Local authorities such as municipalities, but also the province, need to work together much more to really give the transition to a circular economy a serious boost. At the moment there is still too much fragmentation, while the circular economy requires all parties to work together.
That’s what former deputy Ruud Burlet says in his booklet The Realcycle† Burlet was deputy for sustainability for two years until the entire provincial government resigned last April over integrity issues. Burlet started as a politician of the Forum for Democracy, but he resigned at the end of 2020. He has since joined JA21. Before his political career, the politician was active as an entrepreneur for many years, including in the tire industry.
Worlds to be won
“When I came to the province, I saw that quite a bit is happening when it comes to the circular economy, but that it is still very fragmented. While the circular economy only really works if everyone in the chain, from producer to “We work together with the consumer. A product must be produced in such a way that it can be reused or recycled after use. And the consumer will also have to deliver his waste properly separated. There are still worlds to be won.”
Lack of sense of reality
As deputy, Burlet noticed that there is a lot of enthusiasm among entrepreneurs, but that they sometimes lack a sense of reality. “They come up with a concept, but they don’t think of how to guarantee that the waste they need will also remain available. In that respect, Limburg is not so favorable with the proximity of borders. Because there are still many rules and legislation that that stands in the way of simple trade in waste across borders, which is a great task for Europe.”
Limburg circular innovation prize
Furniture maker Cooloo from Wanssum recently received the first Limburg circular innovation prize. The company makes furniture upholstery from waste products. In this way, discarded chairs and benches can be given a second, third or even fourth life. And they make the new cladding from all kinds of waste.