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U.K. Lays Out WEEE Implementation Intentions
By Alex Mayhew-Smith -- Electronics Weekly, 3/29/2006
The U.K. Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has released the conclusions of its implementation review on the WEEE directive dealing with recycling electrical waste, which essentially lays out how the law will be actually carried out in the U.K.
The DTI said it is not seeking further consensus on its implementation plans, “nor is there any intention to reopen the review’s conclusions,” which supports the principles of producer and retailer responsibility.
However, the DTI said officials will now begin informal discussions with stakeholders on the implementation proposals to look for evidence “to show whether the implementation proposals will deliver the objectives and obligations set by the directive in an effective and efficient way.”
Dr Phil Morton, chief executive of the Recycling Electrical Producers’ Industry Consortium (REPIC), commented: “No one wants to see the WEEE directive delayed any longer than necessary but we must achieve workable solutions. Unfortunately, the DTI review has not adequately addressed the vast collective of producers’ major concerns over allocation, collection and financing. These issues must be resolved if the directive is to succeed here in the U.K. as it has in other parts of Europe.”
“While our members review their options, we will continue to engage in constructive discussions with the Department. It is still not too late to achieve a fair and equitable solution that safeguards the interests of all stakeholders and the environment,” added Morton.
The government will introduce approved compliance schemes for retailers, which it said will establish networks of Designated Collection Facilities (DCF).
Other aspect of how the government will implement WEEE include: obligatory registration for producers, which may be either direct or through an approved compliance scheme; a system for calculating producers’ obligations under the directive; a quasi-market mechanism for allocating WEEE from DCFs to producer schemes; and a code of practice covering the collection of WEEE from DCFs.
There will also be a network of Authorized Treatment Facilities, which will process WEEE and provide evidence of this to producers; protocols to enable producers to demonstrate achievement of recycling targets in a cost effective way; and a voluntary approach for producers to show the cost of handling historical WEEE.
Although the DTI said it will not now change its approach to implementation of the directive, it is accepting comments by April 21 at WEEE@dti.gsi.gov.uk.
Electronics Weekly is the London-based sister publication of Electronic News.
