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EU legislation sets out producer and distributor obligations.
REMONDIS Electrorecycling can relieve you of them all

In response to the ever growing volume of discarded electrical and electronic appliances, the European Parliament passed the WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive in 2002. This law aims to avoid and reduce volumes of waste electrical and electronic equipment as well as to ensure discarded appliances are treated using environmentally sound processes.

  • The WEEE Directive primarily places responsibility on the producer

    • The underlying principle behind the WEEE Directive is product responsibility. Producers must fulfil the following obligations:

      • They must ensure their old appliances are treated and recycled within a certain period of time
      • They must ensure that pre-defined recycling targets are met (recycling rates)
      • They must guarantee that they will cover all costs of having their appliances recycled using environmentally sound processes; this guarantee must be given when they place the new appliances on the market
      • They are responsible for ensuring their electrical and electronic appliances are labelled with the WEEE symbol – a crossed-out wheelie bin – and a producer identification mark

    • We can take the pressure off you: by drawing up bespoke WEEE solutions that take all national regulations into account!

The WEEE Directive: structural and technical regulations

  • REMONDIS Electrorecycling can help: depending on the current laws and our appointed tasks, we can set up and/or operate a wide range of take-back schemes to ensure the collection target of 4kg WEEE per inhabitant is reached

  • Besides setting out the producers’ responsibilities, the WEEE Directive also contains the following regulations:

    • WEEE must be collected separately from other waste streams in accordance with the WEEE Directive
    • Private consumers must be able to return their WEEE free of charge
    • Member states must set up suitable WEEE collection schemes that reflect population density
    • Certain technical regulations must be adhered to when storing WEEE
    • Obligatory collection target for all member states: a min. 4kg WEEE per capita per year

  • The RoHS Directive puts hazardous substances in their place

    • The RoHS Directive (Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment), which was also passed by the European Parliament in 2002, focuses on the production of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). It limits the use, for example, of brominated flame retardants, cadmium, lead, mercury and other hazardous substances in EEE. Its aim: to reduce potential risks and so protect human health and the environment, to ensure natural resources are handled responsibly as well as to improve the way discarded appliances are recycled.

    • Responsibility lies with the distributors!
      As the producers are the companies placing the products on the market, they must make sure their product components, sub-assemblies and alloys comply with the RoHS

  • Technology is moving forward all the time. So are the EU Directives. And so is REMONDIS

    Amendments are being made to the WEEE and RoHS Directives all the time to keep up with technological developments and reflect the latest findings. REMONDIS Electrorecycling is doing exactly the same – making sure it always has suitable solutions and facilities in place.

    Extensions to the WEEE Directive

    Examples of how the WEEE Directive has been extended include the broadening of the Directive’s scope of application as well as the gradual increase in the collection targets and recycling rates – the aim here being to promote the conservation of natural resources and ensure producers are responsible for the collection and treatment of their products. Click here to read the latest regulations.

    Extensions to the RoHS Directive

    A number of amendments have been made to the RoHS Directive, for example, to implement new procedures to evaluate substances, which may be banned in the future, as well as to set out the relevant evaluation criteria. Click here to learn more.

  • Different countries, different procedures

    The member states are responsible for ensuring the main provisions of the WEEE and RoHS Directives are implemented in their countries by transposing them and any amendments into national law within a specified period of time. Click here to find out more about the differences between the laws of the various member states and about the solutions REMONDIS has set up.

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    In Finland, producers are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In Estonia, producers and vendors are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Sweden, producers are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In Latvia, producers and vendors are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Ireland, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In Denmark, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In Lithuania, producers and importers have founded a non-profit organisation. All costs are covered by the members of the organisation i.e. by the producers and importers.

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    In the UK, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In the Netherlands, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers, vendors and local authorities must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Poland, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In Belgium, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers and vendors must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Germany, town, city and district authorities provide space for setting up containers for collecting WEEE. The producers of the equipment must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Luxembourg, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In the Czech Republic, producers and vendors are responsible for both collecting WEEE and covering the costs of recycling the equipment.

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    In Slovakia, producers are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In France, producers and vendors are responsible for both collecting WEEE and covering the costs of recycling the equipment.

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    In Hungary, producers and vendors are responsible for both collecting WEEE and covering the costs of recycling the equipment.

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    In Slovenia, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers, vendors and local authorities must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Portugal, producers, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Spain, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. The producers must pay the recycling costs.

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    In Italy, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    In Greece, vendors and local authorities are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

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    On Malta, there are five recycling centres where local residents can hand in their WEEE free of charge. Moreover, private households can arrange to have their large electrical appliances collected or, in some case, can hand them in to retailers. The producers participate in a scheme that promotes suitable recycling processes and framework conditions.

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    On Cyprus, producers are responsible for collecting WEEE. They must also pay the recycling costs.

    Each country has regulated the question of producer responsibility differently – simply click on one of the hotspots above to learn more

  • The WEEE Directive: categories of electrical and electronic equipment

    The WEEE Directive currently differentiates between ten different categories of electrical and electronic equipment. Each individual member state can decide whether and to what extent these collection groups may or may not be combined.

    • Large domestic appliances (e.g. fridges, washing machines)
    • Small domestic appliances (e.g. toasters, razors)
    • IT and telecommunications equipment (e.g. computers, telephones)
    • Consumer equipment (e.g. TVs, hi-fi systems)
    • Lighting equipment (e.g. fluorescent tubes, low energy light bulbs)
    • Electrical and electronic tools (e.g. drills)
    • Toys, leisure and sports equipment (e.g. electric train sets)
    • Medical devices (e.g. respirators)
    • Monitoring and control instruments (e.g. smoke alarms, vehicle diagnostic equipment)
    • Automatic dispensers (e.g. cash or drinks dispensers)
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    Brunnenstraße 138
    44536 Lünen
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