On the launch of the first Circular Economy Day on 5 June 2025 in Berlin, the BDE Federal Association of the German Waste Management, Water and Recycling Industries appealed to politicians and businesses to resolutely push forward the ramp-up of the circular economy.
Circular economy as an economic factor
The industry employs approximately 300,000 people, generating approximately 105 billion euros annually. These people are making significant contributions to climate protection: In the waste management sector, emissions have been reduced by almost 90 percent (from 38 to 4.3 million tons of CO₂) since 1990. In addition, the use of recycled raw materials saves energy and thus further contributes to climate protection.
“The circular economy offers decisive competitive and locational advantages for Germany. It strengthens Germany’s independence from raw materials and increases the resilience of the economy. For this reason, the ramp-up of the circular economy must be accelerated both nationally and across Europe,” says Anja Siegesmund, Executive President of the BDE.
“Our economy faces enormous challenges – but also enormous opportunities,” adds Anja Siegesmund. She points out that innovative recycling technologies can only function with clear framework conditions: “Only with investment security, digitalization, and less bureaucracy can our industry receive the urgently needed boost,” says Siegesmund. Her clear message: Circular economy companies are the anchor for stability, raw material security, and competitiveness in turbulent times.
Demands on politics
The BDE is calling on politicians to take decisive action. A clear framework must be established in the first 100 days after the federal election. Reducing bureaucracy, lowering energy costs, and accelerating approval and planning procedures are necessary. At the same time, Siegesmund emphasized: “We also consider measures to combat the fires that endanger our waste disposal workers and the recycling infrastructure caused by improperly disposed lithium-ion batteries to be immediate issues that politicians must address quickly. The circular economy strategy must be implemented, and the €500 billion package for infrastructure measures in rail, schools, and roads must become a boost for the use of recycled raw materials. Laws and regulations that the traffic light coalition has put on the back burner must be passed swiftly. Above all, the amendments to the Commercial Waste Ordinance and the Substitute Building Materials Ordinance.”
In the long term, the BDE calls for binding regulations for industry and administration. That manufacturers should be required to use secondary raw materials through increased use of recycled materials and tax incentives (e.g., reduced VAT) and that the public sector should also prioritize purchasing recycled products. Their passionate about that through targeted green public procurement, the federal government can reduce costs in the long term, improve its carbon footprint, and promote sustainable and environmentally friendly technologies.
At EU level, they believe that Germany must advocate for a general ban on the landfilling of untreated municipal waste by 2030 – Germany already took this step in 2005.
“Resilience, raw material security and state-of-the-art recycling technologies require bold political steps so that the policy change also reaches the farms of companies in the waste management, water and recycling sectors, as key industries of the circular economy,” concludes Siegesmund.
At Empowering Pumps & Equipment, we love seeing other countries adopting and pushing for a circular economy and are looking forward to seeing how these ripple effects affect others around the globe.
Photo: BILDSCHÖN/Trenkel
