TS 4 – Technologies for Waste Management
This document provides a summary of Thematic Session 4 for the Operational Group meetings held on Tuesday
11th November 2014 in support of the EIP for Raw Materials. Approximately 20 delegates attended this thematic
session meeting on Technologies for Waste Management, which was moderated by Mr Magnus Gislev (DG ENTR),
with Mr Vincenzo Gente (DG RTD) as co-moderator. The participants were composed of members of EIP
Operational Group 1 and representatives of the relevant Raw Material Commitments (RMCs). The objectives of
the meeting were to promote synergies/cooperation and possible clustering of RMCs, to promote
synergies/cooperation with related EU initiatives, and to help enlarge the EIP community. A secondary objective
was to map the coverage of the SIP by RMCs, and identify possible gaps.
Presentations were then given by the eight RMCs (EARTH 2020, HydroWEEE, CTC, EURELCO, ELTStandard, BULKY,
C&D-WRAM and ROSE), which appear to address different issues, either with a broad or more specific scope. Two
RMCs cover WEEE recycling; two cover landfill mining technologies, two cover construction waste, and one each
covers bulky waste and tyres, respectively. Mr Gislev explained the voluntary and flexible nature of clusters and
that RMCs could add partners if they wanted to. The EC only asked to be informed that the partnership had
developed, in the annual monitoring report.
The following observations were made relating to possible clustering/synergies:
 Synergies exist between GtoG and C&D WRAM (construction products and common partners).
 EURELCO noted links to the two red-mud RMCs (Mud2Metal and BRAVO) and new metallurgical systems
projects such as the MetGrow consortium for landfill mono-fills.
 The ROSE RMC noted common ground between projects that include mining tailings.
 The landfill mining RMCs had already created synergies between themselves and also noted links with
construction RMCs for marketing their aggregate outputs.
 WEEE projects had already clustered. HydroWEEE asked if other RMCs had outlets for glass waste.
 BULKY, ELTStandard and the construction sector RMCs could be clustered for asphalt and seismic insulation,
although the C&D WRAM and ROSE RMCs are already both quite ambitious.
 BULKY and landfill mining could cluster, due to the common use of gasification/pyrolysis technologies.
 Links were noted between RMCs and actions of the waste management framework conditions’ Operational
Group (e.g. certification/performance standards to convince markets of material quality, LCAs, etc.)
Some of the endorsed RMCs are still looking to secure funding. Some of the participants expressed concern that
some RMCs had been formed primarily for the purpose of securing Horizon 2020 funding. Mr Gente reiterated the
message that there is no direct link between RMC status and obtaining Horizon 2020 funding. However, there are
topics within Societal Challenge 5 that, in their impacts, call for a contribution to the objectives of the EIP on Raw
Materials. Endorsed RMCs could claim this sort of impact in their Horizon 2020 proposals.
The IT web-platform being developed by DG ENTR should help coordinate RMCs, other initiatives and funding
sources, and make the list more searchable. There was widespread support for an IT tool to help networking with
other stakeholders.
The meeting was concluded with a summing up by the designated rapporteurs: Mr Forsgren (Stena Metall) and
Ms La Marca (Sapienza Universita' di Roma). The following comments were noted:
 Some synergies may be possible between projects dealing with similar waste streams and those using
infrastructure/technologies with similar processing (even for different waste streams).
 There is a necessity to create links between technology and non-technology RMCs – these are intrinsically
linked together, e.g. standards and legislative frameworks. The eco-web on-line platform, created in the
context of an FP7 project, may help to identify other actions/projects in similar areas to the RMCs.
Mr Gislev thanked members for their active participation and summarised the next steps for the EIP. There will be
an EIP on Raw Materials Annual Conference on the 13th-14th January 2015. The next Operational Group meeting
will take place in February 2015 and will discuss monitoring and mapping other initiatives/coverage of the SIP for
the revision of the SIP, as well as the guidelines for the next Call for Commitments.