Bättre EU-regler för en giftfri miljö - Kemikalieinspektionen

Ecolabelling and green procurement (Chapter 7.8 – 7.9)
The EU and the Commission have an on-going strong focus on developing soft policy
instruments such as criteria for eco-labelling and green public procurement. It is important
that Sweden continues to participate in this work, where Swedish and Nordic criteria have
often served as models.
There is a very strong priority in the EU and on the part of the Commission to use green
public procurement as a policy instrument in the environmental sector. This applies both to
climate aspects and other environmental aspects, such as chemicals. In Sweden there is some
discussion about the legal limit for green procurement by state agencies, and the matter is the
subject of a separate government inquiry. It is important to avoid any confusion regarding the
possibility of applying green procurement, e.g. with the support of procurement criteria.
Strengthened enforcement (Chapter 8.2)
We have not been able to conduct a complete examination of the enforcement rules in all the
specific areas addressed by the report, but we can draw some general conclusions. We believe
that Sweden should act internationally for stricter enforcement in order to achieve better
compliance with the rules on waste and chemicals – coordinated with other enforcement
measures. This can, for example, be done by introducing new rules in relevant sector
legislation and enhanced cooperation relating to enforcement, both with regard to EU rules
and to international conventions. We also consider that compliance, enforcement and
sanctions should feature prominently in the EU’s forthcoming seventh Environmental Action
Programme.
Non-toxic and resource-efficient material cycles (Chapter 8.3 – 8.8)
In order to achieve non-toxic and resource-efficient material cycles we need to increase
resource efficiency by preventing waste production and by recycling waste while retaining
control over hazardous substances. In order to achieve this, measures are needed in the EU.
We propose that Sweden should work for a strategy in the EU which aims at achieving
resource-efficient material cycles which, as far as possible, are free from hazardous
substances. The strategy should improve the coordination between waste, chemicals and
product legislation as well as ensuring safe use of recycled materials from the points of view
of health and the environment. In the work on this strategy. Sweden should place particular
focus on the following objectives:
• Substances which complicate recycling should not be used
• Measures and policy instruments to promote increased recycling should focus on the
materials which are most valuable from a resource-efficient perspective and which, at the
same time, have a low content of hazardous substances
• In order to achieve recycling which is sustainable in the long term, requirements should
be set for recycled and newly produced materials at a comparable level as regards the
content of hazardous substances.
This strategy of non-toxic and resource-efficient material cycles should be an issue that is
raised in the forthcoming seventh Environmental Action Programme.
We also consider that there is a need for an analysis of policy instruments in order to improve
the coordination between the regulatory systems and to simplify the rules. The Swedish
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