EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR)

The European Commission's commitment to a circular and sustainable economy takes a significant stride forward with the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), formally established as Regulation (EU) 2024/1781. This regulation amplifies the ambition and scope of ecodesign legislation, aiming to diminish the environmental effects of products across their entire lifecycle.

Expanding Ecodesign Legislation

The ESPR represents a major expansion from its predecessor, Directive 2009/125/EC, which primarily focused on energy-related products. The ESPR widens the scope of ecodesign legislation to include all physical goods marketed or used within the EU. This encompasses components like tyres, intermediate products that require further processing before becoming final products, and even digital content integrated into physical products. This all-encompassing approach enables the European Commission to address the sustainability of a broader spectrum of products and maximise the regulation's overall impact.

Digital Product Passports: A tool for transparency and traceability

The ESPR introduces Digital Product Passports (DPPs) as a central pillar of its strategy. A DPP is a digital record containing comprehensive information about a product's sustainability throughout its lifecycle. This information, accessible electronically, will enable consumers to make informed choices. The DPPs will also facilitate traceability across the supply chain, allowing authorities to monitor compliance and identify non-compliant products more easily. The information contained in a DPP will be tailored to the specific product group, but could include data on the product's environmental footprint, carbon footprint, durability, presence of substances of concern, and end-of-life handling.

Comprehensive information requirements

The ESPR mandates the provision of specific information regarding product sustainability, encompassing a range of aspects. This information will help consumers, businesses, and authorities make informed decisions about the environmental impacts of products. Here are the key information requirements:

• Environmental footprint and Carbon footprint: Information on a product's environmental footprint and carbon footprint will be mandatory. These metrics provide a comprehensive assessment of the product's environmental impacts throughout its lifecycle.
• Durability: Information regarding the product's durability will be required, empowering consumers to choose products designed to last longer and reducing the need for frequent replacements. This will contribute to resource conservation and waste reduction.
• Substances of concern: Information on the presence of substances of concern in products will be mandatory. This information is crucial for identifying and promoting products that minimise the use of harmful chemicals, protecting human health and the environment. This includes details such as the name and location of the substance within the product, its concentration, and instructions for safe handling, disassembly, and end-of-life management.
• End-of-Life Handling: Clear and user-friendly instructions will be provided for the product's end-of-life handling, including information on collection schemes for refurbishment, remanufacturing, or proper disposal. This promotes proper waste management and encourages circularity by facilitating the recovery of valuable materials.

Driving change with performance requirements

Beyond information provision, the ESPR empowers the Commission to establish performance requirements for products to meet specific environmental sustainability levels. These requirements can be quantitative, establishing minimum or maximum limits for parameters such as energy consumption, recycled content, or specific material use. They can also be qualitative, prohibiting design features that hinder product reparability or reusability. For instance, a quantitative requirement could set a minimum recycled content for a particular product, while a qualitative requirement might ban the use of glues that make repairs impossible. By setting these requirements, the ESPR aims to eliminate the worst-performing products from the market and drive the development and adoption of more sustainable options.

The ESPR acknowledges the integral role of chemical safety in overall product sustainability. While not aiming to duplicate existing chemical safety regulations, the ESPR provides a mechanism for restricting substances used in products if they adversely affect the product's sustainability. This is particularly relevant for substances that impede reuse or recycling processes.

Prioritising sustainable change: A working plan for product groups

Recognising that regulating the vast array of products covered by the ESPR requires a strategic approach, the legislation mandates the creation of a working plan. This plan will prioritise product groups for regulation based on a comprehensive set of criteria.

• Environmental impact: The plan will prioritise product groups based on their potential contribution to achieving the EU’s climate, environmental, and energy efficiency objectives. The ESPR highlights the importance of considering the volume of sales, trade, and the distribution of environmental impacts across the value chain. For instance, products with high sales volumes and significant environmental impacts throughout their lifecycle will likely receive higher priority.

• Potential for improvement: A key consideration is the potential for improving a product's sustainability without incurring disproportionate costs. This involves evaluating the effectiveness of existing EU or national laws, market forces, and self-regulation measures in addressing the product group’s environmental impact. Product groups where current measures are insufficient or where significant disparities in product performance exist will be prioritised.

• Economic Feasibility: The plan will also evaluate the economic feasibility of implementing ecodesign requirements for specific product groups. This assessment will consider the potential costs for both the public and economic operators, ensuring that the regulations are proportionate and do not create undue burdens. For example, the availability of key resources and technologies for making products more sustainable will be factored into the decision-making process.

The working plan will cover a minimum period of three years and will be regularly updated to reflect evolving market conditions and technological advancements. The first working plan, due by "19 April 2025", prioritises several product groups:

• Iron and steel
• Aluminium
• Textiles (particularly garments and footwear)
• Furniture (including mattresses)
• Tyres
• Detergents
• Paints
• Lubricants
• Chemicals
• Energy-related products requiring initial ecodesign regulations or review under the ESPR
• Information and communication technology products and other electronics

This prioritisation reflects the EU’s commitment to addressing the environmental impacts of key industrial sectors and consumer products.

