On Monday 2nd March the Circular Economy Task Force co-hosted a conference with the Dutch Embassy in London on how to promote the trade in circular economy goods and services between the UK and the Netherlands. The Dutch ambassador Laetitia van den Assum welcomed an expert group of business, policy and academia representatives to a discussion organised around three issues: how policy can support a circular economy, how to deliver a ‘North Sea Resource Roundabout’, and what are the circular economy opportunities for plastics?

1. Dutch government
policy on resources
and waste
(and more)
London,
March, 2, 2015
Wytske van der Mei
Head of Division
Resource Efficiency
Ministry of
Infrastructure & the
Environment

2. 1) Conservation of natural
capital and sustainable
sourcing of raw materials
2) More sustainable products
on the market
3) Sustainable consumption
4) Re-use, remanufacturing,
recycling, etc.
Circular economy: four key components
1
.
2
3
4

3. Old scarcity
Private goods such as
minerals may become
scarce, but:
------------------------------
Market mechanism leads to
Efficiency improvements
Substitution
Technological development
Scarcity
New scarcity
Public goods such as air,
water, climate,
biodiversity
-----------------------------
Markets deficiencies cause
Climate change
Air and water pollution
Ecosystem damage

4. Recycling
Incineration
Landfill
Discharge
Development in waste-figures
Millions(tonnes)

5. Ambitions of waste to resource program
• Reduce losses: 10 to 5 million tonnes in 10 years
• Improve 75% separation of household waste: 50% now, 75%
in 2020 finally 100%, zero waste
• Creating economic incentives
• Working with frontrunners
•Removal of counter productive (legal) restraints
•Vision and Program for Household Waste

6. Moving up in the value chain requires for example:
Ecodesign
New concepts of ownership
Value chain information
system (product passport)
Sustainable trade
Changing lifestyles
European context
(withdrawal EU-package?)

7. 1.RACE –coalition =
Realising Accelaration towards Circular
Economy
- Circular design - best practices
- High quality re use - communication
- Inventory obstacles - education
- Chain transitions
Three key actions for realising the Circular Economy

8. Three key actions for realising the Circular Economy
2. Reducing legal barriers:
examples:
- Is-it-waste-tool
- End-of-waste criteria
- Byproduct vs waste
- Take back chemicals

9. 3. (International) Green Deals
Public –Private Deals on Resource Efficiency
Participants: governments, private companies, science
Three key actions for realising the Circular Economy

10. -Challenges and opportunities are big
-Systemic changes are needed
-EU-wide cooperation is important
-And: cooperation between neighboring
countries is promising
-International Green Deals:
from Trash to Treasure
Concluding remarks

11. Dutch government
policy on resources
and waste (and
more)
London, March 2,
2015
Wytske van der Mei
Head of Division Resource
Efficiency
Ministry of Infrastructure &
the Environment
wytske.vander.mei
@minienm.nl
Thank you