EU proposes to measure environmental impact of products

12 Apr '13

4 min read

Next Steps

The three-year testing period is expected to be launched soon after the adoption of the Communication. An open call for volunteers will be published by the Commission on the web portals for the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) and the Organisation Environmental Footprint (OEF), inviting companies, industrial and stakeholder organisations in the EU and beyond to participate in the development of product-group specific and sector-specific rules.

A second phase will build on an in-depth evaluation of the results of the three-year testing and additional actions carried out under the Communication and the Recommendation. Based on this evaluation, the Commission will decide on further policy applications of the PEF and OEF methods.

Background

These actions contribute to the implementation of the Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe, in particular the section related to Sustainable Consumption and Production. The actions foreseen included the establishment of a common, life-cycle assessment based methodological approach enabling Member States and the private sector to assess, display and benchmark the environmental performance of products, services and companies ; and the provision of better information on the environmental footprints of products.

The Single Market for Green Products was announced as a key action in the Single Market Act1 of 2011 and in the Industrial Policy updates Communication of 20122.

The Product Environmental Footprint and Organisation Environmental Footprint methods have been prepared by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. They are based on Life Cycle Assessment, thus they can cover environmental impacts (and point to improvement opportunities) from the extraction of raw materials to the disposal of a product (or a product portfolio in case of organisations).

European Commission

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