PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) ON A COMMUNITY AWARD SCHEME FOR AN ECO-LABEL
Date: 1991-02-11
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU environmental policy, consumer information, eco-label, ecology, environmental impact, prevention of pollution

COMMISSION  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  COMVIUNITIES 

C0M(91)  37 final 

Brussels,  11  February  1991 

Proposal  for a 

ÇQUNCH  REGULATION  (EEC) 

on a Community  award  scheme  for  an Eco-label 

(presented  by  the  Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY  MEMORANDUM 

I.  INTRODUCTION 

1.  Products  subject  to  mass  consumption  are  a  potential  source  of 

important 

environmental 

degradations  simply 

because 

they  are 

manufactured  and  used  in  great  quantities.  The  environmental  impact 

can  occur  at  all  stages  of  the  product's  life  cycle,  i.e. 

manufacturing, distribution, consumption/use and disposal  after use. 

2.  The  need  to  develop  a  policy  towards  "clean"  products  aimed  at 

preventing,  reducing  and  as  far  as  possible  eliminating  pollution  at 

source  and  ensuring  sound  management  of  new  materials  resources  has 

been  emphasized  in  the  Fourth  European  Community  Action  Programme  on 

the  Environment  (1987-1992)C).  In  particular,  proposals  should  aim 

"at  defining  criteria  for  'environmentally  sound  products',  i.e. 

products  which  give  rise  to  little  or  no  waste  at  the  elimination 

stage". 

3.  Accordingly,  the  Commission  announced  in  its  communication  to  the 

Council  and  the  Parliament  on  a  Community  Strategy  for  Waste 

Management^2)  the  setting  up  of  a  Community  framework  for  an  award 

scheme  for  an Eco-label. 

4.  The  Council  of  the  European  Communities,  in  approving  this 

communication  in  its  Resolution  on  Waste  Policy^3),  stated  that 

priority  should  be  given  to  prevention  or  reduction  at  source, 

particularly  by  the  use  of  clean  products.  Therefore,  the  Council 

invited  the  Commission  to elaborate  ecological  criteria  for  products, 

taking  into  account  best  available  technology  not  entailing  excessive 

cost  and  including  as  appropriate  the  use  of  recyclable,  reusable  or 

(1) OJ  No C 328, 7.12.1987, p. 1. 
(2) Doc. SEC(89)934, 14.9.1989. 
(3) OJ  No C 222, 18.5.1990. 

-  3 -

biodegradable  materials.  Furthermore,  the  Council 

invited 

the 

Commission  to  come  forward  with  a  proposal  for  a  Community-wide  eco-

labelIing scheme. 

5.  The  European  Parliament  has  already  supported  a  Community  environment 

label  for  eco-products 

in 

its  Resolution  on  waste  and  landfill 

pol icy(*). 

6.  It  must  be  underlined  that  the  award  scheme  for  the  Eco-label  is 

voluntary  with  full  freedom  to apply  or  not  to apply  for  a  label, will 

provide  incentives  for  the  conception  of  products  which  will,  beyond 

preventing  the  amount  or  harmfulness  of  waste,  reduce  pollution  or 

reduce nuisance  such as noise or odour. 

7.  Furthermore,  the  Eco-label  will  respond  to  the  increasing  awareness of 

consumers  throughout  the  Community  on  environmental  issues  and  their 

claim  to  be  guided  in  deciding  upon  their  purchases.  With  regard  to 

consumers,  the  award  scheme  for  the  Eco-label  will  complement  the 

development  of  an  integral  concept  of  consumer  information  on  both 

product  quality  and behaviour  in the environment. 

8.  The  Federal  Republic  of  Germany  introduced  in  1978  the  Blue-Angel-

Scheme  which  has  since  played  an  important  role  in  promoting 

environmentally  more  benign  alternatives  using  market 

forces. 

Moreover,  the  Blue-Angel-Scheme  plays  a  leading  role  in  the  large 

sector  of  public  procurement. 

9.  Several  other  Member  States  are  currently  considering  setting  up 

environmental  label  schemes  i.e.  France,  the  United  Kingdom,  the 

Netherlands and  Denmark. 

10. The  Commission's  view  is that  a plethora  of  national  award  schemes  for 

Eco-label s would  run  the  risk  of  fragmenting  the  Single  Market  and  of 

creating  distortion  to competition  in  the Community.  Furthermore,  the 

setting  up  of  national  schemes  as  the  Single  Market  nears  completion 

would  threaten  the  integration  process  of  both  economic  and  consumer 

policy. 

