Novelties for professional Weee

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CREDIT ANGELO PO

The Decree of the Ministry of the Environment published last June introduced substantial novelties about the charges related to the Professional Recycling.

CREDIT ANGELO PO
CREDIT ANGELO PO

As published on the 155 issue of the Official Gazette, the Decree dated June 17th 2016 inaugurates a new system of fares for the fulfilment of the charges deriving from the management system of electrical and electronic equipment (Eee) wastes. Among them, also those dedicated to the vending sector, i.e. containing cooling gases and then compelled to follow a specific disposal course.

More in detail, the 17th June Decree, in application of the Decree 49/2014, has determined the spending criteria for the settlement of Control Authorities and has established the fares, with relative payment criteria, which Eee manufacturers must pay within September 30th every year. Eugenio Cassataro, Dangerous Goods Transportation – Bio Chem Disposal Manager of MITSafetrans and coordinator of Weee-Safe Consortium, has answered to some questions to explain what the most relevant novelties are.

Who is charged with the payment of Weee transport costs?

According to the art. 13 of the Decree 49/2014, Eee producers, individually or through collective systems they join, organize and manage separate collection systems of professional Weee, bearing the related costs (extraction, transport and disposal)

The Weee-Safe Professional Consortium exclusively treats professional Weee (BtoB) and offers turn-key solutions for the Weee management to its members. I always refer to the funding system for the professional Weee collection.

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CREDIT NECTA

Have you provided for sanctions for those not complying with the correct procedures? What are the controls?

Penalties are varied and modulated according to single failures, since our reference sanction system is provided for by the Decree 152/2006.

Still concerning the matter we are discussing, we have assessed that in practice the missing communication of what released on the market by the Eee producer, to be communicated within April 30th every year, implies a monition by the EEE register to the subject who has not done the communication. Therefore, the Register asks the defaulting producer to rectify his position. If that did not happen, the producer would be sanctioned according to the Art. 38 of the decree 49/2014, with a fine ranging from € 2,000 to € 20,000 and communication of the Producer’s data to the competent bodies, including Guardia di Finanza.

Concerning the payment of the fare according to the producer’s market share, (€ 10 fixed for all and the rest depending on one’s own market share), calculated by the Ministry according to the art. 35 of the Decree 49/2014 and pursuant to art.6 of the Decree September 25th 2007 – n.185, the fares must be paid within September 30th every year. In case of default, increases in payment of the fare are foreseen, with application of the legal interests in force.

Another punitive element I would like to point out is the producer’s eventual missing choice of the Individual or Collective Funding System. In case of missing choice, the producer can be cancelled in the Eee Register, with consequent impossibility of releasing his Eee on the market.

Authorities carry out activities and monitoring for the verification of the correct implementation of Regulations that rule the Weee management.  In short:

Controls of the Register data the Producer declares;

on shipments and in particular on the export of Eee suspected of being Weee (encl.VI of the Decree 49/2014);

on the operations carried out by treatment plants.

Are wholesalers subjected to obligations, too, or do regulations refer to producers exclusively?

This question has not a simple and linear answer but it needs a minimal reasoning.

The definition of wholesaler is not included among the definitions of the Decree 49/2014. It can be equalized to the one of “distributor” or of “retail distributor”; respectively definition in letter h) and letter i) of the art. 4 of the Decree 49.

The definition of distributor at the letter h) mentioned above gives the distributor the possibility of assuming the role of producer. We have some cases of distributor/reseller registered as waste producer.

Let us clear some doubts: concerning the Weee coming from families, the collection phase is entrusted to Communes and to distributors, which have a clearly defined role.

Concerning Professional Weee, the wholesaler distributor can adopt a Weee collection procedure also according to the criteria provided for by the Decree 65/2010 (simplified Weee) creating some grouping places  communicated to the competent authorities. The decree 65 /2010, in fact, applies both to the BtoC and to the BtoB.

Concerning the BtoB, it is necessary to proceed to the Weee collection according to the standard management as per art. 13 in application of all regulations that are involved in the management of a Special Waste, as actually is the Weee; then, the Waste Form, Sistri, Authorized Carrier enrolled in the pertinent transport category, for the Weee transport to an Authorized Centre.

We believe that in these cases is useful an agreement for the Weee collection between the producer and the “wholesaler” that, by the rule, can be defined as the holder of the waste.

On the other hand, according to the “extended responsibility ” principle, regulations identify Eee Producers as the subjects that must assure a correct Weee treatment from the environmental point of view.

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CREDIT RENZACCI

Are there any details in the regulation applied to the only vending sector?

The vending sector (which is mainly applied with the code Eee 10.1), is included, like other sectors, in the Weee management according to the applicable regulations. The peculiarity of the sector is the specific Weee treatment owing to the pollutants it contains; in other words, separation of the oil and gas contained in the refrigerating circuit.

How many are the consortia dealing with Weee and what is the strong point of Weee-Safe Professional?

The consortia taking care of Weee are around twenty. We think that Weee-Safe Professional (WSP) is the only consortium that exclusively operates in the Professional Weee sector. We are not part of the Weee Coordination Centre. We stand out for the capability of Management of Risks, potential or contained in Weee, like the Chemical, Biological, Radioactive danger.

What services do you offer?

Concerning Weee, we offer a complete service, we in fact take care of all connected aspects:

Deposition of Weee from the customer’s operational premises, with the techniques of sequential equipment disassembly.

Sanitation where requested;

Selection of parts for Cer codes;

lab analyses of oils and other present chemical elements;

waste characterization;

extraction from Laboratories and release of the necessary documents (FIR, Sistri etc.);

authorized transport for both non-dangerous Weee and dangerous Weee.

We never ask our customers to leave the Weee at the roadside in view of the passage of the authorized carrier that – fortuitously – might even not pass. Therefore, the preliminary transport activities are always granted. The customer/member calls us once and then WSP takes care of the entire coordination to execute the transport and the delivery for the recycling/disposal by authorized centres managed by third parties. At the end of the operational course, we offer services for the management of loading/unloading registers in electronic format, too, Mud release and consulting.