- 2025-07-04 “Thank you very much for the attention of the honourable members of this committee. Uh, to address briefly the problems raised, we would like to reassure the rapporteur, the Honourable Moretti, that all the attention is devoted now to the acceleration of the implementation of the work, the definition of products and the categories. And this covers indeed other materials that she has indicated, such as textiles or steel. Others, for the reasons that we have explained, are not covered. We would like to reassure the honourable Liza, who is no longer in the room, that indeed we, the Commission, will notify to the World Trade Organisation the measures when they will be proposed for the. Now they are not product specific. The SPR is a general framework legislation. Once we will have specific rules ready for adoption, they will be notified. We heard that President Trump is waiting impatiently in Geneva. As a big fan of the World Trade Organization when it comes to switch gears in response to the Honourable France and the US and Vondra, we would like to reiterate the fact that the best way of addressing these, and it's not by error that they have not been included in the SPR, is the f-gas regulation until they are covered.”
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) · F-gases regulation
- 2025-07-04 “This does not mean that these products are left out of ESR. It may be considered in the future when we revise the work plan. As regards chemicals, the reasoning is, uh, the following. This intermediate product does have a high impact and improvement potential, but it's also a highly complex product which requires further assessment. A study will be commissioned during the implementation of the work plan to define more precisely the potential scope of the measures. Finally, a specific case is electrical switch gears. This product group was not included in article 18, but the possibility to set Ecodesign requirements was mentioned in the F-gas regulation to facilitate the transition to f-gas free technologies in power networks. Their inclusion in this working plan was requested by a number of stakeholders. It is proposed nevertheless not to include them in the working plan, but the technological and market situation will be closely monitored and their situation can nevertheless be addressed under the F-gas regulation.”
Ecodesign & durability · F-gases regulation
- “Good afternoon thank you very much mister chair i'm mister Ciobanu Dordea I understood that there was confusion sorry i couldn't see you Mister Chair and honorable members of the Parliament, we are living through a period of profound geopolitical and economic uncertainty. This volatility hits us where it matters most: access to energy and raw materials. These are not ordinary commodities; they are the center of Europe's economy and the precondition for our competitiveness. That's why we must act now to reduce our dependencies and build a more self-reliant, resilient Europe. In this context, circularity and domestic extraction of resources, in particular when it comes to critical raw materials, are strategic necessities. We must do more to reuse the materials we already have in Europe, and this is another pillar of our strengths that needs to be further developed. At the same time, we are aware that we will need to mine more here. The EU has domestic mineral production and recycling as top priorities. This commitment is reflected in the Critical Raw Materials Act that this House and the Council have adopted a few years ago, which serves as the primary framework for expanding the EU's capacity for mineral extraction, processing, and recycling. The Critical Raw Materials Act has been an important milestone to ensure that the EU can rely on strong, resilient, and sustainable value chains for CRMs. This is also what we reinforce with the Resource EU package adopted by the College of European Commission today. At the same time, we cannot close our eyes. Mining inherently generates environmental implications. With the European Union's growing need for strategic mineral autonomy, increasing environmentally sustainable mining in the European Union is essential. At this crucial point of time for mining in the EU, we should therefore continue our common efforts to mitigate the impacts on the environment and on human health. A focus on sustainability in mining can also address the significant obstacle to the sector, which is the acceptance among some communities and municipal governments of mining projects. Where mining operations are not accepted by the concerned public, permitting processes are slowed down and political backing for projects is weak. It is therefore in everyone's interest—both the public, the public authorities, and the economic operators—to strike the right balance and to be aware that strengthening all stages of the critical raw materials value chain and increasing mining operations in the European Union needs to go hand in hand with a high level of environmental and human health protection. We have a solid framework of legislation that reflects the multitude of impacts and emissions from mining operations. Mining in Europe is regulated by our environmental legislation to protect human health and the environment. A big step that will facilitate the permitting of mining without compromising environmental standards was a scope extension of the Industrial Emissions Directive, which now covers the mining of metals. This provides for a more integrated permitting framework which regulates emissions to air, water, and soil, but also resource use efficiency and reuse in one single permit. So contrary to the common perceptions that this revision of the Industrial Emissions Directive has created more difficulties, it actually brought forward simplification and simpler and faster solutions. This approach will help mining companies and member states to achieve the environmental goals that are set under other pieces of EU environmental law. We should not forget about the waste generated during mining operations. This is both a potential source of impacts on the environment and human health if not managed properly, but also a potential alternative source of secondary raw materials. The Extractive Waste Directive provides a comprehensive and solid framework for the management of mining waste from design, monitoring to the closure of a storage facility, and sets an ambitious level of environmental and human health protection. It reflects the waste hierarchy and puts prevention of waste at the first place with the aim to reduce the volume of tailings produced. The provisions on public participation are aligned with other European environmental legislation and provide for effective and early participation. The Commission has further strengthened the framework with the adoption of technical guidelines for inspections in 2020 under this directive. Alongside the provisions of the Extractive Waste Directive, the Commission has integrated