1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COMMISSIONDECISION
of19July1999
establishingtheecological criteria fortheawardoftheCommunityeco-label tocopyingpaper
(notified under document number C(1999) 2144)
(TextwithEEArelevance)
(1999/554/EC)
(OJ L 210, 10.8.1999, p. 16)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Commission Decision 2002/741/EC of 4 September 2002 L 237 6 5.9.2002
▼B
COMMISSIONDECISION
of19July1999
establishingtheecologicalcriteriafortheawardoftheCommunity
eco-label tocopyingpaper
(notified under document number C(1999) 2144)
(TextwithEEArelevance)
(1999/554/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 880/92 of 23 March
1992 on a Community eco-label award scheme(1), and in particular
the second subparagraph of Article 5(1) thereof,
(1)Whereas the first subparagraph of Article 5(1) of Regulation(EEC) No 880/92 provides that the conditions for the award ofthe Community eco-label shall be defined by product group;
(2)Whereas Article 10(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 880/92 statesthat the environmental performance of a product shall be
assessed by reference to the specific criteria for product groups;
(3)Whereas, by Decision 96/467/EC(2), the Commission established
ecological criteria for the award of Community Eco-label tocopying paper, which, according to Article 3 thereof, expire 16July 1999;
(4)Whereas it is appropriate to revise the definition of the productgroup and the ecological criteria that were established by Deci-sion 96/467/EC in order to reflect the developments in themarket;
(5)Whereas it is appropriate to adopt a new Decision establishingthe specific ecological criteria for this product group, whichwill be valid for a further period of three years after the expiryof the period of validity of the previous criteria;
(6)Whereas in accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EEC)
No 880/92 the Commission has consulted the principal interest
groups within a consultation forum;
(7)Whereas the measures set out in this Decision are in accordancewith the opinion of the committee set up under Article 7 ofRegulation (EEC) No 880/92,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
The product group ‘copying paper’ (hereinafter referred to as ‘the
product group’) shall mean:
‘Sheets or reels of unprinted paper in different formats, which are
used for copying, fax machines or office printers. Thermally sensi-tive paper and carbonless paper are excluded’.
Article 2
The environmental performance of the product group as defined in
Article 1 shall be assessed by reference to the specific ecologicalcriteria set out in the Annex.1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 2
(1) OJ L 99, 11.4.1992, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 192, 2.8.1996, p. 29.
▼M1
Article 3
The product group definition and the specific ecological criteria for the
product group shall be valid until 31 August 2003.
Article 4
For administrative purposes the code number assigned to the product
group shall be ‘011’.
Article 5
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 3
▼B
▼B
ANNEX
In order to qualify for an eco-label, the product as defined in Article 1 must
comply with the criteria of this Annex, with tests carried out on application as
indicated in the criteria. Where appropriate, other test methods may be used if
their equivalence is accepted by the competent body assessing the application.
Where no tests are mentioned, or are mentioned as being for use in verification
or monitoring, competent bodies should rely as appropriate on declarations and
documentation provided by the applicant and/or independent verifications.
The competent bodies are recommended to take into account the implementation
of recognised environmental management schemes, such as EMAS or ISO
14001, when assessing applications and monitoring compliance with the criteria
in this Annex. (Note:it is not required to implement such management schemes.)
These criteria aim in particular at promoting:
— the reduction of discharges of certain toxic or otherwise polluting substances
into waters,
— the reduction of environmental damage or risks related to the use of energy
(global warming, acidification, ozone depletion, depletion of non-renewable
resources) by reducing energy consumption and related emissions to air,
— the reduction of environmental damage or risks related to the use of hazar-
dous chemicals,
— the application of sustainable management principles in order to safeguard
forests.
The criteria are set at levels which promote the labelling of paper made from
recycled fibres or from virgin fibres or mixtures thereof, produced with technol-
ogies reflecting best environmental standards.
ECOLOGICALCRITERIA
1.Emissionstowater
The total discharges to water, after treatment (whether on-site or off-site),
relating to the paper product shall be calculated as the sum of the discharges
from the pulp and the paper production stages and shall not exceed:
— 30 kg chemical oxygen demand (COD) per tonne of paper produced.
COD shall be measured in accordance with ISO 6060 or equivalent stan-
dards,
— 0,30 kg adsorbable organic halogens (AOX, as Cl) per tonne of paper
produced. The amount of AOX (as Cl) discharged from each pulp manufac-
turing site shall not exceed 0,50 kg per air dry tonne of pulp.
