Understanding WEEE and RoHS Directives from a Trade Perspective

1

• Understanding WEEE and RoHS Directives from a
  Trade Perspective
• Rein Nieland
• DG Trade.E2
• Steel, coal, shipbuilding, automotive, chemical
  and other industries

2
Outline

• Objectives of EU Environmental Policy
• WEEE Directive
• Introduction
• Scope
• Content
• Financing requirements
• Marking requirements
• Impacts
• Implementation
• ROHS Directive
• Objectives and Scope
• Content
• Exceptions
• Scientific technical progress
• Implementation
• Review
• Compliance
• More Information

3
1. Objectives EU Environmental Policy

• Sustainable development
• Precautionary principle
• Preventive action
• Environmental damage rectify at source
• Polluter pays

4
2. WEEE Directive Introduction

• Key data on WEEE
• Around 14 kg per inhabitant and year
• Around 5 Million tonnes annually
• Fastest growing waste stream (three times faster
  than average growth of waste)
• Product Design EEE
• Facilitate dismantling and recovery
• Re-use and recycling of WEEE, components and
  materials

5
2. WEEE Directive Introduction

• Definition of producers
• Manufactures and sells EEE under own brand
• Resells EEE under own brand produced by other
  supplier
• Import or export EEE into an EU Member States
• Producers will be identified by Member States
  so as to provide the financing of the WEEE
  management arising from their sales
• Manufactures of components and sub-assemblers in
  third countries exporting to EU are not affected
  by the obligations on finance, collection,
  treatment, recovery etc.

6
2. WEEE Directive Objective

• Directive 2002/95/EC on Waste Electrical and
  Electronic Equipment (WEEE)
• WEEE is a priory waste stream (rapidly growing,
  hazardous components)
• Principles prevention, recovery and safe
  disposal of waste
• Re-use, recycling, energy recovery
• reducing quantity of waste
• Saving natural resources

7
2. WEEE Directive Scope

• Categories in Annex IA ( Products in Annex IB)
• Small and Large household appliance
• IT and telecommunications equipment
• Consumer equipment
• Lighting equipment
• Electrical and electronic tools
• Toys, leisure and sports
• Medical Devices
• Monitoring and control instruments
• Automatic dispensers
• Excluded EEE

8
2. WEEE Directive Scope

• EEE which is
• Dependent on electric current to work
• Generating, transferring and measurement of
  currents and fields
• Designed for voltage rating not exceeding 1000 V
  (alternating current) and 1500 V (direct current)
• Frequently Asked Questions guide on
  http//ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/pdf/faq_weee
  .pdf

9
2. WEEE Directive Content

• Divert WEEE from landfills and incinerators to
  environmentally sound re-use and recycling
• Collection (as of August 2005)
• From private households return waste free of
  charge
• Member States to take appropriate measures to
  minimise the disposal of WEEE as unsorted
  municipal waste
• Collection points available
• 11 take back in shops at purchase of a new
  product
• Mandatory collection target of 4kg per inhabitant
  and year
• From other sources to be arranged by producers

10
2. WEEE Directive Content

• Treatment of collected EEE according to minimum
  requirements (Annex II and EC Directives)
• Minimum recovery targets plus combined targets
  for re-use and recycling

11
2. WEEE Directive Financing requirements

• Financing obligations for WEEE from households
• New waste (from products put on the market from
  13 August 2005)
• Producers responsible for financing waste from
  own products
• Producers can choose to fulfil obligation either
  individually or by joining a collective scheme
• Financial guarantees
• participation in financing schemes
• recycling insurance
• blocked bank account
• Historical waste (from products put on the
  market before 13 August 2005)
• Collective system (proportional participation)
• Visible fee explicitly allowed for 8/10 years
• 11 take back in shops at purchase of a new
  product

12
2. WEEE Directive Financing requirements

• Financing obligations for WEEE from sources
  other than households
• The producer is responsible for own waste
• Alternative arrangements possible
• Early review foreseen to prevent possible
  problems with accruals

13
2. WEEE Directive Marking requirements

• Crossed-out dustbin
• Identification of the producer
• Identification of date of placing on the market
  (before or after 13 August 2005)
• Details to be elaborated via standardization EN
  50419

14
2. WEEE Directive Impacts

• Overall costs 500-900 M annually
• collection 300-600 M
• recovery, re-use and recycling 200-300 M
• price increase of 1 (e.g. white goods) to 2-3
  (e.g. refrigerators, monitors)
• Benefits
• Financial benefits
• saved production costs for virgin materials
• saved disposal costs
• Environmental benefit
• saved resources (e.g. roughly 2.8 M t of oil
  equivalent annually)
• reduced environmental impacts associated with
  resource use

15
2. WEEE Directive Implementation

• 12/2002 Adoption by Council and Parliament
• 13/2/2003 Publication and entry into force
• 13/8/2004 Deadline for transposition in Member
  States
• 13/8/2005 Collection systems must be
  operational treatment and financing
  obligations enter into force
• 31/12/2006 Collection and financing targets to
  be attained

16
3. RoHS Directive Objectives Scope

• Directive 2002/96/EC on the Restriction of the
  use of certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical
  and Electronic Equipment (RoHS)
• Objectives
• Reduction of the content of hazardous substances
  in waste
• Restriction on the use of substances in EEE,
  where substitutes are available
• Scope
• EEE under categories 1-7 and 10 of Annex IA of
  the WEEE Directive
• Electric light bulbs and luminaries in household
• Not for spare parts for repair of EEE put on the
  market before 1 July 2006

