Development of a Sankey diagram of material flows in the EU economy based on Eurostat data : monitoring of non-energy & non-food material flows in the EU-28 for the EC Raw Materials Information System (RMIS)

Europe relies on reliable and robust knowledge on materials stocks and flows to promote innovation along the entire value chain of raw materials. The concept of the circular economy, recently adopted by the European Commission, aims at maintaining the value of products, materials, and resources in the economy for as long as possible, and minimize waste generation. One of the prerequisites for better monitoring materials use across the whole life-cycle is a good understanding of material stocks and flows. The goal of this report is thus to show how readily available statistical information can be used to generate a Sankey diagram of material flows and their circularity in the 28 member states of the European Union (EU-28).