COMMISSION DECISION
of 16 August 2012
establishing the ecological criteria for the award of the EU Ecolabel for printed paper
(notified under document C(2012) 5364)
(Text with EEA relevance)
(2012/481/EU)
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2009 on the EU Ecolabel (1), and in particular Article 8(2) thereof,
After consulting the European Union Eco-labelling Board,
Whereas:
(1)
Under Regulation (EC) No 66/2010, the EU Ecolabel may be awarded to those products with a reduced environmental impact during their entire life cycle.
(2)
Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 provides that specific EU Ecolabel criteria are to be established according to product groups.
(3)
Since the chemicals used in the printed paper products may hinder recyclability of printed paper products, and may be hazardous for the environment and for human health, it is appropriate to establish EU Ecolabel criteria for the product group ‘printed paper’.
(4)
The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 16 of Regulation (EC) No 66/2010,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
1. The product group ‘printed paper’ shall comprise any printed paper product that consist of at least 90 % by weight of paper, paperboard or paper-based substrates, except for books, catalogues, pads, booklets or forms that shall consist of at least 80 % by weight of paper or paperboard or paper-based substrates. Inserts, covers and any printed paper part of the final printed paper shall be considered to form part of the printed paper product.
2. Fixed inserts to the printed paper product (not intended to be removed) shall fulfil the requirements of the Annex to this Decision. Inserts that are not fixed to the printed paper (such as flyers, removable stickers) but sold or provided with it, shall fulfil the requirements of the Annex to this Decision only if the EU Ecolabel is intended to be placed on them.
3. The product group ‘printed paper’ shall not include the following:
(a)
printed tissue papers;
(b)
printed paper products used for packaging and wrapping;
(c)
folders, envelopes, ring binders.
Article 2
For the purpose of this Decision, the following definitions shall apply:
(1)
‘Books’ means yarn-bound and/or glue-bound printed paper products with hard or soft covers, such as school books, fiction or non-fiction books, notebooks, exercise books, spiral-bound notebook, reports, calendars with covers, handbooks and paperbacks. ‘Books’ do not include journals, brochures, magazines, catalogues published on a regular basis and annual reports.
(2)
‘Consumables’ means chemical products used during the printing, coating and finishing processes and capable of being consumed, destroyed, dissipated, wasted, or spent. Consumables include products such as printing inks and dyes, toners, overprinting varnishes, varnishes, adhesives, washing agents and damping solutions.
(3)
‘Folder’ means a folding case or cover for loose papers. Folders include products such as indices dividers, document wallets, square cut folders, suspension files, cardboard boxes and 3-flap folders.
(4)
‘Halogenated organic solvent’ means an organic solvent which contains at least one atom of bromine, chlorine, fluorine or iodine per molecule.
(5)
An ‘insert’ means an extra leaf or section, printed independently from the printed paper product which is either placed within the pages of a printed paper product and may be removed (loose insert) or bound into the pages of the printed paper product and thus form an integral part thereof (fixed insert). Inserts include multipage advertisements, booklets, brochures, reply cards, or other promotional materials.
(6)
‘Newspapers’ means a publication issued daily or weekly containing news and printed on newsprint paper grade that is made from pulp and/or recovered paper, the weight of which ranges between 40 and 65 g/m2.
(7)
‘Non-paper components’ means all the parts of a printed paper product that do not consist of paper, paperboard or paper based substrates.
(8)
‘Packaging’ means all products made of any materials of any nature to be used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and presentation of goods, from raw materials to processed goods, from the producer to the user or the consumer.
(9)
A ‘printed paper product’ means the product resulting from the processing of a printing material. The processing consists of printing onto paper. In addition to printing, the processing may include finishing, for example folding, stamping and cutting or assembling, using glue, binding, yarn-binding. Printed paper products include newspapers, advertising materials and newssheets, journals, catalogues, books, leaflets, brochures, pads, posters, loose-leafs, business cards, and labels.
(10)
‘Printing’ (or printing process) means a process whereby a printing material is processed into a printed paper product. Printing includes pre-press, press, and post-press operations.
(11)
‘Recycling’ means any recovery operation by which waste materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances whether for the original purpose or other purposes. It includes the reprocessing of organic material but does not include energy recovery and the reprocessing into materials that are to be used as fuels or for backfilling operations.
(12)
‘VOC’ (Volatile Organic Compounds) means any organic compound as well as the fraction of creosote, having at 293,15 K a vapour pressure of 0,01 kPa or more, or having a corresponding volatility under the particular conditions of use.
(13)
‘Washing agents’ (also sometimes known as cleaning agents or cleaners) means the following: (a) liquid chemicals used to wash printing forms, both separate (off-press) and integrated (in-press), and printing presses to remove printing inks, paper dust and similar products; (b) cleaners for finishing machines and printing machines, such as cleaners to remove adhesive and varnish residues; (c) printing inks removers used in washing off dried printing inks. Washing agents do not include cleaning agents for cleaning other parts of the printing machine or for cleaning other machines than printing machines and finishing machines.
(14)
‘Waste paper’ means paper generated during printing and finishing processes, or while shaving or cutting paper or during starting runs in the print workshop and the bindery, which does not form part of the finished printed paper product.
Article 3
In order to be awarded the EU Ecolabel under Regulation (EC) No 66/2010, an item of printed paper shall fall within the product group ‘Printed paper’ as defined in Article 1 of this Decision and shall comply with the criteria as well as the related assessment and verification requirements set out in the Annex to this Decision.
Article 4
The criteria for the product group ‘Printed paper’, as well as the related assessment and verification requirements, shall be valid for three years from the date of adoption of this Decision.
Article 5
For administrative purposes the code number assigned to ‘printed paper’ shall be ‘028’.
Article 6
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 16 August 2012.