This has led to the introduction of a suite of ‘producer responsibility’ legislation. Based on the polluter pays principle, this legislation aims to make the producers of certain equipment responsible for the recovery of such equipment at the end of its useful life.
The EU have Producer Responsibility Directives in the following areas to date:
- · Packaging
- · End of Life Vehicles
- · Electrical and Electronic Equipment
- · Batteries
These are outlined in more detail below, along with the latest status of implementation in the UK.
The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007 (SI 2007/0871)
Made under EA95 - Part V. They place obligations on certain businesses to register with the Environment Agency, to recover and recycle specific tonnages of packaging waste, and to certify that these recovery and recycling obligations have been achieved. The 2007 regulations consolidate the original 1997 regulations and al the accompanying amendments.
Obligated businesses are those undertaking prescribed packaging activities (material manufacture, converting, packing/filling, and the sale of packaged products to the final consumer), own the packaging, supply another stage in the packaging chain, and operate above specified thresholds – currently set at a £2 million turnover per year and handling more than 50 tonnes of packaging per year.
Obligated businesses are required to show that they have undertaken a certain amount of packaging recycling based upon the amount of packaging they themselves have placed on the market. Evidence is collected in the form of Packaging Recycling Notes (PRNs) for which there is a tradable market. Those companies exceeding their recycling targets may sell PRNs to other companies wishing to buy PRNs to discharge their obligation.
These are complicated regulations and reference should be made to official guidance produced by DEFRA on how to calculate specific business obligations (refer to Appendix 5). Recycling and recovery obligations vary depending upon the activity the business is undertaking (packaging manufacture / conversion / packing- filling etc.) and the material in question.
National recovery and recycling targets up to 2010 are set at:
|
|
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
|
Paper |
66.5 |
67 |
67.5 |
68 |
68.5 |
|
Glass |
66 |
69.5 |
73.5 |
74 |
74.5 |
|
Aluminium |
29 |
31 |
32.5 |
33 |
33.5 |
|
Steel |
56 |
57.5 |
58.5 |
59 |
59.5 |
|
Plastic |
23 |
24 |
24.5 |
25 |
25.5 |
|
Wood |
19.5 |
20 |
20.5 |
21 |
21.5 |
|
Overall Recovery |
66 |
67 |
68 |
69 |
69.5 |
|
Min. Recycling* |
92% |
92% |
92% |
92% |
92% |
*Minimum amount of recovery to be achieved through recycling
Companies may chose to meet the requirements of the regulations themselves by undertaking or arranging physical recycling of packaging. However, most businesses choose to comply by joining a compliance scheme to discharge their obligations. It should be noted that the requirements of these regulations do not have to be met by companies recycling their own packaging.
Small obligated businesses (defined as businesses handling more than 50 tonnes of packaging and with a turnover between £2 million and £5 million) may now chose to have an automatic recycling obligation allocated to them, rather than having to collect data and calculate obligations annually. The allocation method is voluntary, but if this approach is chosen, it must be adhered to for at least 3 years (providing the turnover of the business remains under £5 million).
Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/1165) as amended by SI 2003/1941 and SI 2006/1492
Under the Regulations, packaging should be designed and labelled in such a way as to encourage recovery (including recycling) at its end of life. There are also limits on the amount of heavy metals which can be present in packaging.
The responsibility for compliance lies with those who fill packaging with their products and they should demonstrate this at the time the products are placed on the market. The Regulations implement the essential requirements elements of the EU Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste (94/62/EC).
INCPEN publish a Code of Practice to help companies meet their obligations under the Packaging Waste Regulations called Responsible Packaging: A Code of Practice. The code goes further than just compliance with regulations by encouraging voluntary actions on the part of industry.
It sets out ways in which companies can select and design packaging to optimise resource use and minimise waste. It encourages businesses to regard packaging as a system (covering sales, grouped and transport packaging), rather than to consider each item in isolation. The code can be viewed at www.incpen.org.
End of Life Vehicles Regulations 2003 (SI 2003/2635)
These regulations came into force in November 2003. These regulations partially implement European Directive 200/53/EC on end of life vehicles and principally concern permitting, depollution and Certificate of Destruction arrangements.
