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EUROPEAN COMPOST NETWORK
ECN e.V.
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Network for Organic Resources and Biological Treatment
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ECN E-BULLETIN No. 11_2022
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EU Commission │ Environmental Implementation Review 2022
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EU Commission urges for better application of EU environmental rules
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The EU Commission published the third edition of the Environmental Implementation Review (EIR), a reporting tool which shows the state of play in the implementation of EU environmental law. The main environmental policy areas tackled in the review are: biodiversity, circular economy, water, climate, and air pollution. Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, Virginijus Sinkevičius, referred to the EIR as a “call of action” since, while it shows progress in some areas, the implementation gap is getting wider in others.
As regards circular economy and waste management, the EU’s new circular economy action plan of March 2020 intends to reduce the EU's consumption footprint and double the EU's circular material use rate by 2030. To assess the progress in the waste sector, the Commission took into consideration several aspects, (the secondary use of materials, resource productivity and the existence of circular strategies and programmes at national level) as well as assessing the state of play of the transposition and implementation of several legislative measures, including the 2018 waste package. The findings show that waste prevention remains an important challenge in all Member States, and in some countries substandard landfills still need to be tackled. All in all, compliance with the basic obligations of the Waste Framework and Landfill is yet to be achieved.
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Click here to find the full review!
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EU Bioeconomy strategy │ EU Bioeconomy Strategy Progress Report
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EU Commission’s progress report on the EU Bioeconomy Strategy published
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The Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (RTD) of the EU Commission developed the Progress Report “European Bioeconomy Policy: Stocktaking and future developments”. The report outlines the state of play of the European Bioeconomy and assess the progress of the implementation of the 2018 EU Bioeconomy Strategy and its Action Plan. Moreover, the study identifies the gaps and future opportunities of the bioeconomy policy, in light of recent policy developments under the European Green Deal. In the introductory remarks, the authors underlined the fact that bioeconomy policies should be built while considering all sustainability dimensions, that is to say: managing of land and biological resources within ecologic boundaries (environmental); sustainable value chains and consumption (economic); and social fairness and just transition (social).
The analysis shows that national bioeconomy strategies are becoming more numerous throughout Europe, with 28 EU regions having their own dedicated bioeconomy strategies in place. Indeed, based on data from the years 2012-2021, Europe is generally moving towards the objectives described in the Bioeconomy Strategy. However, the trends also show some negative developments as Europe is facing persistent environmental challenges. Assessments reveal terrestrial and marine ecosystems in the EU under strain due to anthropogenic causes (mainly consumption patterns), which require additional focus.
The report includes findings on the relationship between the European Green Deal initiatives and the five objectives of the Bioeconomy Strategy, with the latter already highly contributing to the objectives of the former.
Finally, the document summarises the progress made on 14 actions under three action areas of the 2018 Bioeconomy Strategy and Action Plan, bearing in mind that most of the activities have medium and long-term processes and will deliver their final results in the future.
The Commission staff working document accompanying the report is providing further data and complementary information, providing also examples of projects relevant for the bioeconomy.
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Click here for the full version of the report!
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EU Commission │ Expert Group on Soil Protection
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Minutes from June meetings of the EU Commission’s Expert Group on Soil Protection made available
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The Expert Group on Soil Protection, formed by Member State experts, met on 8 and 29 June 2022 to discuss various policy aspects related to the Soil Health Law (SHL), with minutes from both meetings made recently available. According to the minutes from the 8 June 2022 meeting, the Commission asked the Expert Group’s participants for their views on whether to include data other than contamination data on soil certificates. Member States shared their positions on soil certificates, suggesting to carefully assess the costs and administrative burdens of including additional data to the certificates, also agreeing with the Commission on finding an equilibrium between information widely available through different sources and specific data that needs to be available in a certain format to be transferred for land transactions. The issue of excavated soils was also touched, with the Commission indicating that these were already partially covered in the Waste Framework Directive (WFD), but no recovery targets existed, and asked for Member States’ opinion on the topic.
During the 29 June meeting, the Commission highlighted the lack of harmonisation on the identification and remediation of contaminated sites across Member State boundaries. The Commission also recalled its intention to develop legally-binding provisions on the identification, registration and remediation of contaminated sites as part of the SHL. Discussions also focused on definition issues which came from the previous Soil Framework Directive proposal, as well as exchanges on the possible distinction between historical and new contamination.
Finally, the Commission clarified that the impact assessment currently focuses on the problem definition and the assessment of the drivers, with preliminary results of the ongoing work to be presented in October.
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EU Commission I CAP Implementation rules
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New Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for the CAP achievements
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The Commission adopted a Regulation providing a common framework for monitoring and evaluating the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) achievements. This decision also sets out clear rules on the detailed information that Member States will need to collect so they can develop the appropriate IT tools and collection systems before the start of the new CAP on 1 January 2023.