AOXshall be measured in accordance with ISO 9562, or equivalent stan-
dards. Measurement is not required where no chlorinated bleaching agents
are used.
Data on water consumption per tonne of pulp and paper produced in the various
stages of the production process shall be reported. (Note:the data is necessary to
evaluate the calculations of effluent loads and concentrations.)
2.Emissionstoair
The total emissions to air relating to the paper product shall be calculated as the
sum of the emissions from the pulp and the paper production stages and shall
not exceed:
— 1,5 kg sulphur compounds (as S) per tonne of paper produced. The emis-
sions related to the production of electricity need not be accounted for,
— 3,0 kg nitrogen oxides (NOx,a sN O2equivalents) per tonne of paper
produced. The emissions related to the production of electricity need not be
accounted for,
— 1 500 kg carbon dioxide from non renewable sources per tonne of paper
produced, including emissions from the production of electricity (whether
on-site or off-site).
3.Energyuse
The total energy consumption relating to the paper product shall be calculated as
the sum of the energy used in the pulp and the paper production stages and shall
not exceed:
— 26 G joule heat energy consumption per tonne of paper produced,
— 7 G joule (1 940 kWh) electricity per tonne of paper produced.
The applicant shall calculate all energy inputs, divided into heat/fuels and
electricity used during the production of pulp and paper, including the1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 4
▼B
energy used in the de-inking of waste papers for the production of recycled
paper.
Total heat energy includes all purchased fuels, except fuels used for the
internal generation of electricity. It also includes heat energy recovered by
incinerating liquors and wastes from on-site processes (e.g. wood waste,
sawdust, liquors, waste paper, paper broke), as well as heat recovered
from the internal generation of electricity — however, the applicant need
only count 80 % of the heat energy from such sources when calculating the
total heat energy.
Electric energy means net imported electricity coming from the grid and
internal generation of electricity measured as electric power. Electricity
used for waste water treatment need not be included.
4.Fibres—Sustainableforestmanagement
Fibres may be wood fibres, recycled fibres or fibres from other material.In the case of virgin wood fibres from forests, the operators in charge of mana-
ging the sources from which the fibres originate shall implement principles and
measures aimed at ensuring sustainable forest management. A declaration,
charter, code of conduct, certificate or statement to this effect from these opera-
tors and/or from the pulp mills shall be presented.
In Europe, the principles and measures referred to above shall correspond to
those of the Pan-European operational level guidelines for sustainable forest
management, as endorsed by the Lisbon Ministerial Conference on the Protec-
tion of Forests in Europe (2 to 4 June 1998). Outside Europe they shall
correspond to the UNCED Forest Principles (Rio de Janeiro, June 1992) and,
where applicable, to the criteria or guidelines for sustainable forest management
as adopted under the respective international and regional initiatives (ITTO,
Montreal Process, Tarapoto Process, UNEP/FAO Dry-Zone Africa Initiative).
5.Dangerouschemical substances
Chlorine gas shall not be used as a bleaching agent. This requirement does not
apply to chlorine gas related to the production and use of chlorine dioxide.
(Note:while this requirement also applies to the bleaching of recycled fibres, it
is accepted that the fibres in their previous lifecycle may have been bleached
with chlorine gas.)
Chemical substances that are classified as dangerous for the environment and
are assigned the risk phrases R50 and R53, according to Council Directive 67/
548/EEC(
1) as last amended by Commission Directive 98/98/EC(2), shall not be
added in the production of paper by more than 0,1 % by weight of the paper.
6.Wastemanagement
All producers of pulp and copying paper shall have a system for the handling of
waste(3) and residual products arising from the production plants. The system
shall be documented or explained in the application and include information on
at least the following points:
— procedures for separating and using recyclable materials from the waste
stream,
— procedures for recovering materials for other uses, such as incineration for
raising process steam, or agricultural use,
— procedures for the handling of hazardous waste (3).
FITNESSFORUSE
The product shall be fit for use.
CONSUMERINFORMATION
The product shall bear the following information on the primary and secondary
package:
‘This product qualifies for the Community eco-label because it meets
requirements that, among others, limit emissions to water (COD, AOX), to
air (S, NOx,C O2), energy use and the use of fossil fuels.
Please collect used paper for recycling.’1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 5
(1) OJ L 196, 16.8.1967, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 355, 30.12.1998, p. 1.
