EUROPEAN COMPOST NETWORK
ECN e.V.

Network for Organic Resources and Biological Treatment

ECN E-BULLETIN No. 10_2025

30 october 2025

Soil Monitoring Law

Adoption of the Soil Monitoring Law

The Council and the Parliament formally adopted the Soil Monitoring Law on 29 September and 23 October. This first ever law on soils will establish an EU-wide framework for assessing and monitoring soil health. Although its content was weakened, it remains an important step forward in improving soil health and a large majority of Member States and MEPs have approved it. The text will enter into force 20 days after its official publication and the Member States will have three years to comply with the law.

SOLO project | Outlook document

Publication of outlook document on Soil Organic Carbon Stocks

The Soils for Europe project (SOLO) published in September an Outlook document on the knowledge gaps to conserve and increase soil organic carbon stocks. This document, which is part of a set of documents on soil knowledge gaps, aims to inform the EU’s research and innovation agenda in view of achieving the EU Soil Mission’s objectives. ECN submitted a few months ago a review to the document, which was partly taken into account in the final document.

European Environmental Agency | Europe’s environment 2025 Report

Publication of a Report on the state of the environment in Europe

The European Environmental Agency (EEA) published on 29 September its 2025 environment Report. It provides a comprehensive picture of the environment, the climate and sustainability in Europe, based on data from across 38 countries. According to the Report, there is mixed progress around reducing pollution and transitioning towards the circular economy, and the greatest challenges are around reducing biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation and adaptation to climate change.

European Commission | Public consultation

Simplification omnibus on Food and Feed Safety

The ECN answered to a public consultation aiming to reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens in order to improve competitiveness and resilience of EU food and feed systems while maintaining high standards for food and feed safety, for human health, and for environmental protection. In our feedback, we stressed that this omnibus should take into account the circularity of food and feed systems, in particular to support the recycling of food waste containing animal by-products and remove barriers hindering market access.

European Commission | 2026 Work Programme

Publication of the Commission’s Work Programme for 2026

The Commission published its Work Programme for next year, under the title ‘Europe’s Independence Moment’. The Commission states that more than half of the work programme’s legislative initiatives will focus on making EU law lighter, clearer and easier to implement. It plans to accelerate the work on enabling European lead markets, in particular for clean materials and sustainable products. According to the Annexes listing the Commission’s initiatives, the Simplification omnibus on energy and the Public Procurement Act should be presented in Q2 2026 while the Circular Economy Act, the European Biotech Act as well as the evaluation of the Fertilising Products Regulation are expected in Q3 2026.

Call for Abstracts

KOS 2026 International Conference on Sustainable Solid Waste Management

The 13th International Conference on Sustainable Solid Waste Management (KOS 2026) will be held in Kos Island, Greece, from 24–27 June 2026, both in person and online. Researchers, professionals, and stakeholders are invited to submit abstracts by 31 December 2025 via https://kos2026.uest.gr/abstract-submission. Conference themes include waste-to-energy, circular economy, recycling, biorefineries, plastics and bioplastics, hazardous waste, and emerging topics such as sustainable fuels, hydrogen, nature-based solutions, brine management, and solar technologies. The event will feature keynote lectures, EU project sessions, networking opportunities, and awards for best posters, alongside a vibrant exhibition area. Several events of successful HORIZON projects (e.g. CRONUS: https://cronushorizon.eu, FUELGAE: https://fuelgae.eu, FERTICOVERY: https://ferticovery.eu), LIFE, ERASMUS, EIC Accelerator & PRIMA projects are being planned to be included in the conference agenda.

News from ECN Members

EU Fertilisers Regulation

ZERA Agency joins ECN!

ZERA – Agricultural and Ecological Regional Agency, z. s. is a non-profit organization based in the Czech Republic that has been dedicated to the development of sustainable agriculture, effective management of organic waste, and education in environmental protection since 1996.
ZERA operates a demonstration and education center focused on composting, the use of renewable resources, and the recycling of organic materials. In cooperation with municipalities, agricultural enterprises, and schools, it spreads best practices in the material utilization of organic waste and supports the implementation of local community and technological composting systems.
ZERA certifies high-quality composts and composting facilities in the Czech Republic.