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The new evaluation framework laid down in the Regulation builds on existing experience and provides a common understanding of key concepts and elements for monitoring and evaluating the implementation of CAP Strategic Plans. When evaluating their CAP Strategic Plans, Member States are expected to assess their factors of success. The factors of success, listed in the annex to the Regulation, are aimed to assess the achievement of the CAP objectives, for example the decrease of greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture, the stability or increase of the agricultural income, the improvement of nutrient balance on agricultural land, or the growing of rural businesses. The benefits of the CAP Strategic Plans also have to be achieved at a reasonable cost and factor in simplification both for beneficiaries and for the administration. Therefore, the new regulation also pays attention to the efficiency, with special focus on administrative costs and the use of digital tools and satellites.
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In the framework of the Annual Performance Report, Member States will share with the Commission aggregated data at national level, offering an overview of the level of implementation of CAP Strategic Plan at national level. But this will not be enough to allow the Commission evaluating the CAP. Therefore, within the new monitoring and evaluation framework, Member States will also provide in-depth information to the Commission.
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Thanks to these detailed data, the Commission, as well as independent analysts and researchers, will be able to assess the contribution of the CAP towards its ten specific objectives. The data will also be used to prepare for the next CAP, as well as to address several European Court of Auditors’ recommendations.
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Click here for the Regulation and here for a more information!
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ICAW Contests I 01 September - 01 November 2022
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Start of the ICAW Poster and Video Contests
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Each year, the organization that runs International Compost Awareness Week (ICAW) in the US offers two contests. One is a poster contest which is open to anyone in the world to enter age 14 or older. The other is a video contest for ages 10 – 13, that too is an international contest. Prizes are given to both winners.
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The winning poster design and the video are both used to help promote ICAW and the theme for 2023, which is For Healthier Soil, Healthier Food…Compost! The theme highlights how compost can have a role in helping feed the world, by making soil healthier which produces healthier food. Both contests run from September 1st to November 1st.
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Specific questions can be sent to: info@compostfoundation.org
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Events
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ROOTS Policy Conference I 27 September 2022
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Circular Policies for Changing the Biowaste System
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As up to 50% of European municipal waste is organic, valorisation of biowaste is a key tenet of a circular economy. However, numerous regulatory bottlenecks hinder the full deployment of revolutionary solutions in the field.In this framework, five Horizon 2020 projects have teamed up to promote innovative solutions and bring down the regulatory barriers blocking a more sustainable future. This joint initiative is named ROOTS – circulaR pOlicies for changing the biOwasTe System. On 27 September the ROOTS group will host a Policy Conference in Brussels to present their recommendations and discuss them with European policy makers and stakeholders.
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Nordic Biogas Conference I 3-06 October 2022
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Nordic Biogas Conference 2022
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The Nordic Biogas Conference is held in Linköping, Sweden, 4-5 of October 2022 with a reception in the evening on the 3rd and study visits on the 6th. It is a great opportunity to meet companies, researchers and public organizations involved in development of biogas solutions in the Nordic countries and beyond. The conference will consist of plenary and parallel sessions with leading representatives from companies, the academy and public organisations, a reception, conference dinner, an exhibition space, research poster conference, vehicle exhibition, study visits and ample opportunities for networking.
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BGK Humustag I 06 October 2022
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BGK Humustag
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This event will be held in German. Click here for more information.
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EU Bioeconomy Conference I 06-07 October 2022
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EU Bioeconomy Conference 2022
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Austrian Compost Congess I 3-4 November 2022
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1st Austrian Compost Congress - Register now
The Compost & Biogas Association Austria is organizing its first Austrian Compost Congress. Our industry is currently facing challenging times and with this top‐class specialist congress we want
to offer composting plant operators the opportunity to stay up to date on important special topics.
In addition, the leading technology providers will be there in order to network with the specialist
industry in the best possible way at this congress.
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Current challenges and central topics will be:
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- Law/Quality Assurance
- State of the art
- Microplastics/status of biodegradable materials
- Technology for removing impurities
- Biowaste fermentation and composting technology
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Click here for more information.
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Click here to register for the event.
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Biogas Convention I 07-11 November 2022
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BIOGAS Digital Convention 2022
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The BIOGAS Convention (conference part) will be organised as an online event this year from 07-11 November 2022. In addition to the German lectures, a parallel English programme will be offered. Afterwards, the trade association will set up its joint stand at the EnergyDecentral trade fair in Hanover from 15-18 November 2022 and present lectures on biogas as part of the exhibitor forum.
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Click here for more information!
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S.O.S Save Organics in Soil
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This international initiative S.O.S. SOIL – Save Organics in Soil, led by the European Compost Network (ECN) and the Italian Composting and Biogas Association (CIC), aims to highlight the importance of soil organic matter to encourage policy makers to develop instruments to move Europe towards implementing sustainable, climate proof soil management practices.
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Sign the manifesto 'Save Organigs in Soil' here.
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European Compost Network ECN e.V.
Im Dohlenbruch 11, D-44795 Bochum
T: +49 (0) 234 438 9447
Email: info@compostnetwork.info
Website: www.compostnetwork.info
VR4604 - UST-ID-Nr. DE813811932 -
EU Transparency Register: 26513411360-51
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ECN-QAS Trade Mark No 011007168
Trade mark for certified quality assurance
organisations, compost and digestate products
according to ECN-QAS
Website: www.ecn-qas.eu
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