WEEE Regulations and SMEs
Alan HodgsonSenior Environment Officer
Incidents & Contingency Planning Producer Responsibility
IntroductionWe throw away a million tonnes of household electrical and electronic waste every year in the United Kingdom. At least as much comes from non-household sources such as offices, factories, schools and hospitals.
What is the background?g Kitchen appliances, mobile phones and computers
offer many benefits during their working lives but when this equipment is thrown away it affects the environment.
g WEEE is one of the fastest growing waste streams in the UK and the EU.
g Some WEEE contains hazardous substances and parts such as mercury in some switches, lead in solder, and cadmium in batteries.
g Recycling rates for most types of WEEE (other than large ‘white goods’ such as fridges and washing machines) are very low.
What are the Regulations for?The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive was adopted by the EU in 2003. It aims to reduce the amount of WEEE being disposed in landfills by promoting separate collection, treatment and recycling.
What do the Regulations do?g Require electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) to
be marked with a ‘crossed out wheeled bin’ symbol; g Set targets for the amount of household WEEE to be
separately collected; g Require the UK to establish and maintain a register of
EEE producers; g Makes distributors and retailers responsible for taking
back WEEE free of charge…;g Require all separately collected WEEE to be treated;g Introduce recycling and recovery targets for various
categories of WEEE.
What is the scope of the WEEE Directive?The types of products covered are:g large and small household appliances; g IT and telecommunication equipment; g consumer equipment such as TVs, videos, hi-fi; g lighting, electrical and electronic tools (except large
stationary industrial tools); g toys, leisure and sports equipment; g automatic dispensers; g medical devices (these are exempt from the WEEE
recycling and recovery targets); g monitoring and control instruments.
What is Electrical and Electronic Equipment?
The WEEE Regulations apply to EEE which:g is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic
fields in order to work properly, including equipment for the generation, transfer and measurement of such currents and fields;
g is designed for use with a voltage rating not exceeding 1,000V for alternating current and 1,500V for direct current; and
g falls into one of the ten Categories in Schedule 1 to the WEEE Regulations.
WEEE category 1-Large household appliances
g Refrigerators, freezers & other large appliances used for refrigeration, conservation and storage of food
g Washing machines, clothes dryers & dish washing machines
g Electric stoves, electric hot plates & microwaves g Other large appliances used for cooking and other
processing of food g Electric radiators & other large appliances for heating
rooms, beds, seating furniture g Electric fans, air conditioner appliances & other fanning,
exhaust ventilation and conditioning equipment
WEEE category 2 -Small household appliances
g Vacuum cleaners, carpet sweepers & other appliances for cleaning
g Appliances used for sewing, knitting, weaving and other processing for textiles
g Irons and other appliances for ironing, mangling and other care of clothing
g Toasters, fryers, grinders, coffee machines and equipment for opening or sealing containers or packages
g Electric knives & scalesg Appliances for hair-cutting, hair drying, tooth brushing,
shaving, massage and other body care appliances g Clocks, watches and equipment for the purpose of
measuring, indicating or registering time
WEEE category 3 -IT & Telecommunications equipment
g Centralised data processing:g Mainframes g Minicomputers g Printer units
WEEE category 3 -IT & Telecommunications equipment
g Personal computing:g Personal computers (CPU, mouse, screen and
keyboard included) g Laptop computers (CPU, mouse, screen and
keyboard included) g Notebook computers g Notepad computers g Printers g Copying equipment g Electrical and electronic typewriters g Pocket and desk calculators
WEEE category 3 -IT & Telecommunications equipment
g Other products and equipment for the collection, storage, processing, presentation or communication of information by electronic means:g User terminals and systems g Facsimile & telex g Telephones & pay telephones g Cordless telephones, cellular telephones &
answering systems g Other products or equipment for transmitting
sound, images or other information by telecommunications
WEEE category 4 -Consumer equipment
g Radio setsg Television setsg Video cameras g Video recorders g Hi-fi recordersg Audio amplifiers g Musical instruments g and other products or equipment for the purpose of
recording or reproducing sound or images, including signals or other technologies for the distribution of sound and image than by telecommunications.
WEEE category 5 -Lighting equipment
g Luminaires for fluorescent lamps with the exception of luminaires in households
g Straight fluorescent lamps g Compact fluorescent lamps g High intensity discharge lamps, including pressure
sodium lamps and metal halide lamps g Low pressure sodium lamps g Other lighting or equipment for the purpose of
spreading or controlling light with the exception of filament bulbs.
WEEE category 6 -Electrical & electronic tools
g Drills & saws g Sewing machines g Equipment for turning, milling, sanding, grinding, sawing,
cutting, shearing, drilling, making holes, punching, folding, bending or similar processing of wood, metal and other materials
g Tools for riveting, nailing or screwing or removing rivets, nails, screws or similar uses
g Tools for welding, soldering or similar use g Equipment for spraying, spreading, dispersing or other
treatment of liquid or gaseous substances by other means g Tools for mowing or other gardening activities
WEEE category 7 -Toys, leisure & sports equipment
g Electric trains or car racing setsg Hand-held video game consolesg Video gamesg Computers for biking, diving, running, rowing etc.g Sports equipment with electric or electronic
components g Coin slot machines
WEEE category 8 -Medical devices
with the exception of all implanted and infected productsg Radiotherapy equipmentg Cardiology & Dialysisg Pulmonary ventilatorsg Nuclear medicineg Laboratory equipment for in-vitro diagnosisg Analysersg Freezersg Fertilization testsg Other appliances for detecting, preventing,
monitoring, treating, alleviating illness, injury or disability
WEEE category 9 -Monitoring & control instruments
g Smoke detectorsg Heating regulators g Thermostats g Measuring, weighing or adjusting appliances for
household or as laboratory equipment g Other monitoring and control instruments used in
industrial installations (e.g. in control panels)
WEEE category 10 -Automatic dispensers
g Automatic dispensers for hot drinks g Automatic dispensers for hot or cold bottles or cans g Automatic dispensers for solid products g Automatic dispensers for money g All appliances which deliver automatically all kind of
products.