complementary provisions on the recovery of critical raw materials from mining waste in the Critical Raw Materials Act in 2024. These measures aim to strengthen remining. Often information is lacking to identify secondary sources; therefore, the Critical Raw Materials Act foresees a staggered approach to better map available resources in mining waste. On another note, we are currently running a study which aims to collect data on the overall implementation of the directive. The study is also looking into options to update the reporting to the Commission under the directive in order to obtain more distinct and comprehensive data that are more important, more useful for policymaking and for market purposes. Preliminary findings of the study show that the majority of member states have adopted the measures needed to transpose the requirements of this directive. An obstacle to the assessment of the implementation is that information is often held only at regional or local level. A further initiative that will consider punctual improvements in the Extractive Waste Directive is the upcoming Circular Economy Act planned for the third quarter of 2026, where the Commission will look into the better valorization of secondary CRMs, including possibly from mining waste. We are considering harmonizing the following aspects of extractive waste management and critical raw materials recovery: the requirements for extractive waste management and critical raw materials recovery to ensure aligned reporting requirements under this directive with the Critical Raw Materials Act; and secondly, we are looking into the rules on extractive waste management under this directive and the Industrial Emissions Directive in order to make sure that there is no duplication and that they dovetail perfectly. This means we will look into whether there are possibilities to amend the Extractive Waste Directive through the Circular Economy Act in order to address these two issues. Thank you very much for your attention and we look, of course, forward to your questions, comments, and suggestions.”
Industrial emissions directive (IED) · Circular economy · Sourcing of critical raw materials
- “Yes. Good afternoon. Thank you very much. And we would like to thank in particular, Mrs. Maynard for the report and the House for the amendments put forward. Europe, especially the automotive sector, faces significant challenges. The Commission adopted the Automotive Action Plan to strengthen the car industry and the Action Plan on steel and metals to improve the market for secondary raw materials, including critical raw materials vital for the EU industry. These were adopted a few weeks ago, and the legislative proposal, which you have discussed now is fully aligned with, uh, these, uh, action plans and with the general objectives of the European Union, uh, to, uh, put at work together competitiveness and sustainability. So the proposal fits well with this agenda. It enhances Europe's resilience and strategic autonomy. Striking a balance between ambition and new requirements and prevents duplication. Some amendments, however, weaken the measures to address missing vehicles and export issues in this proposal and the Roadworthiness package, which will be proposed soon by the Commission. Repair and maintenance measures in the automotive sector should be covered by the type approval and battery regulations, and not by this legislative proposal. The 25% plastics recycled content target must be maintained to protect EU recyclers investments already made. They are also part of the EU industry and their competitiveness is part of the integral part, part and parcel of the European industrial competitiveness. The Commission committed to advance the feasibility studies to set targets for recycled steel and aluminium. We urge the European Parliament to swiftly finalise the codecision process to enhance circularity and competitiveness in the automotive sector. So thank you very much.”
Road transport environmental policy · EU policy towards plastics · Circular economy
- “Display it and run it very well. You could please move to the first slide. Uh, as you know, honourable members of this parliamentary committee, the, uh Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, adopted in July last year, aims to set harmonised product sustainability requirements that will apply equally across member states for the products for which improvement is most needed. Helping them to use less energy, last longer, be easily repaired. A clear expectation of European consumers, as its rules will help transition to a circular economy by maintaining the materials, resources and value of products in the economy for as long as possible. Esr will also contribute to bolstering the EU's resilience and competitiveness.”
Circular economy · Ecodesign & durability · Product passport
- “Yeah. No. The selection of products presented here leaves aside a few product groups that were indicated in the ESR article 18. This calls for specific justification. Uh, no. Sorry. Uh, as regards footwear, uh, which was listed together with textiles in article in article 18 detergents, paints and lubricants. The assessment shows a relatively lower level of impacts and improvement potential that than selected products.”
Circular economy · Ecodesign & durability · Green claims
- “The legislator has introduced a minimum duration of three years for working plans, and article 18 includes a number of specific high impact products for the first working plan listed on this slide. Both final products and intermediate products such as steel and aluminium, which is new for Ecodesign requirements. Based on this list and on the assessment performed by the Joint Research Centre of the Commission. The three services concerned have engaged with stakeholders and with Member States experts through open public consultation and in the context of the Co-design Forum, which was convened in February 2025 for energy related products. The Commission has also taken account of the energy labelling regulation and overall, following all these wide consultations, the Commission now proposes to have a five year duration for this first working plan, with a review after three years in 2028. This should give both visibility to stakeholders and flexibility to adapt the plan to the resources for its implementation. In terms of final products. The proposed plan introduces the following products. Textiles. Uh, furniture, tires and mattresses. Mattresses were not in the initial list consulted with the forum, but owing to the strong support of stakeholders and significant environmental impacts, the Commission proposes to integrate them in the final list. Information and communication technologies are not listed here, but they are will be included in the first working plan, as they will be considered in the preparation of the two horizontal requirements and for some specific ICT products in the work on energy related products. Joaquim.”
