Circular Economy Plans

What a circular economy plan is

A circular economy plan is the instrument that structures the transition of an organisation, sector or territory from the linear economic model — take, make, use and dispose — towards a circular model in which materials and resources are kept in use for as long as possible, minimising waste generation and the consumption of virgin resources. It is built on the principles of reduction, reuse, repair, recycling and recovery.

At European level, the circular economy is driven by the EU Circular Economy Action Plan and the European waste directives, which establish the waste management hierarchy. In Spain, this framework is developed through the Spanish Circular Economy Strategy (España Circular 2030) and Spanish Law 7/2022 of 8 April on waste and contaminated soil for a circular economy, which transposes the EU waste directives and reinforces the management hierarchy; equivalent national transpositions apply across all EU member states.

When it is needed

• When a local authority wants to promote the circular economy across its territory or meet the objectives of the applicable waste legislation.
• For companies seeking to reduce their resource consumption and waste, improve their competitiveness or respond to client and financing requirements.
• As part of a corporate sustainability strategy or a sector-specific plan (industry, tourism, construction).
• To access financing lines linked to the circular transition.

Methodology

1. Diagnosis of the material, water, energy and waste flows of the organisation or territory.
2. Identification of circularity opportunities: source reduction, reuse, industrial symbiosis, ecodesign, recovery.
3. Definition of prioritised and quantified objectives and lines of action.
4. Action programme with budget, responsible parties and timeline.
5. System of circularity indicators for monitoring and evaluation.

Common mistakes

• Reducing the circular economy to waste management, ignoring source reduction and ecodesign, which sit at the top of the hierarchy.
• Defining unquantified objectives that make it impossible to measure real progress.
• Failing to base the plan on a real diagnosis of flows, which produces actions misaligned with the actual impacts.
• Omitting the monitoring indicators that are essential for management and reporting.

Why choose Ideas Medioambientales

We draft circular economy plans for local authorities, companies and industry, integrating the technical diagnosis of resource flows with our knowledge of waste regulation and financing instruments. Our approach prioritises the highest-impact actions and equips them with measurable indicators, keeping the plan focused on real implementation across Spain.

Tell us about your organisation or territory and the objective of the plan, and we'll propose a tailored approach.