Agency urges small producers of batteries to register

The encouragement came as the Agency welcomed the number of large companies who had registered as a producer, but said it believed the 455 small producers who had registered directly with it was just a small percentage of those who needed to do so.

And, it stressed the importance of their registering with the agency as a producer, despite them having no financial obligations under the batteries regulations to fund the collection, sorting and treatment of waste portable batteries, and the fact that they are expected to represent just 2% of the UK portable battery market.

Bob Mead, batteries project manager at the Agency, claimed that it was “very important” for the government to have accurate data on the size of the UK battery market, explaining that collecting small producers' sales data was “about giving government confidence” in the data it had used to make decisions.

In particular, he told letsrecycle.com that the data could be used to gauge whether the level the small producer threshold was set at was correct in terms of ensuring producers with a financial obligation under the regulations were responsible for the vast majority of the UK's batteries.

“The expectation is that it's a very small percentage but it may well be that the government, in light of the data, could look at whether the threshold could be raised or lowered,” he said.

Under the batteries regulations, a small producer is a company which manufacture, imports or sells less than one tonne of portable batteries onto the UK market a year.

While they do not have to join a compliance scheme, they are required to submit sales data to the environment agencies for the previous calendar year by the end of the following January.

However, with this being the first year of the batteries system, the data they need to submit by the end of this month will only be expected to cover sales from May, when the regulations were introduced, to December 2009.

As well as registering with the Agency via the National Packaging Waste Database (NPWD) and providing sales data, small producers also have to pay an annual £30 “administration charge”.

It is thought that, as with the WEEE system, it is unlikely that enforcement action will be taken against obligated producers who do not sign up with either a batteries compliance scheme or the agencies in the early days of the regulations.

Message

Urging all businesses to check if they were obligated, Mr Mead said: “My message to all those who manufacture, import or sell batteries, or producers containing batteries, is to check if you are a producer.

“If you are, it is your responsibility to register as a matter of urgency. It is easy to register and supply your information online so you comply with the regulations,” he added.

While producers can register via either the Environment Agency, Scottish Environment Protection Agency or Northern Ireland Environment Agency, depending on where they are based, the whole process is run through the NPWD.

The batteries regulations having been in effect since the start of this month (see letsrecycle.com story) as the UK begins its attempt in earnest to meet the targets set for it by the EU Batteries Directive for it to collect 25% of waste portable batteries by 2012 and 45% by 2016.

The next major landmark for the system will be February 1, from when all retailers selling more than 32 kilograms of batteries a year (equivalent to around one pack of four AA batteries a year) will be required to provide free in-store take-back of all waste portable batteries.