Circular economy · Ecodesign & durability · Product passport
- “Thank you very much for the attention of the honourable members of this committee. Uh, to address briefly the problems raised, we would like to reassure the rapporteur, the Honourable Moretti, that all the attention is devoted now to the acceleration of the implementation of the work, the definition of products and the categories. And this covers indeed other materials that she has indicated, such as textiles or steel. Others, for the reasons that we have explained, are not covered. We would like to reassure the honourable Liza, who is no longer in the room, that indeed we, the Commission, will notify to the World Trade Organisation the measures when they will be proposed for the. Now they are not product specific. The SPR is a general framework legislation. Once we will have specific rules ready for adoption, they will be notified. We heard that President Trump is waiting impatiently in Geneva. As a big fan of the World Trade Organization when it comes to switch gears in response to the Honourable France and the US and Vondra, we would like to reiterate the fact that the best way of addressing these, and it's not by error that they have not been included in the SPR, is the f-gas regulation until they are covered.”
Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) · F-gases regulation
- “Nothing is excluded from the market and for the matter of the solid fuel heating appliances. Uh, I hope that our colleague from DG will be able to intervene. Uh, I would like also to reassure MEP Honourable Monsieur that the reduced scope is specifically intended in order to be able to devote all the attention to the products which will be covered. We need attention and seriousness. And to all those members of this honorable committee that have expressed concern about the need to avoid bureaucracy and to future proof jobs in the industries which are covered, we would like to reassure them that competitiveness is the North star of the Commission's effort, and we envisage to indeed to future proof the jobs in these sectors because making products sustainable, they will be longer lasting and this will be and is already the competitive edge of European industry. So the jobs in those sectors will also be longer lasting. Thank you. Joaquim.”
Ecodesign & durability · Energy (green transition)
- “I would like to thank the honorable members for the very diverse views that they have put forward around this topic. And I would like to note first of all that on the agenda of today's discussion it was the mining waste, the Extractive Waste Directive, and not the Critical Raw Material Act or the permitting of mining in general. In my intervention, my references to the Critical Raw Materials Act and to other legislation such as the Industrial Emissions Directive or other relevant pieces of legislation was meant to show the fact that this directive, both in its provisions and when it comes to its implementation, is aligned with these other pieces of legislation for the purposes of offering coherence both to the member states and to the economic operators. Now, hearing that some honorable members of this House have questions related to the Critical Raw Materials Act or to other pieces of legislation, I would like to respectfully invite them to contact and to invite here the relevant representatives of the Commission when it comes to these specific questions that are relevant for the Extractive Waste Directive. I would like to reassure still, in particular, the members, the honorable members representing the Patriots for Europe and the Conservative Group as well, that this directive allows a sound management and the protection of human health and of the environment. It is not rendering more complicated or more easy the authorization of mining operations. It is neutral from this perspective. It just takes care of the sound management of the waste which is generated by mining operations. And the experience we have in the Commission with the implementation of the obligations defined by this directive shows that the sound—the more the better these requirements are implemented in practice, thus leading to a sound management of extractive waste, the better it is for the remining operations. And now, when Europe is put under pressure by other geopolitical actors which leverage their control over strategic materials and strategic resources, we discover the opportunities which are offered by extractive waste and by the remaining operations. So I would like to emphasize that the Extractive Waste Directive facilitates one of the sources of the strategic autonomy of the European Union, at least in the area of critical raw materials and, I would say, also in the area of energy intensive for or for the benefit of energy intensive industries as well, which is remining. And together with circularity and together with the diversification of the sources in third countries from which the Union procures critical raw materials and together with new mining operations within the European Union, these directives contribute to the strengthening of strategic autonomy of the European Union. Finally, in response to these specific questions asked by in relation to this directive by the honorable member representing the Greens Group, the points for attention that you have raised are also currently the subject of attention of the Commission services and the amendments that we envisage via the Circular Economy Act could address the problem of reporting. I can also confirm that we are working under the Industrial Emissions Directive in order to prioritize, in line with the calendar which is defined by the Industrial Emissions Directive, the development of best available technologies and breaths which are relevant for the mining operations. Thank you very much.”
Industrial emissions directive (IED) · Circular economy · Sourcing of critical raw materials