(4) OJ  No C 190, 20.7.1987. 

-  4 -

I I. SITUATION  IN THE MEMBER  STATES OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

Federal  Republic of Germany 

The  Federal  Republic  of  Germany  was  the  first  country  to  introduce  an 

official  award  system  for  an  Eco-label  and  they  still  remain  the only 

country  in the Community  to have done so. 

The  interest  in the Blue Angel  among  manufacturers  developed  slowly  in 

the first  years of  the existence of  the symbol  so that  after  3 years  in 

operation  only  about  100 products were  carrying  the symbol  and  after  6 

years  there  were  500  products.  More  recently  industrial  interest  has 

grown  along  with  the  growing  environmental  awareness  of  German 

consumers.  In  July  1989,  the  number  of  products  carrying  the  Blue 

Angel  had  risen  to  3100  covering  57  product  groups.  A  great  majority 

of  the products bearing  the  label  are manufactured  by German companies. 

Only  some  10%  of  the  applications  have  been  made  by  non-German 

companies despite  the  lack of  restrictions  for  foreign companies. 

Denmark 

In the  spring  of  1989, a revised  act of  law on  chemical  substances  and 

products  was  passed  by  the  Danish  Parliament.  A  new  section  of  this 

act  authorized  the  Minister  of  Environment  to  implement  a  legal 

environmental  label  concerning  the  sale  of  chemical  substances  and 

products  and  articles  containing  or  liberating  chemical  substances  and 

products. 

Under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the  Minister  of  Environment  may 

establish  rules  for obtaining  the right  to use  the  label, the design of 

the  label, and whom  the Minister  requires  to administer  the scheme. 

In  addition  to  this  revision  of  the  act  on  chemical  substances  and 

products,  the act on  the Environment  is being  revised, and  the  revised 

edition  is expected  to contain a section on an environmental  label. 

- 5 

The  Danish  initiative  is strongly  linked  to  the  recent  introduction of 

environmental  label  schemes  in  other  Scandinavian  countries,  and 

particularly  through  the cooperation within  the Nordic Council. 

France 

The  French  Council  of  Ministers  decided  on  4 January  1989  to develop a 

policy  towards  the  promotion  of  products  which  are  as  environmentally 

friendly  as  possible.  A  study  group  was  set  up  to  examine  -  in 

consultations  with  other  groups  concerned  -  the  orientations  to  be 

followed,  in particular  encouragement  through  the  "Eco-Product-Award", 

the  setting  up  of  a  label  scheme  and  fiscal  measures.  It  has  been 

underlined  in  the  Interim  Report  issued  by  the  Group  on  27  December 

1989  that  all  activities  undertaken  at  Community  level  in  this  field 

should  be  taken  into  account.  At  the  same  time,  all  conclusions 

resulting  from  the  preliminary  study  carried  out  in  France  should  be 

presented  to the Community  partners. 

Pursuant  to Article  145 of  the Regulation of  the National  Assembly,  the 

"Commission  de  la Production et  des  Echanges" presented  a  report  on an 

Eco-label  in May  1990  to  the  National  Assembly.  This  report  comes  to 

the  conclusion  that  an  Eco-label  in  France  should  be  based  on  the 

existing  certification  procedure  in  creating  a  NF  mark  for  eco-

products.  This  mark  or  label  should  be  operational  as  soon  as 

possible.  It  would  be  compatible  with  the  EC-Council  Resolution  of 

21 December  1989  recommending  mutual  recognition  of  agreements  in  the 

field of  testing  and certification. 

Ireland 

The  Irish Government  is currently  preparing  a Bill  on  the  "Environment 

Protection Agency"  including  provisions  for  a national  Eco-label  system 

which might  be  integrated  into a Community  scheme. 

- 6 -

The Netherlands 

The  Dutch  Ministries  of  Housing,  Physical  Planning  and  Environmental 

Protection  and  Economic  Affairs  have  examined  the  feasibility  of 

introducing  an  Eco-mark  in  the  Netherlands.  The  initiative  was  taken 

in  the  light  of  the  Dutch  "National  Environmental  Policy  Plan"  of  May 

1989 which  introduced  consumer  information on product  standards as part 

of  environmental  policy  as well  as the possibility of  creating  an eco-

mark. 

