Enhancing ecodesign and circularity of consumer electronics

This destination will support the EU Commission priorities ‘Sustaining our quality of life: food security, water and nature’ and ‘A new plan for Europe’s sustainable prosperity and competitiveness’.

The destination supports the EU Green Deal^[1] and contributes to Europe’s competitiveness and sustainable prosperity by supporting the development of a more resilient circular economy in line with the EU Competitiveness Compass^[2], the announced EU Clean Industrial Deal^[3] and the EU Circular Economy Act.

It aims to increase market demand for secondary materials and establish a single market for waste, whilst enhancing Europe’s efforts to develop a single market for sustainable products. It will also support the implementation of the framework conditions set by the EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy.

Furthermore, the destination aims to facilitate the emergence and uptake of innovative, circular and bio-based materials, products, processes and value chains that play a key role for the defossilisation (reduction of feedstocks of fossil origin), climate neutrality and strategic autonomy of our economy, in line with the new EU bioeconomy strategy as well as with the New European Bauhaus.

In addition, this destination supports several key EU policies including the industrial strategy, the European Chemicals Industry Action Plan^[4] and the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation^[5] and its working plan.

It also contributes to the EU Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative, the SME strategy, the communication on safe and sustainable by design framework, the sustainable blue economy, the European Ocean Pact^[6], the European Water Resilience Strategy^[7], the European Life Sciences Strategy, the EU biodiversity strategy for 2030, and the Nature Restoration Regulation.

Further support extends to the CAP, the EU forest strategy for 2030, the proposal for a Regulation on a forest monitoring framework, the EU proposal for a directive on soil monitoring and resilience, and the Vision for Agriculture and Food.

The destination supports unlocking the unique assets for research and innovation of the EU outermost regions, in line with the EU strategy for outermost regions^[8].

Legal entities established in China are not eligible to participate in both Research and Innovation Actions (RIAs) and Innovation Actions (IAs) falling under this destination. For additional information please see “Restrictions on the participation of legal entities established in China” found in General Annex B of the General Annexes.

Expected impact: Proposals for topics under this destination should set out a credible pathway contributing to “achieving healthy soils and forests, as well as clean air, fresh and marine water, whilst ensuring water resilience and the transition to a clean, competitive and circular economy and sustainable bioeconomy”, and more specifically to one or more of the following expected impacts:

• Improved climate change adaptation and mitigation through the transition to a more sustainable and circular economy and bioeconomy, underpinned by biotechnologies and sustainable industrial solutions, such as carbon capture and utilisation and recovery of materials, water and energy.
• Industrial competitiveness, sustainability and strategic autonomy are improved through the development of safe, sustainable, circular and/or bio-based value chains. This is done by promoting the efficient and circular use of secondary materials and water, fostering the multi-functionality of forests, and ensuring the sustainable supply of critical resources from land and sea.
• Living conditions for individuals and communities are improved through innovative, affordable and sustainable safe and sustainable by design products and services based on circular and/or bio-based solutions while demonstrating a reduction of environmental and climate pressures.
• Advanced societal transformation based on a systemic approach, as well as people’s involvement and integration of social sciences and humanities for fair, safe, sustainable and circular value chains, sustainable consumption patterns, environmental justice, gender equality and social inclusion.

[1] The European Green Deal - European Commission

[2] https://commission.europa.eu/topics/eu-competitiveness/competitiveness-compass_en

[3] Clean Industrial Deal - European Commission

[4] European Chemicals Industry Action Plan – European Commission

[5] Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation – European Commission

[6] The European Ocean Pact - European Commission

[7] Water resilience strategy - European Commission

[8] COM(2022) Putting people first, securing sustainable and inclusive growth, unlocking the potential of the EU’s outermost regions.

Expected Outcome:

Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• material and product manufacturers apply relevant ecodesign, including design for circularity and design for recycling principles in developing and manufacturing products that contribute significantly to EU climate and through reduction of emissions and resource extraction to biodiversity goals, zero pollution, water resilience, circular economy, as well as open strategic autonomy;
• consumers benefit from more sustainable and circular products, i.e. durable, reliable, reusable, reparable, upgradable, recyclable products including increased recycled content.

Scope:

Electrical and electronic equipment continues to be one of the fastest growing waste streams in the EU, with current annual growth rates of 2%. It is estimated that less than 40% of electronic waste is collected in the EU.^[1] Value is lost when fully or partially functional products are discarded because they are not reparable, the battery cannot be replaced, the software is no longer supported, or materials incorporated in devices are not recovered.

Increasing recovery of critical raw materials from waste electrical and electronic equipment is a strategic priority to mitigate supply risks. Today, CRM recovery rates are generally low, with increases requiring new recovery processes and interface optimisation with pre-processing to ensure appropriate material flows for efficient recovery are generated.^[2]

Proposals should:

• develop, test and demonstrate new or improved ecodesign of consumer electronics, including design for durability, reusability, reparability, disassembly, separability, recyclability, uptake of recycled content. This may include design solutions for the reuse of components and for easier dismantling leading to increased reparability, remanufacturing or recycling with use of solutions and technologies such as active disassembly/debonding materials and adhesives, and design solutions targeting critical and strategic raw materials;
• assess and provide recommendations for mechanisms and incentives to address the trade-offs with costs and innovation limitations and to reward design for circularity and product durability – such as extended guarantees, “second” VAT reduction, or others –, and test and demonstrate new business models such as leasing and product-service-systems, to the extent that they reinforce positive design changes.

Proposed solutions need to be aligned with chemical safety principles (SSbD) and in compliance with relevant legislation such as RoHS. The environmental performance of the proposed solutions in comparison to existing products should be evaluated from a lifecycle perspective using product environmental footprint methodology wherever applicable. Participation of partners from (associated) countries with actual electronics production is encouraged. Participation of SMEs is encouraged. Consumer benefits are at the centre of this topic, and it is vital that the consumer perspective is duly reflected in all activities. The topic requires the effective contribution of SSH disciplines and involvement of SSH experts in order to produce meaningful and significant effects enhancing the societal impact of the related activities.

This topic supports the implementation of the European Green Deal, the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation and its working plan, in particular with a view to the reparability of small household appliances, the WEEE Directive, contribute to waste prevention, higher circularity and uptake of recyclate, and Europe’s efforts to develop a single market for sustainable products.

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[1] https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/bookmark/f4c7be39-efa9-4beb-88e0-4c5fdd37de7b?lang=en

[2] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092134492030241X