Public Responsibility and Resource-Efficiency

27 September 2012Economic and Social Committee

Erik de BaedtsPresident

Municipal Waste Europe

• Our members are national public waste

associations: EU Municipalities and their public

waste management companies

• 14 Member States

• They serve over 60% and up to 95% of their

national population

A brief introduction to our members

• One of the key issues for European municipalities is the

delivery on their responsibility for municipal waste

management as it is a service of general interest.

• Throughout Europe, municipalities are responsible for the

recovery of resources from European households.

A brief introduction to our members

• The members of Municipal Waste Europe therefore play a

pivotal role in driving Europe to becoming more

resource-efficient.

• In effect, the members of Municipal Waste Europe are the

bridge between the actors in resource efficiency, the

citizens and thus the public.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Lund, Sweden

Naples, Italy

Waste Management

Service of general interest = Public responsibility

Local authority has the expertise and responsibility

Producers Responsibility

Recycling society and economyincluding Producers Responsibility

waste

Consumer/ citizenProducer

RecyclingDisposal

Purchase products

Reuse of resources

resource

Global situationProduction, consumption and…

Global situationProduction, consumption and… waste!

The end of our current production process90% landfilling in Asia & Africa

15

HealthHygieneEnvironment, ClimateSocial Responsibility

=> Not sustainable

Scarce resources

De Afvalbranche is de ‘bewaker’ van de waarde van hulpbronnen

en materialen: Hoe kan deze rol het beste ingevuld worden?

Who pays the bill?!

Direct Access• Europe and the European Economic Area today have an

estimated 502.5 million citizens

• Over 67% are currently represented by Municipal Waste

Europe at European level

• European citizens are aware of recycling on the whole

• Their first point of reference for any questions on their

waste collection and treatment is their municipality

• Responding to citizens’ requests, municipalities are

working on increasing transparency on waste treatments

Responsibility

• For historical reasons and organisational purposes, public

institutions are responsible for the safeguarding of their

populations’ health through hygiene

• Amongst others, this gives them the responsibility for

municipal waste management

• Municipal Waste Europe members implement this

responsibility either through their own direct investment or

by outsourcing the task to private waste management

companies.

Freedom of Choice• This Freedom of choice is paramount to a Member State’s

ability to manage its own finances and to choose its own

organisational style

• The European Union is there to set minimum standards, to

promote exchange of knowledge, to protect citizens’ rights, to

promote sustainability

• Europe and European Directives do not prescribe HOW every

responsibility must be implemented, as every culture is

different and must be respected for the way they chose to

achieve the set goals

• MWE is the voice of the public sector waste management

• MWE is the most natural dialogue partner for EC, EP &

Council regarding waste

• MWE brings real experience and know how

from a local executive level

• MWE connects EU with local governmental bodies

Conclusion

Conclusion

I will leave you with these thoughts, as an opening to what I trust will be a lively discussion on the links between Public Responsibility and

Resource Efficiency

THANK YOU FOR YOR ATTENTION

www.municipalwasteeurope.eu