Waste electrical and electronic equipment has considerable potential for the recovery of critical raw materials. However, there are still considerable gaps between technical feasibility and industrial implementation.

Technical solutions for circular public procurement are widely available in Europe. However, their systematic application falls short of the possibilities.

Technical solutions for a more efficient circular economy are already well developed in many areas. However, regulatory fragmentation and a lack of economic incentives make their widespread application difficult.

Energy-intensive industries are at the heart of European climate, environmental and industrial policy.

The consequences of climate change are increasingly affecting infrastructures, material flows and the supply of secondary raw materials.

In addition to the intended effects, measures to promote the circular economy can also have unintended effects that undermine political objectives or cause new conflicting goals.

Pakistan-based PET producer Novatex has commissioned a bottle-to-bottle recycling plant near Lahore with an annual production capacity of more than 24,000 tonnes of food-contact recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET).

The environmental debate has shifted fundamentally in recent years.

Every year, trillions of cigarette butts are carelessly disposed of worldwide. This results in an enormous plastic stream with toxic pollution that hardly anyone notices.

Prices of recycled commodities such as metal scrap, plastics, aggregates, paper and cardboard have dropped significantly, yet the cost of processing recyclables has remained steady or even risen due to the higher prices of fuel raw materials.

The construction sector is one of the world's largest consumers of raw materials and at the same time among the most substantial sources of greenhouse gas emissions.

The current global crisis - marked by soaring oil prices, rising energy costs and ongoing supply chain disruptions - is placing significant pressure on the plastics and recycling sector.