Supporting sustainable transitions: Assistance for small/medium businesses

The ESPR acknowledges that complying with new ecodesign requirements can pose challenges for small and medium businesses, especially micro-enterprises. To mitigate these challenges, the ESPR provides for various forms of support:

• Information and guidance: The Commission and member states are obligated to provide small/medium businesses with clear and accessible information about the ESPR and its requirements. This includes guidance on how to interpret and comply with specific regulations.
• Training: Targeted and specialised training programmes will be offered to help small/medium businesses develop the knowledge and skills necessary to implement ecodesign principles in their operations. These programmes will cover aspects such as eco-design methodologies, material selection, and sustainable production processes.
• Financial support: Recognising that implementing ecodesign changes can require investments, the ESPR includes provisions for financial support to help small/medium businesses cover costs related to compliance. This support may take various forms, such as grants, subsidies, or access to favourable financing schemes. For instance, small/medium businesses could receive financial assistance to invest in new equipment or to adapt their production processes to incorporate recycled materials.

These measures aim to ensure that small/medium businesses can actively participate in the transition towards a more sustainable economy, without being disproportionately burdened by the new regulations.

Combating waste: Banning the destruction of unsold consumer products

To address the environmental and economic waste associated with the destruction of unsold goods, the ESPR introduces a prohibition on the destruction of specific unsold consumer products. This ban applies to products primarily intended for consumers, including those returned by consumers exercising their right of withdrawal.

The ESPR initially targets a list of product groups for this prohibition, including textiles, footwear, and electrical and electronic equipment. The reasoning behind this focus is that these product groups are often associated with high volumes of unsold goods and have significant potential for reuse or recycling.

The prohibition on destruction aims to incentivise economic operators to find alternative solutions for unsold products, such as:

• Donation: Encouraging the donation of unsold products to charities or non-profit organisations for redistribution to those in need.

• Resale: Facilitating the resale of unsold products through second-hand markets or online platforms.

• Repurposing: Exploring opportunities to repurpose unsold products for different applications or to extract valuable components for reuse.

To support this transition, the ESPR requires economic operators, with the exception of micro and small enterprises, to disclose information about the quantity and types of unsold consumer products they discard each year. This transparency requirement will shed light on the scale of the issue and encourage companies to implement waste prevention measures. The Commission will also use this information to identify additional products that should be subject to the destruction ban.

Ensuring compliance: Robust market surveillance and enforcement mechanisms

The ESPR emphasises the importance of robust market surveillance and enforcement mechanisms to guarantee that products comply with the new ecodesign requirements. The ESPR reinforces and complements the existing market surveillance framework established by Regulation (EU) 2019/1020.

Key elements of the ESPR's market surveillance provisions include:

• National market surveillance strategies: member states are required to develop comprehensive national market surveillance strategies outlining their plans and priorities for ensuring compliance with ecodesign requirements. These strategies should identify products and requirements that will be prioritised for checks, considering factors such as the levels of observed non-compliance and the potential environmental impact of violations.

• Coordination and support: The ESPR promotes collaboration and coordination among market surveillance authorities in different member states. The Commission is tasked with facilitating this cooperation by organising joint market surveillance projects, providing training programmes for market surveillance personnel, and developing guidelines for consistent implementation and enforcement of the regulation. These initiatives aim to ensure harmonised market surveillance efforts across the EU and enhance the effectiveness of enforcement actions.

• Penalties for non-compliance: The legislation mandates that member states establish a system of penalties for infringements of the ESPR. These penalties must be effective, proportionate, and dissuasive, and should include fines and temporary exclusion from public procurement procedures. Common criteria for determining the type and level of penalties are provided to ensure consistent enforcement across the EU. For example, the severity of the penalty could be influenced by the nature and duration of the infringement, the financial benefits gained from non-compliance, and any environmental damage caused.

Looking ahead: Evaluating the integration of social sustainability

Recognising that the social dimensions of sustainability are increasingly important, the ESPR mandates that the Commission evaluate the potential benefits of incorporating social sustainability requirements into the regulation. This evaluation, due within four years of the ESPR's entry into force, will assess how social considerations can complement the environmental focus of the ESPR.

The Commission will examine the feasibility of setting requirements that address potential adverse impacts on human and social rights throughout a product's lifecycle, such as labour conditions in the supply chain or fair trade practices. The findings of this evaluation will inform potential future amendments to the ESPR, potentially extending its scope to encompass a more holistic approach to product sustainability that considers both environmental and social impacts.

The ESPR as a catalyst for sustainable change

The EU's Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation marks a significant milestone in the journey towards a more sustainable future. By prioritising product groups for regulation, providing support for SMEs, combating the destruction of unsold goods, strengthening market surveillance, and considering social sustainability, the ESPR creates a comprehensive framework for promoting the design, production, and consumption of products that minimise environmental and social impacts. As the ESPR is implemented and further developed, it is anticipated to have a transformative effect on the EU market, encouraging innovation, fostering responsible business practices, and empowering consumers to make sustainable choices.

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