The Pays de la Loire Regional Council and the group of stakeholders of the BIOREGIO project continue their effort to promote the development of a bio-based circular economy in the region. The bio-based circular economy is defined as the sustainable management and use of biological resources that maintains the economic, social and ecological value of products and the nutrients they contain for as long as possible (European Commission 2015, Vanhamäki et al. 2018). It is identified as a strong lever for ecological transition.
For the 3rd edition of the annual Call for projects “Circular economy”, the Regional Council in partnership with the French National Agency for the ecological transition (ADEME) and the Regional Directorate for the Environment, Planning and Housing (DREAL), have dedicated an entire section of the Call to the bioeconomy. This section aims to finance innovative and exemplary projects that promote the recycling of organic matter, develop bio-energy and bio-based materials, and have a strong potential for transferability.
The Pays de la Loire Region’s commitment to the development of a bio-based circular economy is also reflected in its participation, along with two other territories, in the testing of a methodology called “ConcerTO”, launched by the ADEME. This methodology aims to strengthen consultation between the actors involved in biomass management, to make organic matter a lever for territorial development. The Pays de la Loire Region officially launched the methodology on 22 June 2020 at an online event. This meeting brought together forty actors from various backgrounds (territories, associations, cooperatives, companies…), proof of their interest and commitment in this topic.
Complementary to this initiative, the Regional Council, in partnership with Le Mans University and the Association of the Chambers of Agriculture of the Atlantic Area (AC3A), decided to finance and support the implementation of the Bio-based circular economy action plan drawn up as part of the BIOREGIO project, and to support one of its flagship actions: the implementation of an action-research to study biomass streams and the potential for development of the bio-based circular economy in the regional territory.
