The Council of Ministers has given the green light to the Spanish Circular Economy Strategy (EEEC) ― “Circular Spain 2030” ― which lays the foundations for overcoming the linear economy and promoting a new model of production and consumption, in which the value of products, materials and resources are maintained in the economy for as long as possible.
The Council of Ministers has given the green light to the Spanish Circular Economy Strategy (EEEC) ― “Circular Spain 2030” ― which lays the foundations to overcome the linear economy and promote a new model of production and consumption, in which the value of products, materials and resources are maintained in the economy for as long as possible. and in which the generation of waste is minimised and those whose generation could not be avoided are used to the maximum.
“Circular Spain 2030” sets objectives for this decade that will allow, among others, to reduce national consumption of materials by 30%, improve efficiency in the use of water by 10% and cutwaste generation by 15% compared to 2010, which will make it possible to bring greenhouse gas emissions from the waste sector below 10 million tonnes by 2030.
Its execution will materialise through successive three-year action plans, which will include the specific measures to be developed by the General State Administration to implement actions in the field of the circular economy in Spain. The first of them will be presented at the end of 2020 and will cover the period 2021-2023.
The Strategy is one of the key elements of the Circular Economy Framework, one of the Government’s projects that aims to be a lever for economic recovery after the COVID-19 health crisis. Together with it, the Executive has today approved the draft Law on Waste and Contaminated Soils, which will also address the challenge of single-use plastics, and a royal decree that improves the traceability and control of waste shipments.
PRIORITY SECTORS
Although the Circular Economy Strategy is cross-cutting, it identifies six priority sectors: construction, agri-food, fisheries and forestry, industrial, consumer goods, tourism and the textile and clothing sector. In particular, it is essential to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the circular economy to develop a Spanish industry focused on recycling.
In this framework, the challenge is to prepare the labour market for the transition to a circular and low-emission economy, both from the perspective of workers, adapting their skills and abilities to new market demands through active labour market policies, and from the perspective of companies and Public Administrations. adapting the business culture to the principles of corporate social responsibility and guaranteeing health and safety conditions in the workplaces affected by the change to the circular economy.
PRINCIPLES OF THE STRATEGY
The general principles that inspire this Strategy are: protection and improvement of the environment; prevention; decarbonization of the economy; the “polluter pays” principle; health protection; rationalization and efficiency; cooperation and coordination between Public Administrations; public participation; sustainable development, solidarity between people and territories; integration of environmental aspects in decision-making; improvement of the competitiveness of the economy and generation of quality employment.
Taking into account these principles, eight main lines of action are established on which the policies and instruments of the Circular Economy Strategy and their corresponding action plans will be focused. Five of them related to closing the circle (production, consumption, waste management, secondary raw materials and water reuse) and the remaining three, of a cross-cutting nature (awareness and participation, research, innovation and competitiveness and employment and training).
In terms of the key policies to advance in the circular economy, España Circular 2030 points out, as key policies to advance in the circular economy, economic policy, taxation, employment, R+D+i, consumption, industrial, water, agricultural policy and development of rural areas.
Spain Circular 2030 is configured as a framework document that will allow our country to move towards a circular economy through the implementation of different action plans. This will allow that, as the different actions are executed, their effects will be evaluated and, where appropriate, the necessary adjustments can be made to achieve the objectives set out both in the action plans and, ultimately, in the Strategy for 2030.
