Global demand for raw materials for things like food, electrical goods and clothes is increasing sharply. The Dutch government is therefore working with other public authorities, knowledge institutions and environmental organisations, industry, trade unions, financial institutions and other civil-society organisations to find smarter and more efficient ways of using raw materials. The goal is for the Dutch economy to be completely circular by 2050. By 2030 the consumption of primary raw materials should have been reduced by half.
Obviously, these national goals are linked to international goals that the Netherlands is committed to, including the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on climate.
Goals for a circular economy
The government has set out three goals aimed at making the Dutch economy circular as quickly as possible:
Ensure production processes use raw materials more efficiently, so that fewer are needed.
When new raw materials are needed, use sustainably produced renewable (inexhaustible) and widely available raw materials, like biomass – raw material made of plants, trees and food waste. This will make the Netherlands less dependent on fossil fuel resources, and it is better for the environment.
Develop new production methods and design new products to be circular.
Timeline for the transition to a circular economy 2016 - 2050
The government-wide programme for a Circular Dutch Economy by 2050 (in Dutch) outlines how we can transform our economy into a sustainable, fully circular economy by 2050. The programme describes what we will need to do to ensure we use raw materials, products and services in a smarter and more efficient way.
In January 2017 in The Hague, 180 parties signed the Raw Materials Agreement (in Dutch), which sets out what is to be done to ensure that the Dutch economy can run on renewable resources. The agreement was signed by parties from both government and industry.
Sharon Dijksma, State Secretary for Infrastructure and the Environment at the time: ‘We have to wean ourselves off our disposable lifestyle and start thinking differently about raw materials and waste. It has to be clear at the design stage how the raw materials in a product can be reused. This agreement provides the basis for a recycling economy, and it will be the first step towards tackling the squandering of raw materials and the exhaustion of our planet.’
The government and the signatories to the Raw Materials Agreement drew up five transition agendas, focusing on five sectors and value chains that are important to the economy but also have a high environmental burden. They are the transition agendas Plastics, Consumer Goods, Manufacturing, Construction and Biomass and Food. The agendas set out how the sector in question can become circular by 2050, and what actions need to be taken. The page 'Accelerating the transition to a circular economy' describes the transition agendas.
The government now presents its Circular Economy Implementation Programme (in Dutch), which translates the five transition agendas into concrete actions and projects to be put into effect between 2019 and 2023.
Examples from the implementation programme include:
The large growth of electric mobility creates an enormous demand for lithium-ion batteries. In the future, these batteries will have to be recycled at the end of their life. They contain many valuable metals.
Steps are being taken with the textile sector to introduce Extended Producer Responsibility. This means that the producer remains responsible for the textiles they make, even if they are discarded and therefore become waste. In 2021, the government launched the Circular and Fair ICT Pact (CFIT). The government is working with other countries to procure ICT in a sustainable way, taking into account innovation, circularity and social conditions.
The Central Government Real Estate Agency and Rijkswaterstaat must make their operations circular by 2030. All government buildings constructed after 2018 must be energy neutral. As many recycled or recyclable materials and resources as possible will be used in the construction and redevelopment of real estate.
The Implementation Programme will be updated regularly:
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management will organise an annual National Circular Economy Conference (in Dutch) at which stakeholders discuss progress with the circular economy. This might lead to adjustments to the Implementation Programme.
Every two years the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) will publish a progress report. In the intervening years, an interim report will be issued. The findings and recommendations of the report may lead to adjustment of the implementation program.
The first goal of the government-wide programme for a Circular Dutch Economy by 2050 is ambitious, but not impossible: the Netherlands must use 50% fewer primary resources (minerals, metals and fossil fuels) by 2030.
The Netherlands aims to have a circular economy by 2050 – a waste-free economy that runs as much as possible on sustainable and renewable raw materials, and in which products and raw materials are reused.
International cooperation for a circular future
To create a circular economy in the Netherlands, changes are needed in Europe and worldwide. This is because raw material supply chains and waste flows are global. And not all waste products or materials end up in the Netherlands or even Europe. Also, many businesses operate internationally. That’s why the government works with other governments in bilateral, regional and in the United Nations, both inside and outside the European Union.
The government is also active in multistakeholder platforms, where government, business and international organisations drive shared goals towards a circular economy.One example is the Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy (PACE), with more than 40 members.
Awareness raising about the circular economy remains an important aspect. That is why the Netherlands co-hosted the World Circular Economy Forum + Climate in April 2021. This global conference raised awareness about the circular economy in general, and the opportunities for the circular economy to help reach our climate goals in particular.
