Legislation producer responsibility

A third interim target calls for the phase-out of chemicals that interfere with recycling articles. Attaining the target requires a system for identifying these chemicals. Under existing EU legislation, this falls within the scope of Extended Producer Responsibility. 

Figure 6.1 shows clearly that the issue of producer responsibility is much more complicated than draft legislation would lead to believe. 

In many countries automotive producers are voluntary taking on or being imposed by legislation the responsibility for recycling cars. Recommendations from the DGIIIEOL Strategy Group of the European Commission propose that 85% of retired vehicles be recovered or recycled by the year 2000, and attach... 

White, L., Extended Producer Responsibility Container Deposit Legislation Report, Zero Waste New Zealand Trust, Auckland, New Zealand, Sept. 2002, http //www.zerowaste.co.nz/as-sets/Reports/Beveragecontaina-s.pdf. 

EnvirOTimental trends are having an impact on electrical applications. Waste legislation includes WEEE (Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment) directive 2002/%/EC which holds producers responsible for collection and recovery of materials at end of Ufe. Additionally, materials that contain bromine-based flame retardants must be removed from the waste and handled separately. In restrictions on use of hazardous substances (ROHS) directive 2002/95/EC, the use of various hazardous materials is restricted. These include lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls, and polybrominated diphenyl ether. Since the introduction of Blue Angel in Germany in 1978, several other eco-labels have been implemented. These include TCO (Sweden), Nordic Swan, Milieukeur (Netherlands), and the EU Ecolabel. The general purpose of these labels is to provide cmisumers with information relating to the environmental impact of the products they purchase. 

The Members of Parliament serving on this Committee took the task of scrutinising the policy and legislation produced by the Governmental Department for Education and Science - and holding it to account - seriously and at one point in the proceedings, underlined the Government s responsibilities ... 

Plastic recycling is often the subject of government legislation due to concerns for the environment and pressure from the media, the public, and special interest groups. Legislation may dictate the elimination of certain plastic products availability, minimum recycled content amounts, procurement directives, producer responsibility, bottle-bill deposits, and disposal fees. 

In Australia each State and Territory used to have their own food legislation.8 However, in 1987 the National Health and Medical Research Council produced the Food Standards Code to bring harmonisation of food legislation throughout the country. The Imported Food Control Act requires that all imported foods comply with the Food Standards Code. In August 1991, the new National Food Authority (NFA) was established. NFA is now responsible for setting all food standards in Australia. 

Acidification causes a wide variety of chemical and biological changes in lake ecosystems. An understanding of response mechanisms is needed to correctly model the effects of acidification on water chemistry and the time to recovery under reduced acid loading. Accurate models provide policymakers with interpretations of the current situation and help in evaluation of the need for legislated reductions of acid-producing emissions. 

Enforcement of EC regulations on pesticide residues in foodstuffs is the responsibility of the competent authorities in the Member States. The authorities in each Member State should ensure that the products produced in that country and those imported directly from countries outside the EU ( Third Countries ) comply with EC legislation. In principle, when such a system is fully developed and operational in all Member States, there should be no real need for countries to examine products coming from other Member States. 

Until the adoption of the new chemical legislation, REACH, within the European Union in June 2007 there was no requirement of identification, assessment and evaluation of all other chemicals used in products. REACH will in a step-wise transition period be fully enforced by 2018. One important improvement with the new legislation is that the importers and producers now will be responsible to collect data and evaluate toxicological and ecotoxicological effects of the chemical content of their products before putting them on the market. Another important improvement is that both existing and new chemicals will be evaluated. 

One of the main aims of modem legislation on chemicals control is to stipulate and specify the responsibilities and obligations of enterprises. Enterprises and other actors handling chemicals, including private consumers, not only own their chemicals but also own the potential problems associated with the use of them. Therefore, they have to take responsibility for ensuring that use does not affect human beings and the environment in an unacceptable way. Every actor in the supply chain, such as the producer, the importer, the retailer, the user, the waste handler, has its specific responsibilities. 

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