Events

Ecomondo I 4-7 November 2025

Join the international ecosystem of the Ecological Transition

Ecomondo 2025 is a global platform for ecological transition and the circular economy: the 28th edition promises a program full of innovations, visionary projects, and opportunities for companies, start-ups, researchers, innovators, and policymakers. From workshops to panel discussions with leaders of the circular economy, every participant will have the chance to be inspired, learn, and contribute to the transformation of our planet.
ECN member CIC will be there with a stand at Booth D3 n.206-307. As every year, they will organize the conference on composting and anaerobic digestion (this year will be the 27th) on Wednesday 5th November. On the 6th CIC will organize an event to discuss about sludges valorization through composting.
Click here for ticket info & more.

European Commission | 5-6 November 2025

European Mission Soil Week

The 3rd edition of the European Mission Soil Week will take place in Aarhus, Denmark on 5 and 6 November 2025. This event is co-organised by the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU and the European Commission under the title “Leading the transition towards healthy soils: finance and landscape perspectives”.

You can find more information here.

Compost Council of Canada I 4-6 November 2025

Organics Recycling Conference in Ottawa

Hosted by the Compost Council of Canada, this landmark conference brings together industry leaders, innovators and advocates to delve into the latest in:

Organics recycling infrastructure and technology
Policy directions and research breakthroughs
Soil health and compost markets
Residential and IC&I(Industrial, Commercial & Institutional) Sector Program Advances

The conference offers presentations, tours, networking and exhibits.
Registrations are open now! For more information visit the website here.

Bad Hersfeld Town Hall I 25–26 November 2025

17th Bad Hersfeld Biomass Forum: "Further Increasing Quality and Quantity"

This year’s forum will share insights on implementing §2a of the BioAbfV and showcase practical approaches to improving biowaste quality, especially in multi-storey and large residential buildings.
The presentations will cover innovative treatment technologies and technical developments for converting fermentation residues into valuable products. In addition, ECN’s Executive Director, Dr Stefanie Siebert, will provide an overview of the situation at European level. She will present the latest European-level legislative developments and their potential impact on national biowaste management. Day two will focus on green waste and its material and energy-related uses. Networking with experts at the accompanying exhibition and at the traditional social evening on the first day is also included!
More info here!

Fachverband Biogas I Webinar series I 4 December 2025 I 10 am CET

Digestate for Healthy Soils

The biogas industry is going through a period of change and development. International cooperation for the implementation of biogas plants has become increasingly important in recent years. Industrial-scale biogas technology offers a wealth of opportunities to provide renewable energy (electricity, heat, fuel) and fertilizer. In addition, various revenue streams can make the operation profitable.

However, knowledge about the advantages, possibilities and opportunities of biogas is still not very widespread. To change this the Fachverband Biogas Service GmbH will offer an international webinar series in English in winter 2025/2026. These international webinars are aimed at beginners who want to familiarize themselves with the basics of biogas technology, as well as experienced professionals who want to refresh their knowledge on various biogas-related topics.
The webinar series kicks off with the “International Webinar: Digestate for healthy soils”, which is being held in connection with the “World Soil Day” and highlights the opportunities and possibilities offered by using digestate.

Each webinar takes 120 minutes and there is enough time to answer questions from the audience.
The event is conducted with Zoom and can easily be integrated into your work environment, no matter where you are.
Participation fee starts at € 119.00 inclusive VAT.
Every participant receives a validated participant certificate and the documents of the event.
There will be enough time to answer questions after the presentations.

Further information and registration for the can be found at the following link:
International Webinar: Digestate for healthy soils: Biogas Association

S.O.S Save Organics in Soil

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.

Sign the manifesto 'Save Organigs in Soil' here.