Preparatory study of Ecodesign and Energy Labelling measures for High Pressure Cleaners

Following the Ecodesign Working Plan 2016-20191, the European Commission launched in 2018 a preparatory study for the product group ‘high pressure cleaners’. The preparatory study follows the Commission’s Methodology for the Evaluation of Energy related Products (MEErP). It consists of: Scope definition, standard methods and legislation, Market analysis, Analysis of user behaviour and system aspects, Analysis of technologies, Environmental and economics, Design options and Policy analysis and scenarios The comprehensive analysis of the product group following the steps above will provide the technical and scientific evidence for policy-making decisions. The research is based on available scientific information and data, uses a life-cycle thinking approach, and has engaged stakeholder experts in order to discuss key issues, and to the extent possible reach consensus on the proposals.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

Revision of the EU Green Public Procurement Criteria for Food and Catering Services

This report forms the basis to revise the existing EU Green Public Procurement (GPP) criteria for Food and Catering services. This will assist in the reduction of negative impacts of the, public procurement of these services, on the environment, human health and natural resources. The revision of EU GPP requires in-depth information about the technical and environmental performance of the service group as well as about the current procurement processes. The scientific body of evidence gathered will be cross-checked with sector experienced stakeholders, to develop consensus on how the criteria should be revised to deliver optimum environmental improvements. This Report which will be the basis for producing the draft EU GPP criteria proposals that will be discussed in the Ad Hoc Working Group (AHWG) meetings. Chapter 1 focuses on the definition for and scoping of Food and Catering Services to overview of the different scope and definitions and to narrow down the services in order to obtain a homogenous scope. Chapter 2, market analysis, presents the market overview and the market structure by focusing on the contract catering market. The environmental analysis (Chapter 3) provides a detail analysis of the main environmental hotspots for the food product categories by reviewing a number of LCA studies. Other non-LCA aspects including ethical and health consideration are also summarised. The technical analysis focus on the current schemes and labels identified as important for the revision of the current EU GPP criteria. Chapter 4 provide improvement options, based on the best sector practices and national cases studies which could assist the revision of the EU GPP, and reduce the sectors environmental impacts, by drawing on findings from the market and technical analysis.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

Falsos positivos: los crímenes que cambiaron sus vidas

através de este informe especial se busca hacer memoria y dar a conocer a la sociedad colombiana una realidad que nos persigue constantemente, pero que por el dinamismo macabro de la política no salen a la luz pública. Este género periodístico permite hacer un balance interpretativo sobre acontecimientos que sucedieron en el pasado. Además permite que el periodista investigue cómo un acontecimiento afectó significativamente a una sociedad en un tiempo y en un espacio determinado. El tema de los “falsos positivos” fue escogido porque es un acontecimiento que generó opinión pública en el año 2008, ya que tuvo gran interés periodístico para que se conocieran casos de jóvenes, que en su mayoría vivían en el municipio de Soacha, Cundinamarca y que fueron presentados por el Ejército Nacional de Colombia como guerrilleros caídos en combate, pero tales acusaciones resultaron no ser ciertas

Revision of the EU Green Public Procurement Criteria for Street Lighting and Traffic Signals - Preliminary Report

Lighting is used on more than 1.6 million km of roads in EU28 countries, accounting for some 35 TWh of electricity consumption (1.3% of total electricity consumption) and costing public authorities almost €4000 million each year. A broad review of relevant technical, policy, academic and legislative literature has been conducted. This report examines the current market situation and the potential for reducing environmental impacts and electricity costs by assessing the recent developments in road lighting technology, particularly LEDs. Particularly important areas identified relate to energy efficiency, light pollution, product durability and, specifically for longer lasting and rapidly evolving new LED technologies, reparability and upgradeability. The information in this report shall serve as a basis for discussion with stakeholders about the further development and revision of EU GPP criteria for street lighting and traffic signals.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

Revision of the EU Green Public Procurement Criteria for Road Lighting and traffic signals