The United Kingdom 

The  UK  Government  has  carried  out  a  consultation  exercise  on  an  eco-

label  on  the  basis  of  a  discussion  paper  issued  in  August  1989.  The 

consultation  has  shown  "that  there  is  overwhelming  support  for  an 

official  Eco-label  scheme operating on a European Community-wide basis" 

as  stated  in  a  Press  Release  issued  on  9  January  1990  by  the  UK 

Department  of  the  Environment.  A  small  advisory  group  composed  of 

individuals  with  experience  and  knowledge  relevant  to  the  subject  is 

currently  working  on  defining  details  of  the  scheme  and  on  the 

selection of product  categories  for priority  consideration. 

II I.COMMENTS ON THIS PROPOSAL  FOR A REGULATION 

A)  GENERAL 

1.  The  primary objectives of  the award  scheme  for  an  Eco-label  covered  by 

this  Regulation  are  to  encourage  undertakings  to  produce  products 

which  are  as  environmentally  friendly  as  possible  and  to  provide 

consumers  with  better  information  on  the  environmental  performance  of 

products  which  they  buy  and  use.  The  award  of  an  Eco-label  to  a 

product will  be a clear  signal  to consumers that  the product  is of  high 

environmental  quality.  Products  bearing  the  label  are  therefore 

expected  to  be  preferred  by  consumers, and  manufacturers  will  respond 

to  the  resultant  demand.  The  Regulation  therefore  puts  in  place  a 

market mechanism  for achieving  higher  environmental  quality. 

- 7 

2.  The creation of  the single market  means  that  goods will  be  increasingly 

traded  between  Member  States  and  it  is  logical  that  a  Community-wide 

award  scheme  for  an  Eco-label  should  be  put  in  place  to  avoid  the 

confusion  associated  with  the  development  of  a  plethora  of  national 

schemes.  The  Regulation  therefore  sets  up  a  Community  scheme  which 

will  ensure  that  uniformly  high  levels of environmental  performance  are 

achieved  by  products  bearing  the  Eco-label.  The  scheme  is  voluntary 

and  transparent,  and  designed  to  be  as  simple  as  possible  whilst 

achieving  a high  level of  credibility. 

3.  The  label  will  be awarded only  to those products which meet  the general 

and  specific  criteria  established  for  a  product  category,  in  other 

words  products  which  serve  similar  purposes  and  which  have  equivalence 

of  use.  In  establishing  these  criteria,  the  European  Environment 

Agency  will  carry  out  preparatory  work  in consultation  with  specialist 

scientific  and  technical  organisations. 

4.  Member  States must  play a major  role  in the setting  up and operation of 

the  scheme  and  this  is  provided  for  in  the  Regulation  through  the 

establishment  by  Member  States  of  Competent  Bodies  which  will  be 

responsible  for  proposing  product  groups  for  inclusion  in  the  scheme, 

for  assessing  individual  applications  for  a  label  and  for  concluding 

contracts with  successful  applicants. 

5.  The  regulation  provides  for  the  setting  up  of  a  Jury  which,  on  the 

basis  of  recommendations  of  the  national  bodies,  shall  decide  on  the 

award of  the  label  to  individual  products. 

The  decisions  of  the  Jury  are  considered  approved  by  the  Commission  if 

the Commission  does not  raise any objection. 

6.  In addition  it  is recognised  that  a  scheme  for  awarding  the  Eco-label 

which  is  based  on  voluntary  application  will  benefit  from  the 

participation  in  the  Jury  of  all  interested  groups,  i-e-  industry, 

retailers, 

consumer 

organisations, 

environmentalists, 

workers 

organisations  and  media,  and  a  fair  balance  in  the  composition  of  the 

Jury  between  these various groups should  be sought. 

- 8 -

B) LEGAL BASIS OF THE PROPOSAL 

1.  As mentioned  above, products subject  to mass consumption can  contribute 

to  important  environmental  degradations  that  might  occur  at  all  phases 

of  the  life  cycle  of  the  products.  The  introduction  of  the  Eco-label 

as  a  mearrs of  changing  the  conception  of  products,  taking  fully  into 

account  the objectives of  the scheme, aims at preventing and minimizing 

their  environmental 

impact  during 

the  manufacturing  process, 

consumption and use as well  as during disposal  after use. 

2.  Existing  or  future  independent  Eco-label  schemes  for  'ecological' 

products might  continue to exist.  However, care must  be  taken  to avoid 

confusion among  these different schemes. 

3.  In  view  of  the  expected  improvements  in  environmental  performance  of 

products  subject  to  mass  consumption  through  the  market  oriented 

instrument  and  its  impact  at source, the  legal  basis  for  the Regulation 

should  be Article  130S of  the Treaty. 

