Stakeholders support EU energy label expansion
(11 Feb 08) Commission-led workshop backs expansion to other energy-using products but not to include other environmental indicators
An EU energy labelling scheme for household appliances like refrigerators should be extended to other energy-using products, stakeholders "very unanimously" agreed at a workshop organised by the European commission in Brussels last Friday.The commission is consulting on plans to revise the existing energy label. It intends to issue concrete proposals, which will probably include legislative changes, by the summer. The consultation ends next Friday.
Stakeholders representing member states, industry and civil society backed extending the current energy label to other household and non-household energy-using products on Friday. Examples of the latter include electric motors and industrial pumps and fans.
In "some limited cases", the label could also be extended to products that do not use energy but are "energy-relevant", such as tyres, windows and insulation, they suggested, according to a European commission official at the meeting.
Extending the label beyond household appliances would require changes to the energy labelling framework directive.
Stakeholders did not support broadening the label into a more general "eco-design" label, the official said. "Again very unanimously, the feeling was 'no, don't touch my label'".
The idea of adding information such as carbon dioxide emissions or anticipated running costs to the label met with general disapproval. Stakeholders called the proposals "impractical" because both dependvery strongly on local energy mixes.
The energy labelling directive could be amended to allow other environmental information to be provided, they said, but displaying this information should not be compulsory and it should not interfere with the basic energy information.
Household appliance group Ceced presented plans for a new, dynamic labelling system to the workshop. "Our proposals are now an item for consideration," Ceced director-general Luigi Meli told ENDS afterwards. "People realise introducing dynamism requires modification of the current scheme."
The European commission will examine Ceced's and other proposals for moving forward in a working group over the next few months.
Follow-up: European commission, tel: +32 299 111, plus energy labelling pages consultation responses at the bottom) and Ceced homepage.
Published with permission of ENDS Europe Daily
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