCP/SIP) Action Plan

• Directive 2009/125/EC (the Ecodesign Directive)

Green product development

Benefits of ecodesign– The Working plan for the original Energy

using Products Directive 2005/32/EC (the EuP Directive)

– Ecodesign Working Plan and Preparatory StudiesA Commission Communication: Establishment of the Working Plan for 2009 – 2011 under the Ecodesign Directive

Ecodesign Directive

• Framework Directive– ‘The ecodesign of products is a crucial factor in

the Community strategy on Integrated Product Policy. As a preventive approach, designed to optimise the environmental performance of products, while maintaining their functional qualities, it provides genuine new opportunities for manufacturers, consumers and society as a whole.’ (Preamble)

• Requires implementing measures by product group

Implementing measures

Product category Legal Documents Air conditioners and comfort fans Regulation Circulators Regulation Domestic dishwashers Regulation

Domestic lightingRegulation Amendment

Domestic refrigeration Regulation Domestic washing machines Regulation Electric motors Regulation External power supplies Regulation Fans (driven by motors with an electric input power between 125W and 500kW)

Regulation

Simple set top boxes Regulation Standby and off mode losses of electrical and electronic equipment (household and office)

Regulation Guidelines

Televisions Regulation

Tertiary sector lighting (office and street)Regulation Amendment

What future for the regulation of consumer products?

• Clear and better regulation on ecodesign based on life cycle thinking for green product development (a law of things: ‘codex rerum’)

• Regulating for a closed loop (circular) economy with a zero waste strategy

Thanks!

Rosalind Malcolm

Environmental Regulatory Research Group, School of Law

http://www.surrey.ac.uk/errg/r.malcolm@surrey.ac.uk