What changes on January 1, 2022 to accelerate the ecological transition

Circular economy

Prohibition to dispose of unsold non-food items

Prohibition on the disposal of unsold non-food items for products covered by the REP channels (otherwise known as “polluter pays” channels), hygiene and childcare products, early learning and leisure products, books and school supplies, food preservation and cooking equipment. The disposal, in other words the landfill and incineration, of these unsold products will therefore be prohibited. Companies will now have to give them away or recycle them.

Fight against single-use plastic

End of plastic packaging around certain fruits and vegetables. From January 1, 2022, around thirty fresh unprocessed fruits and vegetables will be sold without plastic, including around fifteen vegetables: leeks, zucchini, eggplants, peppers, cucumbers, potatoes and carrots, round tomatoes, onions and turnips, cabbage, cauliflower, squash, parsnip, radish, Jerusalem artichoke, root vegetables. On the fruit side, these are in particular apples, pears, oranges, clementines, kiwis, tangerines, lemons, grapefruits, plums, melons, pineapples, mangoes, passion fruits, persimmons, etc. that will be found on stalls without plastic packaging from 2022.

Prohibition of plastic toys offered in certain menus: restaurants wishing to continue the free distribution of toys with their children's menus will have to offer them in other materials, such as wood or cardboard.

End of the plastic delivery of newspapers, magazines and advertisements, which must be delivered without packaging or with packaging made from another material, such as paper.

In the public purchasing sector: the State will no longer be able to buy single-use plastic products for use in the workplace or during the events it organizes.

Consumer information on greenhouse gas emissions linked to their internet and mobile consumption

Internet service providers and mobile operators will have to communicate to their subscribers the greenhouse gas emissions linked to their Internet and mobile consumption. This information will make consumers aware of the impact of their digital consumption on the environment and the climate.

Energy

Gas price freeze

The gas price freeze in 2022 has been extended to local distribution companies (ELD). The introduction of this tariff shield aims to protect the purchasing power of households in the face of soaring energy prices.

Amendment of the regulations relating to onshore wind turbine installations

Two new ministerial decrees modify the regulations relating to onshore wind installations as of January 1, 2022 by introducing:

• systematic acoustic control on reception for wind farms;
• a new criterion for assessing the impact on Météo France radars;
• the possibility of reusing delivery stations, cables and foundations in the event of renewal;
• an increase in the amount of financial guarantees, consistent with the technological development of the sector.

Housing and building

Launch of France Rénov ', the public service to renovate your home

France Rénov 'is the new name of the public home renovation service piloted by the ANAH. The FAIRE Consulting Spaces and the Anah Information Service Renovation Points (PRIS) will become the France Rénov 'Consulting Spaces from January 1, 2022, the single entry point to guide the French in their renovation work. This reference service provides neutral, free and independent information and advice. It also supports households throughout their journey through the specific “My Rénov accompanist” offer.

The France Rénov 'network is present throughout the territory with nearly 450 counters and is available via the platform france-renov.gouv.fr and on 0808.800.700.

Launch of Eco Energie Tertiaire to report building and consumption data

Tertiary Eco Energy is a regulatory obligation which imposes a gradual reduction in energy consumption in tertiary buildings (surface area of ​​1.000 m² or more) in order to fight against climate change. From January 1, 2022, taxable persons must declare their building and energy consumption data on the Operat platform (Observatory of the energy performance of renovation and service sector actions) of Ademe.

Possibility of filing a building permit electronically

From January 1, 2022, users will be able to choose to file their building permit and more broadly their application for planning permission (prior declaration, planning permission, demolition permit, etc.) electronically for the completion of their projects. works (construction / extension, renovation, fence, garden sheds, windows, solar panels,…). To support this large-scale transformation and all the municipalities, the State in consultation with the associations of elected officials (AMF and AdCF) is deploying a vast program for the digital transformation of the application of soil law, called Building Permits. in line. Until now, the user was under the obligation:

• either send their paper file in multiple copies by registered post with acknowledgment of receipt,
• or to come during the opening hours of the ticket office in town hall.

The online filing and processing of planning authorization applications thus respond to the challenges of simplifying and modernizing public services, at a time when the vast majority of services are accessible online.

