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The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre held its final stakeholder event on 12 June 2026 on the development of EU-wide End-of-Waste criteria for recycled aggregates from mineral construction and demolition waste.
The event covered an introduction, the treatment of recycled aggregates under the Construction Products Regulation, two technical sessions on the JRC proposal, and a closing session.
Multi-stage process
The purpose of the event was to present the JRC’s refined technical proposal for EU-wide criteria that would determine when recycled aggregates from mineral C&D waste, including certain wastes from the manufacture of mineral construction products, can cease to be classified as waste and instead be placed on the market as products. The event formed part of a wider multi-stage process that included earlier stakeholder workshops, bilateral engagement, site visits and technical review.
The JRC indicated that the technical proposal would be finalised and then passed to DG Environment and DG GROW, who would decide whether to proceed with a legal process.
A central theme was the relationship between End-of-Waste status and the Construction Products Regulation. DG GROW explained that recycled aggregates placed on the market as construction products already sit within the CPR framework. The future EoW system is therefore expected to align with CPR tools such as the Declaration of Performance and Conformity, Factory Production Control, and the Assessment and Verification System. A key policy distinction was made between achieving an EU baseline EoW/product-status threshold and meeting stricter national requirements for particular uses. In other words, a material that meets EU EoW criteria should not automatically be treated as waste simply because it is unsuitable for one specific national or local application.
The proposed scope is limited to recycling, not the direct reuse of construction products. The output material must be a fine or coarse mineral recycled aggregate suitable for construction works or for incorporation into bound construction materials. Standalone recycled fines below 0.063 mm are excluded, although fines may be present as part of a normal aggregate grading. The proposal also excludes reuse of construction products, asphalt-to-asphalt recycling, hazardous inputs, asbestos-containing material and materials outside the defined mineral C&D waste scope.
The product-quality approach had been significantly refined following stakeholder feedback. The JRC proposed a reduced parameter set of 11 leaching parameters and three organic total-content parameters, moving toward a statistical EU baseline rather than a full EU-wide risk-assessment model. The proposal also moved toward batch leaching, risk-based sampling, a longer validity period for analysis, and a narrower restriction focused mainly on avoiding direct contact with water intended for human consumption.
Stakeholders broadly welcomed the aim of harmonisation, but several concerns were raised. These included testing cost, the burden of Quality Management System requirements, potential duplication with CPR / Factory Production Control systems, treatment of mobile plants and SMEs, CLP / REACH / POPs obligations, and whether a single EU baseline threshold might exclude some materials currently recycled under national systems.
For Ireland, the event is relevant because the EPA has already adopted national End-of-Waste criteria for recycled aggregates. The JRC proposal suggests that the EU may move toward a more harmonised baseline EoW system, potentially more closely integrated with CPR product documentation and Factory Production Control. This may require future review of how Irish national criteria, use restrictions, sampling, testing, statements of conformity and market surveillance arrangements interact with any EU-wide regime.