4.  There  are  important  reasons why  this Regulation  is proposed  instead of 

a  Directive.  Firstly,  a  Regulation  will  be  implemented  more  quickly 

which  will  enable  a Community-wide  Eco-label  scheme  to  be  established 

at  the  earliest  opportunity.  Secondly,  a  Regulation  will  be 

implemented  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  in  all  Member 

States  without  any  delay  or  difference  resulting  from  transposition 

into nat ional  law. 

C)  COMMENTS ON  INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES OF THE PROPOSED REGULATION 

Article 1 

1.  Article  1  describes  the  objectives  of  this  Regulation.  As  already 

covered  in  A.1  above,  these  are  to  encourage  business  to  produce 

products  which  are  as  environmentally  friendly  as  possible  and  to 

provide  consumers  with  better  information  about  the  environmental 

performance of products. 

- 9 -

2.  A Community-wide scheme  is proposed  so that  the  integrity of  the single 

market  can  be  ensured  and  uniformly  high  levels of  protection  for  man 

and  the environment  can be achieved across the Community. 

Article 2 

This Article  excludes  certain  specific  product  groups  from  the Scheme, 

such  as  food,  drink  and  pharmaceuticals,  which  are  governed  by  other 

regulations.  The  initial  intention  is to cover  consumer  products, that 

is  products  which  consumers  in  the  private  or  public  sectors  could 

normally  have  access  to.  It  is  recognised  that  an  Eco-label  scheme 

might  also be  applied  to other  groups of  products  and  services  but  any 

extension  of  the  scope  of  the  current  proposal  would  add  to  the 

complexity  of  the  scheme  and  should  only  be  considered  at  a  later 

stage. 

The scheme does not  include the awarding of  a  label  to packaging  in its 

own  right  because of  the  potential  confusion  between  the environmental 

performance  of  the packaging  and  that of  the  product  itself.  However, 

it  is  envisaged  that  the  packaging  of  a  product  will  be  one  of  the 

factors  taken 

into  account  when  . evaluating  the  environmental 

performance of  the product  as a whole. 

Article  3 

1.  Article  3  makes  clear  that  the  terms  "substance"  and  "preparation", 

have specific meanings as defined  in the Directive 67/548/EEC. 

2.  The Article also defines the term  "product  group"  in the context of  the 

Eco-label.  A  product  group  needs  to  be  carefully  defined  so  that 

products within  the  same  group  are  seen  by  the  consumer  as  being  true 

alternates.  Care  must  also  be  taken  when  defining  products  within  a 

group  to ensure  that  the operation  of  the  scheme  does  not  lead  to  any 

undue distortions of  the market place. 

-  10 -

3.  The  establishment  of  specific  criteria  will  include  consideration  of 

the  phases  of  the  life  cycle  of  products,  i.e.  manufacturing, 

distribution, consumption and use as well  as disposal  after  use, which 

is the definition of  the  "cradle-to-grave" approach. 

Article  4 

There  are  a  number  of  Community  provisions  relating  to  the 

classification,  packaging  and  labelling  of  products,  in  particular 

dangerous  substances  and  preparations, and  this Article  makes  it clear 

that  this  Regulation  has  no  effect  on  the  application  of  these  other 

provisions. 

Article 5 

1.  Article  5  summarises  some of  the key  points  about  the  definition of  a 

product  group  and  points  to  the  procedures  for  establishing  a  new 

group. 

2.  Formal  proposals  for  new  product  groups  should  be  made  through  the 

Competent  Bodies  in  the  Member  States  but  it  is  important  that  any 

individual, group  or  organisation  in a Member  State  should  be  able  to 

suggest  new  groups  to  the  relevant  Competent  Body.  This  will  help  to 

contribute to the openess of  the scheme. 

3.  In  each  case,  the  Competent  Body  in  the  Member  state  in  which  the 

request  originates  shall  decide  if  it wishes  to  forward  a  request  to 

the  Commission  for  the  adoption  of  a  product  category  through  the 

Advisory  Committee  procedure.  The  request  must  be  accompanied  by  all 

information necessary  for the Committee  to examine  the request. 

-  11 -

Article 6 

1.  This  Article  underlines  the  requirement  that,  regardless  of  the 

environmental  qualities  of  a  product,  it  must  also  comply  with  all 

applicable  health and safety standards  if  it  is to qualify  for a  label. 

2.  It  is also  clear  that  products  which  are  manufactured  using  processes 

which  do  not  conform  to  existing  Community  environmental  legislation 

should  not  be awarded  a label. 

