This workshop focused on key issues related to Regional Trade Agreements (RTA) and the environment. It had three main objectives: (i) to take stock of current experience and insights on RTAs and the environment from different stakeholders, and to establish a stakeholder dialogue on this topic; (ii) to investigate how RTAs can serve as a vehicle to advance a resource efficient and circular economy transition; and (iii) to explore the potential of RTAs in addressing the nexus of illegal trade and environmental crime

1. Dr Rachna Arora
Team Leader
EU-Resource Efficiency Initiative
June 10, 2021
Regional Perspectives and insights from
International Cooperation on Circular
Economy

2. International Responses
 Sustainable Development Goals, especially
SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and
Production)
 G20 Resource Efficiency Dialogue (launched in
2017, followed up in 2019)
Resource Efficiency (RE) and Circular
Economy (CE) have become central pillars
of global multilateralism
The Challenge
• Resource extraction and processing contribute to increasing GHG
emissions, biodiversity loss and water stress (IRP, 2019)
• Accelerating growth in the demand for raw materials, which may
lead to resource scarcity and supply chain disruptions (Rood &
Kishna, 2019)

3. India and the EU have launched
comprehensive strategies on RE and CE
EU: Circular Economy
Package and Action Plan
India: Draft National Resource
Efficiency Policy 2019
Source: https://cdn1.vectorstock.com/i/1000x1000/66/15/grey-political-world-map-vector-16486615.jpg (adapted)
EU-India Joint Declaration on Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy

4. International Trade and Circular Economy Action Plan
Source - EU-REI & Infinitive
EU’s shift to a circular economy on the rest of the world through international trade have remained largely
unmapped
• Global movement of recyclable wastes
• Demand and supply of primary raw materials
• Repair, reuse and high quality recycled materials in the economy
• Global standards
• Lack of a uniform definition of waste
• Trade restrictions by developing countries on export of raw materials and wastes

5. European Union –
Resource
Efficiency Initiative
(Phase II)
EU-India Joint Declaration
on
Resource Efficiency and Circular
Economy,
July 2020
Bilateral
Policy
Dialogue
Knowledge
Exchange
Financing
Instruments
From Policy to
Practice
Research &
Innovation
Open to extra
EU and Indian
Partners
RE/CE
Skills
Frameworks
EU-India Partnership for Circular Economy
& Resource Efficiency
Supporting Policy Development & Implementation of
Resource Efficiency
5

6. India’s Draft National Resource
Efficiency Policy, Priorities & Trade related developments
Wastes
• Municipal solid waste
• Plastic packaging
• Waste electrical and
electronic equipment
• Industrial waste
Sectors
• Construction
• Transport
• Plastic
• Packaging
• Electrical and
electronic equipment
• Agriculture
• Metal industry (steel,
aluminium etc.)
Textile
• Renewable energy
• Food
Resources &
Materials
• Metals
• Non-metallic minerals
• Air
• Water
• Land
• Biomass
• Fossil fuels
Niti Aayog (GoI) sets up 11 core committees with key ministries to enable setting up
of CE action plans at the National level (March 2021)
Technology
Innovation
Import Dependence
Self-reliant India
Reduced GHG emission
Secondary resource
utilization
Repair and reuse
Digitalization
Standards
Recycling infrastructure
Informal sector
Extended Producer
Responsibility

7. Policy Options to Enhance EPR in India
Adaptation of CENELEC standards to the Indian context
• Standards can support the implementation of E-Waste (Management)
Rules and create business opportunities
• Adaptation of CENELEC can be beneficial for public and private
institutions, such as
• Producer/ producer associations: interested in a level playing field
and recycling benchmarks
• Formal collector/ recycler/ refurbisher: interested in complaince with
legislation
• Public organisations: improving enforcement of legislation
• Consumer Organisations and Environmental Groups
• Illegal imports and existing Indian waste management infrastructure needs
to be taken into account when opening up to the international markets
• Currently, only collection is financed by producers’ obligations under EPR.
This leads to a dangerous race to the bottom between PROs and makes
collected e-waste leak back into informal recycling channels.
Partners:

8. • Select high-priority sectors like packaging plastics, metals – steel and aluminium and electronics
• Address cross-border trade and interlinkages of international supply chains
• Cover the whole life cycle from extraction of raw materials to disposal of products
Analyse cross-border trade in sectors of mutual priority to harmonise trade of secondary raw materials and enable
industrial symbiosis.
Opportunities for Indo-European Collaboration
• Extend the planned European dataspace for smart circular applications to India
• R&D on secondary raw materials in electronics, packaging, plastics and textiles
• Expand scope of Horizon Europe and invite Indian research institutions to collaborate with EU counterparts in the CE space
Set up international information sharing systems to accelerate R&D on enabling technologies.
• Promote dialogue with experts on both eco-labels to exchange knowledge and develop MRAs and common core criteria (CCC)
for Indian and European ecolabels
• Evaluate certification criteria in light of circularity principles
Develop mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) and enhance alignment of RE and CE criteria for European and Indian
eco-labels/ standards
• Promote systematic knowledge exchange between Indian and European innovation hubs
• Reconsider current regulations governing the import and export of products and services from a CE-angle and explore win-win
potentials for future trade negotiations
• Act as role models in implementing the calls for actions signed by the G20 and showcase cross-continental leadership
Build on international agreements to foster the development of innovative approaches and new technologies.

9. THANK YOU
Dr Rachna Arora
Team Leader, European Union-Resource Efficiency
Initiative (EU-REI), India
www.eu-rei.com