(3) As defined by the relevant regulatory authorities of the pulp and paper production sites
in question.
▼B
In addition, the manufacturer may also provide a statement indicating the
minimum percentage of recycled fibres.1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 6
▼B
Technical appendix
DEFINITIONS,TESTINGREQUIREMENTSANDDOCUMENTATION
Allemissionparameters
The period for the measurements or mass balances shall be based on the produc-
tion during 12 months. In case of a new or rebuilt production plant, the
measurements shall be based on at least 45 subsequent days of stable running
of the plant. The measurement shall be representative for the respective
campaign.
If a product is made out of different pulp qualities, the emission values from the
pulp production shall be calculated as weighted averages of all pulps used. The
total emissions shall be calculated by adding the emissions from the pulp
production to the emissions from the production of the copying paper.
Accredited laboratories or independent test institutes following the standard EN
45001 shall carry out measurements. The laboratory of the pulp or paper manu-
facturer may, however, be approved for the analyses of discharges if any of the
following conditions are fulfilled:
— the relevant regulatory authorities accept the relevant sampling and measure-
ments made in that laboratory or
— the manufacturer has a quality system which includes sampling and analysis
supervision and is certified according to ISO 9001 or ISO 9002 or
— is an official GLP (good laboratory practice) approved laboratory.
Measurements of water emissions shall be taken on unfiltered and unsettled
samples either after treatment at the plant or after treatment by a public treat-
ment plant.
AOX
AOX shall be measured in processes where chlorine compounds are used for the
bleaching of the pulp. This means that AOX need not be measured:
— in the effluent from non-integrated paper production, or
— in the effluents from pulp production without bleaching, or
— where the bleaching is performed with chlorine-free substances.
Sulphurandnitrogenoxides
The applicant shall provide a balance on the air emissions of sulphur and
nitrogen oxides. This balance shall include all such emissions which occur
during the production of pulp and paper, except those related to the production
of electricity. Measurements shall include recovery boilers, lime kilns, steam
boilers and destructor furnaces for strong smelling gases, if available. Diffuse
emissions shall be accounted for.
Carbondioxide
The applicant shall provide a balance of the air emissions of carbon dioxide.
This balance shall include all sources of non-renewable fuels during the produc-
tion of pulp and paper, including the emissions from the production of
electricity (whether on-site or off-site). The emission factors from Table 1 shall
be used in the calculation of the CO2emissions from fuels.
Table 1
EquivalentsofCO2fromnonrenewablefuels
Fuel CO2emission Unit
Coal 95 g CO2/MJ
Crude oil 73 g CO2/MJ
Fuel oil 1 74 g CO2/MJ
Fuel oil 2-5 77 g CO2/MJ
Gasoline 69 g CO2/MJ1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 7
▼B
Fuel CO2emission Unit
Natural gas 56 g CO2/MJ
Grid electricity (1) 400 g CO2/kWh
(1) European average.
For grid electricity, the value quoted in the table shall be used for all sites
within the European Union. For sites outside the European Union, the applicant
may present documentation establishing the average value for their supplier(s)
of electricity, and use this average value instead of the value quoted in the table.
Dangerouschemical compounds
The applicant shall present a declaration from each pulp supplier that chlorine
gas has not been used for the bleaching of the pulps.
The applicant shall present a list of the chemical products used in the paper
production. The list shall include the brand name of the product, the area of
use and the name of the supplier. In addition to this list, a declaration with the
following meaning shall be included: ‘none of the substances classified as
dangerous for the environment and assigned the risk phrases R50 and R53,
according to Council Directive 67/548/EEC(1) as last amended by Commission
Directive 98/98/EC(2), are added in the paper production process by more than
0,1 % by weight of the paper’. The production of pulp is not covered by this
requirement.
Wastemanagement
The applicant shall provide a document describing the procedures for the hand-
ling of wastes and residual materials from the different stages of the pulp and
paper production according to the requirements mentioned above.
Fitnessforuse
The applicant shall provide evidence to demonstrate that the product is fit for
use. This evidence may include data from appropriate ISO or CEN test methods,
but may include national or in-house test procedures as well. Details of the test
procedures shall be provided with the application.1999D0554 — EN — 01.09.2002 — 001.001 — 8
(1) OJ L 196, 16.8.1967, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 355, 30.12.1998, p. 1.