Article  7 

Article  7 outlines  the approach  to establishing  specific  environmental 

criteria  for  a  product  group.  It  is clear  that  the  Eco-label  scheme 

must  consider  the  environmental  performance  of  a  product  during  all 

stages of  its production, use and disposal.  Anything  less would  not be 

credible.  When  a  product  group  has  been  chosen  a  series  of 

environmental  criteria  need  to  be  established  for  that  product  group 

against  which  individual  products  can  be  assessed.  All  the  potential 

environmental  impacts  at  different  stages  of  a  normal  product's  life 

cycle are  illustrated  in the form of  the matrix  shown  in Annex  I. 

This  matrix  therefore  forms  a  guide  when  establishing  criteria  for  a 

product  group.  Judgements  need  to  be  taken  on  the  main  individual 

environmental  impacts  for  which  levels  of  performance  need  to  be  set 

and  these  must  be  high  enough  to ensure  a  high  level  of  environmental 

protection.  Taken  together  the  chosen  standards  form  the  agreed 

performance  criteria  for  the product group. 

In  establishing  criteria,  the  Commission  will  address  itself  to  the 

European  Environment  Agency  which,  in accordance  with  the  tasks  which 

have  been  conferred  on  it by  the  Council  regulation  (EEC) 1210/90, in 

particular  in  Article  20^5),  will  carry  out  necessary  preparatory 

work. 

(5) OJ No L 120, 11.5.1990. 

- 12 -

4.  In  setting  the  criteria  recognition  must  also  be  taken  of  the 

feasibility  of  business  meeting  the  criteria.  The  scheme  is  voluntary 

and  it  must  therefore  make  commercial  sense  for  at  least  some 

businesses  to make  the necessary  design  and/or  process  changes  required 

before  the  firm  has a realistic prospect  of  being  awarded  a  label. 

5.  A  further  consideration  is  that  products  bearing  the  label  must  be 

visible  and  available  to  the  consumer  otherwise  the  scheme  will  not  be 

effective  as  a  market  mechanism.  This  is  a  complex  issue  since  the 

market  penetration  of  products  bearing  the  label  will  depend  on  many 

factors  other  than  the  performance  criteria  which  are  chosen. 

Nevertheless,  when  setting  criteria,  consideration  will  need  to  be 

given  to this  issue. 

6.  Applicants  for  a  label  need  to  have  the  confidence  that,  if  granted, 

the  label  can  be  used  for  a  known  period  of  time.  The  criteria  for  a 

particular  product  group will  therefore  be set  for  a  fixed  period  which 

may  be extended.  It  is expected  that  the normal  period  of  validity  for 

criteria  will  be  3  years  but  this  may  be  varied.  For  instance,  where 

the  technology  associated  with  a product  is changing  rapidly  it may  be 

desirable  to  shorten  the  period  of  validity.  Alternatively,  it may  be 

appropriate  to  establish  criteria  which  require  an  improvement  in 

product  performance  over  fixed  periods  of  time.  It will  clearly  be  in 

the  applicant's  interests  to  apply  for  a  label  as  soon  as  possible 

after  the  criteria  are  published  since  this  will  maximise  the  time 

during which  the applicant  can use  the  label. 

Article  8 

Article  8  draws  attention  to  the  procedure  for  adopting  specific 

criteria  as defined  in Article  9. 

-  13 -

Article 9 

1.  Article  9  describes  the  operation  of  the  Advisory  Committee  which 

provides  advice  on  the  measures  prepared  by  the  Commission.  These 

measures  include  the  establishment  of  new  product  categories  and  the 

definition  of  criteria  referred  to  in Articles  6  and  7.  In  preparing 

these measures, the Commission will  be assisted  by  independent  experts 

on  the  individual  product groups. 

2.  The  Advisory  Committee  is established  in compliance  with  Article  2 of 

the Council  decision 87/373/EEC. 

Article  10 

1.  This  Article  describes  the  Eco-label  and  summarises  some  of  the  key 

points covering  the award of  the  label  and  its use.  It  is an objective 

of  the  scheme  that  the  label  should  achieve  a  high  level  of  public 

recognition  in the Community  and signify  an official  endorsement  of  the 

environmental  performance  of  the products  to which  it  is awarded.  The 

award  of  a  label  can be expected  to have considerable  commercial  value 

and so business will  be encouraged  to design and produce products which 

will  be  able  to qualify  for  the  label.  The  label  represents  a market 

mechanism  for  informing  consumer  choice and achieving  an  improvement  in 

the  quality  of  the environment  by encouraging  manufacturers  to develop 

products with  an  improved environmental  performance. 

