./.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/TBT/Notif.98.458
17 September 1998
(98-3562)
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade
NOTIFICATION
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6.
1. Member to Agreement notifying:  BELGIUM
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):
2. Agency responsible: Ministry of Social Affairs, Public Health and the Environment
Cité Administrative de l'Etat - Quartier VésaleBoulevard Pachéco 19
B 1010 Bruxelles
Tel:  +32 2 210 48 71
Fax:  +32 2 210 48 84
Agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall beindicated if different from above:  Federal services for environmental affairs
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [ X ], 2.10.1 [    ], 5.6.2 [    ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  All products, including
packaging, potentially covered by the scope of the proposed framework law.
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Draft Law on Standards
for Products so as to Promote Sustainable Methods of Production and Consumption,
Protection of the Environment and Health (32 pages, French and Dutch)
6. Description of content:  The purpose of th e proposed law is to establish a global and
harmonized legal framework for setting product standards in order to ensure that products
are designed in such a way that their manufacture, proposed utilization and elimination are
not harmful to public health and do not contribute, or contribute to the least possible extent,to creating waste and other forms of pollution.  As this is a framework law, the provisions of
the law itself do not contain any technical specifications for the products concerned.  These
can be fixed by implementing orders which will be the subject of notification under the
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade.
The only directly applicable provisions in the law concern the principle of
preventive responsibility when products are placed on the market ("producer
responsibility") and the essential requirements to be met by packaging pursuant to
Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste.  The framework law empowers the
King to issue implementing orders imposing measures such as prohibiting certain products
from being placed on the market, notification or prior authorization procedures, obligationto inform the authorities or consumers, etc.
7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where applicable:  The aim
of the framework law is to fill a gap in the current regulations and to lay down a basis for an
integrated policy on products so as to promote sustainable methods of production and
consumption pursuant to Agenda 21 and recommendations by the OECD.G/TBT/Notif.98.458
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7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where applicable (cont'd):
The practical measures that may be taken to implement the law in respect of
specific categories of products will be justified on a case-by-case basis according to their
health and/or environmental protection objectives.
8. Relevant documents:  Draft law and explanation of the motives.
9. Proposed date of adoption:
Proposed date of entry into force: } December 1998
10. Final date for comments:  60 days
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [ X ] or address, e-mail and telefax number of
the other body:  CIBELNOR