Extended Producer Responsibility explained
by Ellen Thornton at 13:29 in Battery, Packaging, WEEE
Product stewardship covers producer responsibility and other government regulatory programs. Under the producer responsibility umbrella, comes voluntary programs and then mandatory programs – these are extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs. The OECD defines EPR as "an environmental policy approach in which a producer's responsibility… for a product is extended to the post-consumer stage of a product's life cycle".
There is estimated to be more than 350 EPR systems in place globally, this has grown exponentially in recent years with two thirds being introduced after the OECD guide was published in 2001.
EPR systems have shown to reduce disposal and increase recycling rates as well as reduce the burden on public budgets. They also provide economic opportunities, although so far, they have had limited impact of design for environment (DfE). DfE involves reducing packaging, using more easily recyclable packaging and using less harmful materials to reduce the impact on the environment. Trends in municipal solid waste have found that since 1990, the amount sent to landfill has steadily reduced and the percentage of material recovery has increased from 19% in 1995 up to 34% in 2013. As the system works through charging producer's fees, this leads them to seek opportunities for making more light weight packaging material and replacing materials with more recyclable ones to optimise costs.
All EPR models require strong government involvement in order to enforce a level playing field and to enforce environmental standards and targets. Hence, transparency in these systems is key for effective government oversight. In collective producer responsibility systems, variable fees are preferable to fixed-fee systems as in a fixed-fee system, all producers are charged the same, irrespective of any DfE features, hence there is a lack of incentive to include such features. In emerging economies, the informal sector plays an important role in EPRs. The informal sector can cover litter pickers, etc. who collect and sort waste and can provide positive economic and environmental impacts. However, it is important to register such workers and work towards formalisation and professionalisation.
EPR in the EU
Packaging
Under the EU Directive 94/62/EC on Packaging and Packaging Waste, Member States are obligated to set up return, collection and recovery systems which guarantee the maximum return of packaging and packaging waste. Producers are required to follow the waste hierarchy where prevention of packaging waste is most important, followed by reuse of packaging, recycling and other ways to recover packaging to reduce final disposal of the waste. Recent commitments have been made by producers, such as Iceland who have announced their aim to eliminate or drastically reduce plastic packaging of all their own-label products by the end of 2023.
WEEE
The Directive 2012/19/EU on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) applies to products and producers of EEE in the EU. Under this Directive, producers are obligated to take back and finance the collection, treatment, disposal and recovery of WEEE, so it is at least free of charge to household users. There are also ecodesign requirements for ease of re-use, recovery, etc. of WEEE whilst taking into account the whole life cycle of the product for optimisation. The objective of this directive is to protect human health and the environment through the polluter pays principle in terms of prevention and rectification of any environmental damage.
Batteries
Batteries and accumulators and their waste are covered by Directive 2006/66/EC which states that Member States should put in place collection schemes to allow end users to discard waste batteries and accumulators with no charge or obligation to buy a new one and distributors should take back waste batteries and accumulators with no extra charge. Any producers of industrial batteries and waste accumulators are not allowed to refuse take back waste from end users. Furthermore, manufacturers in Member States are required to promote research and improvements of the environmental performance of batteries and accumulators during their lifecycle, as well as the development of batteries and accumulators containing less polluting or dangerous substances.
EPR has proven effectiveness and is now spreading across the world with emerging systems in South America and parts of Africa. The cooperation of producers under government regulation ensures that targets are met in cost efficient way. However, systems are constantly evolving and improving to keep on top of our waste. If you have any questions about EPR, please contact us here.
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