2.  Applications for  the use of  the  label must  be made  to Competent Bodies, 

appointed  by  the  Member  States,  who  are  responsible  for  evaluating 

applications  from  businesses.  The  applications  must  contain  all  the 

necessary  information required  to compare  the environmental  performance 

of  the  product  whith  the  agreed  criteria  for  the  product  group.  The 

procedure  for awarding  a  label  is covered  in Articles  12, 13 and 14. 

3.  When  a  label  is awarded  to an  individual  product  it provides  consumers 

with  the  information  that  it  represents  a  product  of  the  highest 

environmental  quality.  At  the  same  time  the  consumer  wishes  to  know 

the reason why  the product  is  less harmful  to the environment.  That  is 

why  the  principle  reasons  for  awarding  the  label  will  be  stated  near 

the  label. 

14 -

4.  The  criteria  applicable  to  a  product  category  are  adopted  at  the 

Community  level  via  the  Advisory  Committee  procedure  and  remain  valid 

for  a fixed period  dependent  on  the product  category.  A  label  may  only 

be  awarded  for  a  period  during  which  the  criteria  applicable  to  the 

product  group  are valid. 

5.  It  is  clearly  Important  that  the  use  of  the  Eco-label  should  be 

strictly  controlled  and  this  is  the  responsibility  of  the  Competent 

Body  in the  relevant  Member  State. 

6.  The  label  must  also  not  be  used  in  a  way  which  might  mislead  the 

consumer. 

Article  11 

This  Article  provides  for  the  establishment  by  Member  States  of  the 

Competent  Bodies  which  will  be  responsible  for  handling  applications 

for  Eco-label s and  for  concluding  contracts  for  the  use of  labels  once 

the  necessary  procedures  have  been  followed.  The  Member  State  may 

appoint  an  existing  organisation  as  the  Competent  Body  or  may  decide 

that  a new  body  needs  to be established. 

Article  12 

1.  Article  12  describes  the  process  of  awarding  a  label  where  a  product 

group  has already  been  agreed  along with  the associated  criteria. 

2.  Manufacturers  or  importers may  only  make  an  application  for  a  label  to 

the  Competent  Body  of  the  Member  State  in  which  the  product  is 

manufactured  or  into  which  it  is  imported  into  the  Community.  The 

applicant  must  provide  the  Competent  Body  with  all  the  information 

required  to  assess  the  environmental  performance  of  the  product.  The 

Competent  Body  is  then  responsible  for  comparing  the  environmental 

performance  of  the product  with  the agreed  criteria  for  the  appropriate 

product  group. The Competent  Body  can  also ask  the applicant  to  provide 

-  15 -

samples of  the  product  or  its components  for  independent  testing. This 

may  be  important  where  the  Competent  Body  has  doubts  about  a  claim 

being made by an applicant. 

3.  The  results of  all  product  evaluations  should  be  sent  to  the  Jury  for 

decision. 

4.  An undertaking  may wish  to withdraw  an  application  for  a  label  or  stop 

using  an  existing  label.  In  these  cases  the  relevant  Competent  Body 

should  be notified of  the reasons for such  action. 

Article  13 

1.  Article  13 describes  the functioning of  the Jury which, on  the basis of 

proposals  submitted  by  the  Competent  Bodies,  awards  the  label  to 

individual  products  which  best  meet  the  requirements.  The  Jury  is 

nominated  by  the Council.  The  composition  of  the  Jury  should  ensure a 

fair  balance  between  the  different  interest  groups,  i.e.  industry, 

retailers, 

consumer 

organisations, 

environmentalists, 

workers 

organisations and  the media. 

2.  The  Jury will  establish  its own rules of procedure. 

3.  The  Jury  communicates  its decisions  to  the  Commission  which  may  raise 

objections within a period of  two months  if  it  identifies a clear  error 

of  judgement or  in case of a major  violation of procedures. 

In addition an appeal  procedure  is provided  for  in this Article. 

-  16 -

Article  14 

This  article  describes  the  tasks  of  the  European  Environment  Agency  which 

fall  into  two  main  categories.  It  operates  firstly  in  carrying  out 

preparatory  work  in  establishing  specific  criteria  to  be  adopted  through 

the  Advisory  Committee  procedure.  Then,  in  conjunction  with  the 

preparatory  work,  the  Agency  recommends  the  form  and  scope  of  information 

necessary  to  evaluate  individual  applications.  In  this  context  it  also 

assists  the  Jury  in  the  execution  of  its  tasks  in  awarding  a  label  to 

individual  products. 