17
3. RoHS Directive Content

• Substitution of certain heavy metals and
  brominated flame retardants where alternatives
  are available
• By 1 July 2006, no new EEE may be put on the
  market containing the concerned substances
  (except refurbished equipment and specific
  applications mentioned in the annex to the
  Directive)
• Heavy metals Mercury, lead, cadmium and
  hexavalent chromium
• Brominated flame retardants PBBs (polybrominated
  biphenyls) and PBDEs (polybrominated
  diphenylethers)

18
3. RoHS Directive Exceptions (1)

• Exceptions in the annex to the RoHS Directive
• Mercury in fluorescent lamps (partial exemption,
  details according to type of lamps)
• Mercury in other lamps
• Lead in glass of cathode ray tubes, electronic
  components and fluorescent tubes
• Lead as an alloy in steel (0.35), aluminium
  (0.4) and copper (4)
• Lead in solders for servers, storage and storage
  array systems (until 2010)

19
3. RoHS Directive Exceptions (2)

• Exceptions in the annex to the RoHS Directive
• Lead in high melting temperature type solders and
  network equipment
• Lead in electronic ceramic parts
• Cadmium plating (with exceptions)
• Hexavalent chromium as an anti-corrosion of the
  carbon steel cooling system in absorption
  refrigerators
• Re-evaluation of Deca-BDE, mercury in straight
  fluorescent lamps for special purposes,lead in
  solders, light bulbs

20
3. RoHS Directive Scientific technical progress

• Maximum concentration values tolerated for
  certain hazardous substances
• (subject to scientific and technical progress)
• Total avoidance of heavy metals and brominated
  flame retardants is in some cases impossible to
  achieve
• Certain concentration values should be tolerated
  In consultation with producers and other
  stakeholers
• Maximum concentration values tolerated
• 0,1 by weight in homogeneous materials for lead,
  mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB and PBDE
• 0,01 by weight in homogeneous materials from
  cadmium

21
3. RoHS Directive Scientific technical progress

• Adaptation to scientific technical progress
• Exempt materials if substitution is technically
  or scientifically impracticable or in case of net
  negative environmental impacts
• Evaluate exemptions on a 4 years basis in
  consultaion with producers and other stakeholders
  

22
3. RoHS Directive Implementation

• 12/2002 Adoption by Council and Parliament
• 2/2003 Publication and entry into force
• 8/2004 Deadline for transposition in Member
  States
• 7/2006 Substance ban

23
3. RoHS Directive Review

• Article 6, review for including categories 8 and
  9 Study as a basis for the proposal has been
  launched and will be completed by July 2006
• Amendments to the Annex for the inclusion of
  additional exemptions
• Commission Decisions 2005/717/EC, 2005/747/EC
  (October 2005) 2006/310/EC (April 2006)
• 4th stakeholder consultation closed 10/2/2006
• 5th stakeholder consultation closed 15/5/2006
• After review Commission will put forward a
  proposal to the Committee

24
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• RoHS compliance
• Article 4 Members States will have to ensure
  that as of 1/7/2006 products put on the EU market
  will conform to RoHS
• The RoHS Directive does not foresee compliance
  procedures or testing methods to be applied
• Non-binding Guidance document by Enforcement
  Authorities Informal Network (issued May 2006)

25
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Guidance principles on RoHS compliance (non
  binding)
• Common interpretation across Member States
  regarding those products which are considered to
  fall within the scope of the RoHS Directive
• Presumption that products falling within the
  scope conform with its requirements
• Self-declaration by producers

26
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Enforcement Process
• Because of very wide range of products, MS
  authorities need, in first instance, to
  prioritize and based market surveillance on
• Market Intelligence, random selection,
• Products know to contain materials of high
  concern
• High Volume Products
• Short life products
• Consumer products unlikely to be recycled
• Notification of concern from external parties or
  MSs
• If concern arise, the MS enforcement authority
  may decide to submit a formal request for
  additional information to the producer and take
  appropriate action

27
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Common market surveillance methodology assisting
  Member States
• MS authorities will require a self-declaration
  from producers. There are two initial routes for
  documented evidence
• SME requirements
• Producers with a quality assurance process
• Step-by-step approach to RoHS compliance
  investigations
• Detailed assessment if evidence from producers
  does not assure compliance
• In case of concern detailed sampling and testing
  may or could be required

28
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Typical compliance documentation to be provided
  by SME producers or suppliers
• Declaration that the use of restricted substance
  is within the permitted levels
• Materials declaration for each part and
  justification of RoHS categorization and use of
  exemptions
• Analysis report of homogeneous materials in
  parts/components (could be producers own test
  results)
• Evidence of procedures can be trusted

29
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Typical compliance documentation to be provided
  by producers having an internal quality system
  (Compliance Assurance System CAS)
• Definition of the purpose, requirements and
  specifications of the system
• Evidence of process integration with quality
  management system
• Technical documentation system assuring
  conformity
• Evidence of active control of CAS audit results
• Evidence of product specific conformance
  assessment
• Overview of internal data system used for the
  management of ROHS compliance

30
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Sampling and testing issues
• Testing usually seen as a last resort
• Producers and Authorities may carry out
  analytical testing of homogeneous materials for
  conclusive proof of compliance
• Producers may wish to adopt a variety of
  recommended testing approaches and standards are
  being established by international standard
  organizations
• Comparison with reference materials can be
  utilized

31
3. RoHS Directive Compliance

• Sampling strategies
• As a first step producers and Authorities may
  choose to use a screening tool such as ED-XRF,
  but results only give an indication
• Screening should provide a pass fail - or
  borderline result
• No further analysis should be required if a clear
  pass or fail is obtained

32

4. More information

• http//europa.eu.int/comm/environment/waste/weee_i
  ndex.htm
• Frequently Asked Questions document
• RoHS Enforcement Document
• Rein Nieland reinirus.nieland_at_ec.europa.eu