They also implement the restrictions on the use of heavy metals in new cars and provisions on coding of plastic and rubber components. The second phase of the End of Life Vehicles Regulations came into force on the 3 March 2005. The remaining provisions relating to producer responsibility Articles of the ELV Directive (5 and 7) were transposed through the End-of-Life Vehicles (Producer Responsibility) Regulations 2005.
Articles 5 and 7 require that:
· Owners must be able to have their complete ELVs accepted by collection systems free of charge, even when they have a negative value, from 1 January 2007 at the latest;
· Producers (vehicle manufacturers or professional importers) must pay 'all or a significant part' of the costs of take back and treatment for complete ELVs;
· Rising targets for re-use, recycling and recovery must be achieved by economic operators by January 2006 and 2015
Vehicle data show that currently: Around 2 million vehicles are scrapped in the UK every year Around 1.2 million of these go to vehicle dismantlers in the first instance The remaining 0.6 million go directly to scrap yards.
The End of Life Vehicles (ELV) Directive has the objective of preventing waste from ELVs and improving levels of recycling and reuse. It aims to minimise the impact of such vehicles on the environment, e.g. by reducing the amount of waste going to landfill from vehicles reaching the end of their life.The targets require 85 percent of ELVs to be re-used or recovered (80 percent re-used or recycled) by January 2006, and 95 percent of all ELVs to be re-used or recovered (85 percent re-used or recycled) by 2015.
Producer responsibility legislation such as WEEE, RoHS and ELV will require increased segregation of wastes, and is likely to result in an increase in quantities of material managed as hazardous. There will be a subsequent requirement for new facilities for materials recovery and to treat and dispose of the hazardous wastes arising from that recovery.
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/3289) implement the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (2002/96/EC) and came into force on 2 January 2007.
WEEE is a ‘producer responsibility’ Directive, which means it makes producers of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) financially responsible for the recovery and recycling of the equipment at the end of life. The Directive aims to minimise the impact of electrical and electronic goods on the environment, by increasing re-use and recycling and reducing the amount of WEEE going to landfill.
The Regulations apply to all businesses, regardless of their size, that produce, sell, store, treat or dismantle WEEE. For the purpose of the WEEE Regulations a “producer” is defined as:
- a manufacturer of EEE, selling under your own brand in the UK; or
- a business based in the UK selling under its own brand EEE manufactured by another company ('re-brand'); or
- a professional importer introducing EEE to the UK market; or
- a business based in the UK that places EEE in other European Member States by means of distant selling.
Businesses selling electrical items to end user are defined as 'distributors' of EEE. This includes wholesalers, retailers, distant seller (e.g. internet retailers), and producers who sell products directly to consumers.
In some instances, you may pick up both obligations, that of producer and distributor. For example, if you re-brand EEE manufactured by another company and then make it available for sale.
The legislation applies to household and non-household products with a voltage of up to 1000 volts AC or up to 1500 volts DC in the following ten categories:
- Large household appliances
- Small household appliances
- IT and telecommunications equipment
- Consumer equipment
- Lighting equipment
- Electrical and electronic tools
- Toys, leisure and sports equipment
- Medical devices
- Monitoring and control equipment
- Automatic dispensers.
Schedule 2 of the WEEE Regulations provides an indicative list of products falling within these categories. Exemptions from the Regulations include consumables, fixed installations, EEE for military and national security and EEE that is part of another system outside of the scope of the Regulations.
DTI have published guidance that aims to help companies decide whether or not their equipment falls into the obligation or not.
From 1 July 2007, producers of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) have been responsible for paying for the treatment and recycling of products they put on the market at the end of their life.
To fulfil your obligations you must:
· have registered with an approved producer compliance scheme (the deadline was 15 March 2007). The compliance scheme will, in return for a fee, issue a WEEE producer registration number. You must give this number to anyone who distributes or sells your products (from 1 April 2007).
· provide information on how much EEE you placed on the market in 2006 (household and business use). You must also provide information in respect of new types of EEE to assist treatment and re-use, for example information on the components and materials in the EEE, and the location of any hazardous substances.
· mark all new products placed on the market after 13 August 2005 with a crossed out ‘wheelie bin’ symbol from 1 April 2007. This includes EEE you import directly from abroad.