Article 15 

1.  Article  15 provides  for  the Competent  Body  to draw up contracts  for  the 

use of  the Eco-label.  The contract will  cover  the conditions of use of 

the  label  including  a specification  of  the  period  for  which  the  label 

can be used. 

2.  It  is  intended  that  the  Eco-label  scheme  will  be  self-financing  and 

this will  be achieved  through  the  levying of  fees for  the assessment of 

product  applications  and  for  the  use  of  the  label.  Fees  will  be 

applied uniformly  throughout  the Community  and will  be specified  in the 

contract.  Care  ought  to be  given  that  fees  are  fixed  at  levels  which 

do not  discourage  small  and medium  sized  enterprises  from  applying  for 

a  label. 

Article 16 

This  Article  deals  with  the  issue  of  confidentiality  of  commercial 

information.  To  evaluate  an  application  for  a  label  all  information, 

confidential  or  not, which  is  necessary  to  evaluate  the  proposal  may 

need  to  be  made  available  to  the  Competent  Bodies,  the  Environment 

Agency  and  Jury.  Outside  these  bodies  confidentiality  of  information 

can  be  maintained  subject  to  a  full  Justification  being  given  and  to 

agreement  by  the relevant  Competent  Body. 

- 17 -

2.  An  application  for  a  label  may  be  withdrawn  at  any  time  if  the 

applicant  feels unable  to comply with  the requests  for  information  from 

the Competent  Body. 

3.  Certain  information  will  need  to  be  made  available  in  all  cases 

following  the  award  of  a  label  namely,  the  name  of  the  product,  the 

manufacturer  or  importer  of  the  product  and  the  reasons  for  awarding 

the  label. 

4.  However,  all  persons  involved  in  the  assessment  process  should  not 

disclose  any  information  to which  they  have  gained  access  through  the 

proceedings. 

Article  17 

1.  Information  about  the  chosen  product  groups  and  associated  criteria 

needs  to  be  made  widely  available  and  up-dated  regularly.  Article  17 

provides  for  this  information  to be published  in the Official  Journal. 

Similarly,  details  of  the  products  awarded  labels  will  also  be 

published  in the Official  Journal. 

2.  It  is also  important  that  the  identity  of  the  Competent  Bodies  in the 

Member  States  is well  known and  their  names will  therefore be published 

in the Official  Journal. 

Article  18 

This  Article  covers  the  steps  which  Member  States  need  to  take  to 

publicise  the  Eco-label  scheme.  The  scheme  must  be  made  effective 

throughout  the Community  from  the date of  the  launch.  This means  that 

before  the  launch  Member  States  will  need  to provide  business  and  the 

consumer  with  information  about  the  objectives  of  the  scheme  and  the 

way  that  it  will  operate.  Business  in  particular  will  need  time  to 

assess  the  implications  of  the  scheme  and  to  prepare  proposals  for 

products  to be  included  in the scheme. 

-  18 -

2.  Once  the  scheme  has  been  launched  Member  States  will  also  need  to 

provide  consumers  with  information  about  the product  groups which  have 

been  selected,  the  criteria  for  the  product  groups  and  the  products 

which  have been awarded  a label. 

Article 19 

1.  It can  also  be  expected  that  businesses  will  include  a mention  of  the 

award  of  a  label  in their  product  advertising.  Reference  to  the award 

of  a  label  will  need  to be  closely  controlled  to  avoid  misleading  the 

consumer. 

2.  In particular,  any  reference  to  the  Eco-label  in promotional  material 

must  only  be  made  once  a  label  has  been  awarded  and  then  only  in the 

context of  the specific product  for which  the  label  has been awarded. 

Article  20 

This  Article  highlights  the  fact  that  Member  States  need  to  put  in  place 

legal  or  other  measures,  if  they  do  not  already  exist,  to  prevent 

infringement  of  the  provisions  of  the  Regulation  covering  the  use  of  the 

Eco-label.  The Member  States will  inform  the Commission of  these measures. 

Article 21 

Article  21  covers  the  basic  principle  that  the Award  Scheme  for  Eco-Label 

must  not  be used  as a way of  restricting  the trade or marketing  of  products 

within  the Community. 