Implementation of RE2020, new environmental regulations for new buildings

The environmental regulations for new buildings, called RE2020, will replace the current thermal regulations, RT2012. It will apply to single-family homes and collective dwellings for which the building permit is filed from January 1, 2022 and to office and educational buildings for which the building permit is filed from July 1, 2022.

The three main objectives pursued through RE2020 are:

• give priority to energy sobriety and the decarbonisation of energy;
• reduce the carbon impact of building construction;
• to guarantee comfort in the event of high heat.

Thus, in addition to strengthening the energy performance requirements of new buildings compared to RT2012, RE2020 improves the consideration of summer comfort and introduces the environmental dimension by establishing requirements relating to the carbon impact of the building. building over its life cycle from the moment of its construction. In order to set a trajectory for reducing the environmental impact of building construction, the requirements will be gradually reinforced every three years until 2031.

Health-environment

Implementation of the new European organic regulation

New rules will apply from January 1, 2022 for organic production. They are included in the basic regulation adopted in 2018 which defines the general principles and the main rules of organic farming. This new regulation is supplemented by around fifteen regulatory texts on often technical subjects. Several important changes will come into effect on January 1, 2022:

• new categories of seeds available for organic farming have been defined to provide organic farmers with equipment more suited to their needs and to the service of agricultural biodiversity;
• a number of new measures aimed at increasing animal welfare are also on the agenda, for example the ban on mutilation (trimming, cutting of teeth);
• products that were not covered by the European regulation will be able to benefit from the organic label in the future: these are in particular farm animals such as rabbits and deer, essential oils, salt, etc. ;
• Finally, the regulation contains new rules concerning the use of flavorings and additives but also imports, making compliance with European specifications the rule for trade with third countries.

Transport

Proposed by the Citizens' Convention for the Climate, the mass tax in working order (weight penalty) will come into force on January 1. It will apply to new passenger vehicles weighing more than 1,8 tonnes (1.800 kg), with a unit price of € 10 per excess kilogram. To take account of particular personal situations (large families, disabled people, etc.) on the one hand; technical specificities related to the most environmentally efficient vehicles (electric, hydrogen or plug-in hybrid vehicles with sufficient autonomy) on the other hand, reductions or exemptions, depending on the case, have been incorporated into the system. Commercial vehicles, on the other hand, are not affected by the tax.

Reinforcement of the penalty related to vehicle CO2 emissions and extension of the current bonus scale to help the acquisition of clean vehicles

From January 1, 2022, a new scale of the penalty on CO2 emissions from automobiles will apply to new vehicles. This change was provided for at the end of 2020 by article 55 of the finance law for 2021. It will apply from 128 grams of CO2 / km instead of 133 grams of CO2 / km in 2021. For this level pollution, the tax will be 50 €. The threshold of 1000 € will be reached from 151 grams of CO2 / km (1.074 €), instead of 156 grams of CO2 / km in 2021. The last installment of the scale will be 40.000 € for vehicles with a CO2 rate greater than 223 grams of CO2 / km (instead of € 30.000 in 2021 for more than 218 grams of CO2 / km).

In return for these developments, and in a context of recent sharp rise in fuel prices, the scale of the ecological bonus, subsidizing the acquisition of clean vehicles, which was initially to decrease by an amount of € 1.000 on January 1, 2022, is finally maintained at its current level for an additional 6 months. Individuals will thus be able to continue to benefit on January 1, 2022, for example, from aid of € 6.000 for the acquisition of a new electric or hydrogen car for less than € 45.000.

Industrial risks

Obligation to keep an up-to-date status of stored materials

The obligation to keep an up-to-date inventory of stored materials comes into force for storage warehouses for combustible materials, flammable liquids, transit waste sorting facilities and Seveso facilities. This report must be available in two formats, the first format intended to be used by State services for the management of an accidental event, the second to meet the information needs of the population within this same framework.

The decrees governing flammable liquids sites classified for registration or declaration also come into force, thus completing the implementation of the action plan on the flammable liquids regulation aspect.

For warehouses with authorization, it is the provision aimed at anticipating the first environmental samples in the event of an accident that comes into force. In addition, for warehouses with an internal operation plan, it becomes mandatory to define the provisions to be implemented for the cleaning and restoration of the site, as well as the organization to fight against a fire. of more than 2 hours.