Consumablesg Consumables only become WEEE if they are part of
another product that is WEEE.g For example, when a printer is discarded it becomes
WEEE. If an ink cartridge is inside the printer at the time, then the ink cartridge also becomes part of that WEEE at the time of discarding.
g The ink cartridge would not be WEEE if discarded on its own and is outside the scope of the Regulations.
g This only applies to consumables that would normally be included in the main EEE at time of disposal and not to other consumables; for example printer paper discarded with a printer would not be WEEE.
Fixed InstallationsFixed installations are outside the scope of the WEEE
Regulations. g Examples of fixed installations are:
g Lifts or escalators g Domestic electrical supply systems (ring mains,
fuse boxes and meters)g Examples of products notnot considered fixed
installations are:g Fire and intruder alarm systems that are not part
of or built into the fabric of the building. (See the FAQs on fixed installations on the EA website for more details).
Is It WEEE? Decision Flow Chart
N
O
T
C
O
V
E
R
E
D
Needs electric current to work?
Less than 1,000v AC or 1,500v DC?
Intended for specific national security & military purpose
Main power source is electricity?
Electricity is needed for primary function?
Forms part of equipment not included in product categories?
Covered by scope of the Regulations
YES
YES
No
YES
Luminaires in households
Large-scale stationary industrial tool Implanted & infected medical products
Filament lightbulbs
Covered by a specific exemption?
Large householdappliances
Small householdappliances
IT & telecomsequipment
Consumerequipment
Lightingequipment
Electrical &electronic tools
Toys, leisure &sports equipment
Medicaldevices
Monitoring & controlinstruments
Automaticdispensers
Fits within one of the 10 product categories?
Yes
No
YESNo
No
Yes
No
YES
No
No
What producers need to knowg If your company manufactures electrical and
electronic equipment (EEE), you will need to join a Producer Compliance Scheme that has been approved by one of the environment agencies.
g You are also regarded as a ‘producer’ if you import EEE into the UK on a professional basis or you resell EEE produced by someone else under your own brand.
g Producers must have applied to join an approved Producer Compliance Scheme by 15 March 2007.
Marking EEE products g Producers will have to mark EEE with a crossed out
wheeled bin symbol, a producer id mark & date mark. g In some cases... the symbol can be printed on the
packaging, the instructions or on the warranty. g By encouraging WEEE to be collected separately, the
regulations aim to promote reuse, recovery & recycling. g CENELEC has developed a European Standard for
WEEE Directive marking. g BSI has published this standard as BS EN 50419:2005
which can be obtained from BSI by phone on 0208 996 9000 or from their website.
What business users need to knowg The WEEE legislation introduces new responsibilities
for businesses and other non-household users of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE).
g This includes schools, hospitals and government agencies when they dispose of their electrical waste.
g These organisations will need to ensure that all separately collected WEEE is treated and recycled.
g Whether the business or the producer of the EEE pays for this depends on the circumstances.
Business EEE from products put on the market after 13 August 2005g EEE producers are responsible for financing the
collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of the EEE that they supply to business users.
g The directive allows producers and business users to agree alternative financing arrangements.
g This is a commercial decision and is likely to form part of the normal negotiating processes for supply contracts in the future.
Business EEE from products put on the market before 13 August 2005g Different arrangements apply for WEEE arising from
products put on the market before 13 August 2005 (known as historic WEEE).
g If historic WEEE from businesses is being replaced by new equivalent products, the EEE producer is responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal when supplying the new products.
g In other cases, for example where the historic WEEE is not being replaced, the end user (the business) has to pay.
What retailers need to knowg The WEEE regulations will also affect retailers and
other distributors who sell EEE. g If they’re selling EEE to the public, retailers will have to
ensure that their customers can return their WEEE free of charge on a one-for-one basis, as long as the new equipment is of a similar type and has the same function as the old equipment.
g Householders will be able (but not compelled) to return their WEEE to retailers who offer in-store take-back.
g Retailers will be able to set up alternative collection systems as long as they are still convenient for customers.
What retailers need to knowg The regulations allow a Distributor Take-back Scheme as
an alternative to in-store take back for retailers and other distributors who join.
g This will probably be based mainly on the existing network of local authority civic amenity sites.
g Valpak has recently been appointed to operate the Distributor Take-back Scheme.
g Retailers and other distributors that join will contribute to the upgrade of Designated Collection Facilities.
g These retailers will not have to offer in-store take back of WEEE but will direct consumers to the nearest Designated Collection Facility.
What retailers need to knowg Retailers will also have to ask producers for their
unique producer number when they supply EEE. g This number will prove that the producer has joined an
approved compliance scheme and is helping fund the treatment and recycling of separately collected household WEEE.
g Retailers may agree with producers to show consumers a ‘visible fee’ for treating and recycling certain types of products at end of their life.
g The WEEE regulations and guidance set out the restrictions that apply to these fees.
Information Resourcesg www.environment-agency.gov.uk/weee
(See also FAQ link)g www.netregs.gov.ukg www.dti.gov.uk
DTI Guidance Bookletg www.defra.gov.ukg www.valpak.co.uk
Any Questions?Simple ones only, please.