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Like-for-like take back for business WEEE becomes EU Law

The European Parliament has adopted an amendment to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive making suppliers of business equipment financially responsible for the recycling of equipment replaced on a like-for-like basis.

The WEEE Directive, due to be implemented in the UK by August 2004, sets collection and recycling targets for electrical equipment, making the original producer financially responsible for the treatment of equipment.

The amendment to article nine of the Directive, regarding the funding of business WEEE, was proposed in April 2003 and has been officially accepted into the legislation.

Clare Snow, director of the Industry Council for Electrical Equipment Recycling (ICER), said: “We are very pleased, we have been lobbying for this from the beginning of the WEEE Directive before it was even European Law.”

Article nine states that for equipment produced after August 2005, producers are to provide &#39f;inancial guarantees' to prove funding has been allocated for the equipment to be recycled. However, the original wording of the article was considered ambiguous when referring to equipment manufactured before August 2005.

The article has now been changed since it was felt the requirement put an unfair burden on producers with a declining market share. The amendment also tackles the problem of who should be responsible for equipment whose manufacturer has gone out of business.

Ms Snow explained: “The way it was originally worded meant companies could face unlimited liability if they were to offer to collect and pay for recycling all the equipment they had put on the market in the last 30 years.”

Responsible
The new article nine dictates that the treatment of business WEEE will be funded on a like-for-like basis by the company supplying new equipment to the firm. In cases where the equipment is not being replaced, the end-user becomes responsible for its treatment.

“The idea that you only have to pay for the equivalent of what you are supplying, from our point of view, it's exactly what is needed,” said Ms Snow, “So you know when you are supplying new equipment you can make allowances and negotiate contracts so it is quantifiable.”

Businesses have revealed concerns that the implementation of the WEEE Directive may impact on the competitiveness of the sector in the UK. The Confederation of British Industries said the new regulations should be practical and straightforward for businesses this week.

In a statement made earlier this month, the CBI said: “The CBI has maintained that the WEEE Directive should be pragmatic and workable, and responsibility should be distributed fairly through the supply and consumption chain. We recognise the environmental benefits that this Directive may bring but the transposing regulations need careful drafting to maintain the competitiveness of business.

“Throughout our lobbying campaign we have urged the three European institutions to allow flexibility in financing the treatment of WEEE,” it added.

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