· retain records for four years of the EEE you place on the market
You must make sure that all separately collected WEEE is taken only to approved, authorised treatment facilities (AATF). You can ask your compliance scheme to collect, treat and recycle WEEE on your behalf, or arrange for it yourself. In the latter case you have to provide evidence (standard evidence note) to your compliance scheme, which can only be obtained from AATF and approved exporters.
WEEE collection and recycling requirements for products sold to businesses (known as business-to-business or B2B) is fundamentally different from requirements for products sold to households (known as business-to-consumer or B2C).
Obligations for business
Obligations on businesses supplying household EEE- B2C
If you are a producer of EEE that ultimately will end in the household waste stream, you are required to finance collection and recycling of household WEEE deposited at Designated Collection Facilities (DCFs) or in-store take-back (e.g. civic amenity centres and high street retailers). You will be responsible for a proportion of the WEEE arising in each category of WEEE that you have placed on the market, given by your market share of this EEE. If you sell your EEE directly to household end users, you will also pick up “distributor” obligations.
Since 1 July 2007, distributors of new EEE to household end users have had to:
- Provide a take-back service enabling householders to return their WEEE free of charge.
- Provide information to consumers in relation to the environmental impacts of their products and the separate collection of household WEEE,
- Make and retain records of the information provided, and any household WEEE received.
To fulfil your take-back obligations, you can either offer your own free of charge take-back service, or join the Distributor Take-back Scheme (DTS).
Obligations on businesses supplying non-household EEE – B2B
In respect of non-household equipment, producers are responsible for financing the costs of collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of WEEE, where the product was put on the market after 13 August 2005, and it is subsequently discarded by the business end user. In this case, you are required to provide arrangements for collection and recycling of the waste equipment from the business end-users premises, using a licensed waste carrier.
Distributor obligations do not apply to sales of non-household EEE. However, when you sell non-household EEE, you should make sure that your supplier provides you with their producer registration number to show that they are registered and complying with their obligation. As an end-user buying from an intermediary, you should ensure that they pass on information about which producer is responsible for it so that you know who to contact to arrange disposal at the end of its life.
Obligations on business end users of EEE
Different rules apply to non-household WEEE put on the market before 13 August 2005 (referred to as historic WEEE). Where old equipment from businesses users is replaced by a new equivalent product, the producer is responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal when supplying the new products. However, if no like-for-like replacement is made, then the end user is responsible for arranging and financing its collection.
The regulations allow producers and business users to agree alternative financing arrangements, as part of normal negotiating processes for supply contracts.
Import and Export of EEE
If you are importing EEE from overseas and a producer has not registered for this EEE, you will be regarded as the producer having put that EEE on the UK market.
If you sell direct to an end-user in another EU country, and no importer takes over ownership, then you are a distant seller. You are required to keep records of how you have complied with your obligations in that country.
The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/1463)
The RoHS regulations implement EU Directive 2002/95/EC and complements the WEEE Directive by banning the use of certain hazardous substances in new electrical and electronic equipment. From 1 July 2006, the concentrations of hazardous substances permitted in new products placed on the market was restricted, as summarised in the table below.
|
lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls or polybrominated diphenyl ethers |
0.1% per weight of homogenous material |
|
cadmium |
0.01% per weight of homogenous material |
Definitions of homogenous material and further advice on how to comply can be found on the BERR website.
RoHS applies to all categories of equipment as listed in Annex II of the WEEE Directive apart from medical devices and monitoring and control instruments. There are also some specific exemptions from the legislation for equipment in other WEEE categories. The National Weights and Measures Laboratory is the regulator for this legislation, they are permitted to carry out spot testing of products. Non compliance can result in up to a £5000 fine and / or products removed from the market.
Batteries Directive (2006/66/EC)
This directive tackles the recovery and recycling of batteries, again, making the producers responsible for the recovery and recycling and the products at the end of their useful life.
Key requirements of the Directive are:
· Collection targets of 25% and 45%, to be achieved four and eight years respectively after the Directive is transposed. Free collection schemes must be available for portable batteries by 2008.
· Recycling targets of 65% by average weight for lead-acid batteries and accumulators, 75% for nickel-cadmium batteries and 50% for all other batteries. This includes recycling lead or cadmium to the "highest degree that is technically feasible" while avoiding "excessive costs".
· Disposal - Member states will be allowed to send collected batteries to landfill or underground storage when "no viable end-market is available".
· A ban, with some exemptions on nickel-cadmium batteries.