The EU GPP criteria for road lighting and traffic signals aim to address the key environmental impacts associated with the design, installation and operation of these systems. For road lighting, the criteria are broadly split into three parts: energy consumption, light pollution and durability aspects. From an LCA perspective, the main environmental impact was found to be related to energy consumption during the use phase. This impact can be reduced in a number of ways, by using luminaire and light source combinations with a high luminous efficacy, by dimming during periods of low road use and by selection of the lowest necessary light class for roads to prevent unnecessary over-lighting in the first place. Light pollution is another environmental impact of particular relevance to road lighting and traffic signals which is not well addressed by LCA methodologies. In order to reduce the potential for light pollution, EU GPP criteria are proposed based on upward and horizontal light output ratios. Furthermore, limits on Correlated Colour Temperature and blue light output are proposed in order to address concerns about annoyance and ecological light pollution respectively. The durability of light sources and fittings is not only important to environmental impacts but also to life cycle cost. Consequently, the EU GPP criteria set requirements for minimum warranties, ingress protection, control gear failure rates and reparability - in order to ensure that lighting equipment in winning tenders is of sufficient quality and able to deliver a prolonged service life. The implementation of these criteria should also help procurers understand better about aspects that should be considered in road lighting system design (e.g. maximum lighting level, dimming capability), the actual products they are procuring (requirements on provision of instructions and labelling), to keep accurate information about their infrastructure (requirement on asset labelling) and to monitor lighting system performance (requirements on metering and AECI). Overall, a good understanding of road lighting and traffic signal systems and the use of suitable technical specifications in Invitations to Tender should help ensure that the twin benefits of lower environmental impacts and lower life cycle costs for public authorities can be obtained.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

EU GPP criteria for Food procurement, Catering services and vending machines

This report summarized the discussions held during the revision process of the Green Public Procurement criteria for Food procurement and catering services. The report includes a summary of the preliminary report that includes related information such as market analysis and technical analysis and those changes in the criteria structure and wording that have been proposed and discussed during the whole process. The main part of the report consists of the wording and rationale of each of the revised GPP criteria. This section is organized in three main blocks including the proposed criteria on Food, catering services and vending machines. Each criterion is classified as contractual performance clause, technical specification, selection criteria or award criteria and includes the wording and values proposed (in the explanatory notes) for the core and the comprehensive levels. The report closes with the life cycle considerations for this product group.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

EU GPP Criteria for Public Spaces Maintenance - Preliminary Report

Green Public Procurement (GPP), in which public authorities procure goods, services and works that have less environmental impact than comparable contracts, has the potential to accelerate the market introduction and uptake of less environmentally damaging technologies. This report forms the basis to develop the EU GPP criteria for Public Spaces Maintenance. The development of EU GPP criteria requires in-depth information about the technical and environmental performance of this product group as well as about the typical procurement processes. This report gathers the necessary background information for that and presents it in a structured form. The scientific body of evidence gathered will be crosschecked with sector-experienced stakeholders to find the best way to develop the criteria in order to deliver optimum environmental improvements while complying with Public Procurement law and safeguarding the Single Market.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi

Revision of the EU Green Public Procurement Criteria for Transport

Public authorities' expenditures in the purchase of goods, services and works (excluding utilities and defence) constitute approximately 14% of the overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Europe, accounting for roughly EUR 1.8 trillion annually. Thus, public procurement has the potential to provide significant leverage in seeking to influence the market and to achieve environmental improvements in the public sector. This effect can be particularly significant for goods, services and works (referred to collectively as products) that account for a high share of public purchasing combined with the substantial improvement potential for environmental performance. The European Commission has identified (road) transport as one such product group. Road transport covers a wide scope of vehicles (cars, LCVs, L-category vehicles, buses and waste collection vehicles) and services (mobility services, public bus services, waste collection services and post and courier services). The main environmental issues at the use phase addressed by the criteria are GHG emissions, air pollutant emissions and noise emissions. The impacts from the manufacture of batteries used in electric vehicle are also considered, leading to criteria on minimum and extended warranty of batteries. This revision has coincided with the evaluation of the Clean Vehicle Directive and the introduction of new test procedures to measure CO2 and air pollutant emissions of vehicles (WLTP, Real Drive Emissions in Euro 6). All these policies have been taken into account in the revision process of the EU GPP criteria for transport, to ensure a full harmonisation of the EU policies.JRC.B.5-Circular Economy and Industrial Leadershi