Preparing for WEEE

The Environment Agency has revealed that 3,000 firms in the UK have signed up for an approved waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) compliance scheme.

Liz Parkes, Head of Waste at the Environment Agency, said the figures showed that British businesses were getting the message about the WEEE Regulations and what was expected of them.

The WEEE Directive aims to minimise the impact of electrical and electronic goods on the environment, by increasing re-use and recycling.

Under the Regulations, from 1 July, producers will be responsible for collecting, via their producer compliance schemes, any waste equipment purchased after 13 August 2005. This means that businesses should make a note of who they buy their electronic equipment from in order for this process to work.

For equipment bought before 13 August 2005, if it is being replaced by similar products, it can be taken away as the new equipment is being delivered. If it is not being replaced, it is up to the business to pay for it to be recycled or sent for disposal.

Producers should have joined a Producer Compliance Scheme (PCS), in order to finance the collection, reprocessing and sound environmental disposal of waste equipment, by 15 March.

Parkes has urged any businesses who have yet to sign up to a PCS to do so as soon as possible or risk prosecution.

Producers will need to pay a registration fee to the compliance scheme they would like to join and supply data on how much EEE they placed on the market in 2006. Companies that miss the deadline will fail to comply with the first WEEE compliance period, which will run from 1 July until 31 December this year.

In total 37 compliance schemes have now been approved by the Environment Agency and Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). A full list can be found at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/weee.

DTI guidance, published earlier this year, explains what implications the Regulations will have for producers and retailers, as well as consumer and business users of electronics and local authorities. This guidance can be found at http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file37923.pdf.

Research has suggested that, in particular, SMEs are unprepared for the WEEE legislation.

According to IT equipment retailer Wstore, nearly half (47%) of small firms are not aware of, or have even heard of, the WEEE Regulations. Considering what the DTI’s WEEE guidance says, this could mean that businesses are setting themselves up for problems.

The guidance says:

"There are no exemptions for SMEs under the WEEE Directive, and hence the WEEE Regulations apply to all businesses regardless of size.

"Distributors of EEE [electrical or electronic equipment] have responsibilities in terms of the provision of facilities to enable the free take-back of household WEEE by final holders or end users and the provision of certain information to consumers of EEE. However the Government is working to ensure that any costs to SMEs are not disproportionate."