The EU has published new draft amendments to the RoHS and WEEE directives
On September 3, 2009, the Secretariat of the Council of the European Union presented the new version of the RoHS Directive and the WEEE Directive to the representatives of the EU member states.
On December 3 last year, the European Commission recommended revising the RoHS Directive and the WEEE Directive, with the aim of strengthening the rigor of the directives, increasing the responsibility of producers, and strengthening market monitoring systems in the 27 EU member states.
RevisionRoHSinstruction: The draft covers all electrical and electronic equipment, with the exception of excluded items. Annexes I and II of the original proposed text (which respectively categorized electrical and electronic equipment and products falling within the relevant categories) have been removed from the draft.
The draft excludes defensive (military) equipment, which is part of other equipment not covered by RoHS regulations and is not sold as a single-function or commercial product. Newly added products to the exclusion list include large stationary industrial tools and pipe organs.
The essence of the RoHS Directive is to limit the content of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment. Article 4 of the draft stipulates that electrical and electronic equipment, including replacement parts sold for repair or reuse, must not contain substances listed in Annex IV. The restricted substances listed in Annex IV are the same as those already restricted in the current RoHS Directive, namely lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs), and dibrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and no new restricted substances have been added.
The RoHS draft outlines several responsibilities for manufacturers, importers, and distributors. Before electrical and electronic equipment is placed on the market, importers will be required to ensure that manufacturers have conducted appropriate conformity assessment procedures. Importers must also display their name, trade name or trademark, and contact address on the electrical and electronic equipment; if this is not feasible, it should be displayed on the packaging or accompanying documents.
RevisionWEEEinstruction: The Council acknowledged the challenges in achieving WEEE’s recycling targets, particularly the proposed 65% recycling rate by 2016, and therefore called for further discussion on the categories of electrical and electronic equipment waste to be recycled.
The revised draft reinserts Annexes IA and IB (categories of electrical and electronic equipment and lists of products falling into these categories). Article 2(4) of the draft now specifically adds that waste electrical and electronic equipment from private households and other entities shall be considered waste electrical and electronic equipment from private households. For example, a photocopier, even if primarily used by a business, will be considered waste electrical and electronic equipment from a private household when it is scrapped because individuals may also purchase and use it.
The new draft further clarifies that "placing on the market" refers to the markets of member states, not the EU market. This is crucial for businesses to fulfill their registration obligations, as it means that manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment (including importers) must register in every market where their products are launched.
The draft WEEE Directive outlines recycling targets and funding requirements for waste electrical and electronic equipment. The draft stipulates that Member States should encourage manufacturers to bear all costs of waste recycling facilities for private households. The Council's latest draft adds that if Member States require manufacturers to bear the costs of recycling facilities, they must ensure that waste disposed of in recycling facilities and waste recovered through other means is delivered free of charge to manufacturers or other suitable institutions to prepare for recycling.
The Council of the European Union is expected to debate the draft directives by the end of this year, while the European Parliament is expected to vote on the draft WEEE and RoHS directives in April 2010, after which the two new directives may be adopted immediately. The adopted RoHS and WEEE directives will officially come into effect in the 27 EU member states 18 months after their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
RoHS Directive Draft: http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/09/st12/st12847.en09.pdf
WEEE Directive Draft http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/09/st12/st12848.en09.pdf
– Reference source: Hong Kong Trade Development Council website, 2009-09-18
