Employment in the environmental sector is growing in Europe

Disclaimer: this is an automated translation from Italian. Go to the original article.

Over the past ten years, employment in the environmental goods and services sector in the European Union has grown faster than the overall employment rate. From 2010 to 2021, the share of employment in this sector increased from 2.1 per cent to 2.5 per cent, reaching about 5.2 million full-time workers. This expansion was fuelled by the creation of jobs related to renewable energy, energy efficiency and waste management. The European Union has set itself the goal of accelerating the transition to a sustainable economy and becoming carbon neutral by 2050. This transition will not only promote environmental sustainability, but is expected to generate new job opportunities in the clean energy sector, contributing to a further increase in of environmental employment in the European economy.

The European Green Deal and the Eighth Environmental Action Programme (8th EAP) aim to accelerate the transition to a sustainable economy in the European Union. The environmental goods and services sector, known as the green economy, is dedicated to the production of goods and the provision of services for environmental protection and the management of natural resources. Between 2010 and 2021, employment in the EU environmental economy increased by 0.4 percentage points. This represents a 25% increase, compared to a modest 7% increase in total employment over the same period. These figures show how the achievement of environmental goals can generate new job opportunities. By 2021, the environmental goods and services sector employed about 5.2 million people, accounting for about 2.5% of total employment on the continent.

The circular economy has seen an increase of 525,000 jobs related to energy resource management. This increase covers several areas, including: 1. Renewable energy production; 2. Manufacturing of renewable energy generation equipment, such as wind turbines and photovoltaic panels; 3. Production of energy-saving devices; 4. Research and development (R&D) activities; 5. Installation, consulting and management services.
The second largest driver of green employment growth is waste management, with an increase of 259,000 full-time equivalents, corresponding to a 24% increase over the period. In the other sectors, employment showed smaller variations: water management saw an increase of 4%, wastewater management increased by 10%, and other environmental protection areas gained 22%.

The circular economy focuses on prevention, reuse and recycling, with the aim of avoiding product disposal and minimising waste. By extending the life cycle of products, it helps to minimise waste generation. When a product has outlived its usefulness, its materials are, whenever possible, reintroduced into the economic cycle, thus generating further value. This development model, based on sustainability and circularity, aims to reduce pressure on the environment, achieve the European climate neutrality goal, decrease dependence on the import of strategic raw materials, and increase competitiveness and economic growth by decoupling them from resource use. The transition towards a circular economy represents the future of employment in all European states, creating new jobs in green business sectors.

Between 2014 and 2021, the share of green employment in total employment increased in most EU Member States. However, there were some exceptions, such as Malta (-13%), Hungary (-13%), Romania (-12%), Finland (-8%), Latvia (-4%) and Cyprus (-1%). The most significant increases were recorded in Bulgaria (104%), Luxembourg (70%) and Poland (52%). The sectors dominating employment in the environmental economy vary from one Member State to another. In 2021, the highest shares of green employment in relation to total employment were recorded in Luxembourg and Estonia, where sustainability employment exceeded 5% of the total. Finland and Austria also showed shares close to 5%. In contrast, the lowest shares of 1.5% or less were found in Hungary and Malta.

The indicator "employment in the environmental goods and services sector" monitors employment in the EU environmental economy. This indicator is crucial for monitoring progress towards the goals of the 8th Environmental Action Programme (EAP). In particular, it contributes to monitoring aspects of Article 2.1, which states that "by 2050, people must live well within planetary limits in a prosperous economy where there is no waste, growth is regenerative, climate neutrality in the Union is achieved and inequalities are significantly reduced". The European Climate Regulation states that Member States must achieve climate neutrality by 2050.

The measures implemented to support the environmental transition are set to generate additional green jobs in the EU by 2030. This will mainly occur through the adoption of circular economy principles and the orientation towards a low-carbon economy. As a result, it is expected that through policies, initiatives and investments, green employment will account for an increasingly significant share of total employment in the EU by 2030.

A healthy environment is essential for the well-being of all, ensuring the preservation of biodiversity, the flourishing of ecosystems and the protection and restoration of nature, all of which increase resilience to climate change, natural disasters and other environmental hazards. The Union is committed to ensuring the prosperity of current and future generations globally, guided by intergenerational responsibility. The European Commission's communication on the monitoring framework of the 8th EAP states that this indicator should observe "increasing shares of green employment in the whole economy".