Extended Producer Responsibility
What is Extended Producer Responsibility
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) (also called “Producer Takeback”) is a product and waste management system in which manufacturers – not the consumer or government – take responsibility for the environmentally safe management of their product when it is no longer useful or discarded.
When manufacturers take responsibility for the recycling of their own products they:
• Use environmentally safer materials in the production process
• Consume fewer materials in the production process
• Design the product to last longer and be more useful
• Create safer recycling systems
• Are motivated to keep waste costs down
• No longer pass the cost of disposal to the government and the taxpayer
Do we have Producer Responsibility in the US?
Some companies are taking responsibility voluntarily for their old products. While we don't have a national policy requiring producer responsibility, many States are passing laws requiring it within their states. Learn more about state legislation.
Producer Responsibility In Other Countries
IN EUROPE: WEEE Laws Mandate Producer Takeback
The WEEE Directive (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) passed in 2003 says that countries in the EU must pass laws requiring the producers to take back a variety of household appliances, including electronics. The deadline for implementing WEEE laws was August 2005.
Key Components of European WEEE
Laws Financing of electronic waste equipment
Consumers can return e-waste to collection points free of charge. Individual producers bear the costs of re-use, recycling and disposal of all products they put on the market after 2005. Producers will be collectively responsible for taking back historic waste. Producers can charge consumers an additional front-end fee to cover the cost of managing historic waste, which will vary depending on the particular product.
Labeling
Producers must clearly label their products to allow for identification of materials to facilitate recycling and to inform consumers that e-waste is banned from municipal waste and must be handled separately.
Product Design and Recycling Goals
The WEEE Directive mandates that products must be designed for dismantling and recovery. By 2006, industry will have to recycle or reuse between 50% and 75% of the old equipment on the market, depending on the product category. The Directive specifies that recycling rates will increase over time.
Collection Goals
Manufacturers must meet a collection rate of four kilograms (8.8 lbs) per person per year.
Ban on Hazardous Substances
The WEEE Directive was accompanied by a second law, the RoHS Directive, which stands for Restriction on Hazardous Substances. RoHS says the use of substances such as lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium and certain brominated flame retardants (PBBs, Penta-BDE,Octa-BDE, and Deca-BDE) must be phased out by July 1, 2006.
Fact Sheet on WEEE and RoHS from INFORM.
Some examples of European programs:
In the Norwegian EPR program, adopted in March 1998, the producers and importers pay fees to a third party organization, Elektronikkretur, based on their current market share. These fees are internalized in the product price and are invisible to the consumer. The fee covers the costs of collection, transport and recycling. Consumers are able to return their electronics free of charge.
In Belgium, national EPR legislation for WEEE was introduced in 2001. It allows for the use of a visible fee of some €20 for a fridge, €16 for a TV and €3-4 for a PC (fee on PC is lower because of high inherent value of precious metals). Revenues from the visible fees go to the producers. Some of these revenues are used to pay local authorities and transporters to bring WEEE to recycling facilities. The remainder of revenues from visible fees are used by producers to build up funds for future WEEE obligations and to pay for treating historical waste.
How are the companies implementing WEEE? In some countries, companies are partnering together to implement their WEEE obligations. One example is the European Recycling Platform (ERP), a partnership between four companies - Hewlett Packard, Sony, Electrolux, Braun - in several EU countries. More on ERP.
Electronics Recycling In Japan
In Japan, there are different laws for recycling TVs and for recycling computers and monitors.
TV Takeback: Japan passed the Home Appliance Recycling Law in 2001, which covers TVs, refrigerators, washing machines, and air conditioners. It specifically requires the recycling of 55% by weight of materials from televisions collected in the program. Under this law, producers have the responsibility to recycle their electronic products either themselves or delegate their responsibility to the third party. Consumers bring their products back to retailers, or in some cases, the municipalities. Consumers pay a recycling fee by purchasing a recycling ticket either at the retailers or at post offices. These fees are then transferred on a monthly basis to the producers. The fee is standard for the type of product. However the level of the fee is low and manufacturers absorb the difference in received versus actual costs for recycling. This is important to note for municipalities who may be considering simply placing an advanced recycling fee on products and bypassing the responsibilities of the producers. The municipality may end up picking up the tab for costs not covered by the fee.
Computer Takeback: In 2001, Japan passed the Law for Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources, which covers consumer owned computers and monitors, as well as some other products. This law mandated business in certain sectors to undertake recycling initatives and incorporate 3Rs (Reuse, reduce, recycle) into their business model. This law added a takeback fee to purchase of new equipment (sold since 2003) which is collected at purchase and paid to the manufacturers. Consumers attach the label they receive when they pay the fee, then take it to the post office (or have the PO pick it up). The Postal system gets the product the proper recycler. (To recycle computers purchased before 2003, the consumer must contact the manufacturer to pay a fee and order a mail back label to the proper manufacturer, then take the boxed equipment to the post office (or have the PO pick it up).
