Environmental policy in the European Union is increasingly becoming an industrial and geopolitical strategy.

With the European Commission expected to present the forthcoming Circular Economy Act in 2026, the EU appears determined to move beyond traditional waste management and reshape the European Single Market around sustainability, resource efficiency, and strategic autonomy.

Current policy discussions suggest that the future legislative framework may seek to strengthen the market for secondary raw materials, harmonise “end-of-waste” criteria across Member States, and reinforce circular design requirements for products and industrial supply chains.

The initiative also reflects a broader transformation of EU environmental governance: ecological transition is now closely connected to competitiveness, industrial resilience, and digital regulation.

In this sense, the circular economy is no longer presented merely as an environmental objective, but as a core element of Europe’s economic and regulatory future.

One key question nevertheless emerges: can the EU reconcile ecological transition, industrial competitiveness, and regulatory coherence without weakening its environmental ambitions?

Here is the European Commission’s overview of the EU Circular Economy strategy:
https://environment.ec.europa.eu/strategy/circular-economy_en