-  19 -

Article 22 

It  is recognised  that  after  a period of  time  it may  be necessary  to modify 

the  regulation  in  order  to  improve  the  efficiency  of  the  system  for 

awarding  the  Eco-label.  Modifications  may  prove  to  be  necessary  in  a 

number  of  areas  and  this  Article  anticipates  that  the  Commission  will 

possibly  propose  provisions  to  this effect  on  the  basis  of  a  review  which 

it will  carry  out  at  the  latest  five  years  after  the  entry  into  force of 

the regulation.  The provisions will  concern  in particular  the  continuation 

of  the  co-existence  of  national  schemes  with  the Community  scheme  as well 

as  the  field  of  application.  The Commission  in accordance  with  Article  20 

of  the Council  Regulation  1210/90 may  equally  propose  to  transfer  the  task 

of determining  the specific criteria  to the European  Environmental  Agency. 

Article 23 

Member  States will  need  time to  implement certain aspects of  the Regulation 

and  it  is  proposed  that  it  should  come  into  force  12  months  after  its 

publicat ion. 

-  20  T 

Proposal  for a 

COUNCIL REGULATION  CEEC) 

on a Community award scheme for an Eco-label 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Economic  Community, 

and  in particular  Article  130s thereof, 

Having regard  to the proposal  from  the Commission, 

Having  regard  to the opinion of  the European Parliament, 

Having  regard  to the Opinion of  the Economic and Social  Committee, 

Whereas  the  objectives  and  principles  of  the  Community's  environment 

policy,  as  set  out  in  the  European  Community  Action  Programmes  on  the 

Environment^),  aim,  in particular,  at  preventing,  reducing  and  as  far  as 

possible  eliminating  pollution, particularly  at  source, and  ensuring  sound 

management  of  raw  materials  resources, on  the  basis  also  of  the  'polluter 

pays'  principle; whereas  the Fourth  European  Community  Action  Programme  on 

the  Environment  (1987-1991)<2)  highlights  the  opportunity  to  develop  a 

policy  towards clean products; 

Whereas  the Council  Resolution  of  7 May  1990*3)  invited  the  Commission  to 

submit  as  soon  as  possible  a  proposal  for  a  Community-wide  Eco-labelIing 

scheme  covering  the  environmental  impact  during  the  life  cycle  of  the 

product ; 

Whereas  the European Parliament,  in  its resolution of  19 June  1987 on waste 

and  landfill  policy*4),  supported  a Community  Environmental  Label  for eco-

products; 

(1) OJ  No C 112, 20.12.1973, p. 1. 

OJ  No C 139, 13.6.1977, p. 1. 
OJ  No C 46, 17.2.1983, p. 1. 
OJ  No C 70, 18.3.1987, p. 3. 

(2) OJ  No C 328, 7.12.1987, p. 1. 
(3) OJ  No C 122, 18.5.1990, p. 2. 
(4) 0J No C 190, 20.7.1987, p. 154. 

-  21 -

Whereas  there  is  increased  public  interest  in  information  about  products 

which  are  environmentally  less  harmful; whereas  at  least  one  Member  State 

has  already  an  award  scheme  for  such  products  and  several  other  Member 

States are considering  the setting  up of such  a scheme; 

Whereas  a  system  to  award  an  Eco-label  for  environmentally  less  harmful 

products  will  highlight  more  benign  alternatives  and  therefore  provide 

consumers  and users with guidance; 

Whereas  such guidance  can best  be achieved  by establishing uniform  criteria 

for  the award  scheme which  apply  throughout  the Community;  whereas existing 

or  future  independent  award  schemes  can  continue  to exist  for  a period  of 

five  years, and  at  the end of  this  period  the Commission  should  reexamine 

this solution  in the  light of  the experience  gained; 

Whereas  the  award  scheme  should  be based  on  voluntary  application;  whereas 

such  an  approach,  in relying  on  the market  forces, will  also  contribute  to 

research  and  development,  in particular  of  less polluting  technologies, and 

therefore  lead  to  innovation; 

Whereas  uniform  application  of  the  criteria  and  compliance  with  procedures 

should  be ensured  throughout  the  Community; 

Whereas  the  award  scheme  for  the  Eco-label  will  take  into  account  the 

interests  of  all  groups  concerned,  industry,  commerce,  consumers  and 

environmentalist,  and  therefore  should  provide  for  involvement  of  these 

groups  in  the  award  procedure  to  individual  products  which  conform  to  the 

established  criteria; 

Whereas  this  label  should  complement  other  existing  or  future  Community 

labelling  systems  in  particular  those  giving  information  on  energy 

consumpt ion; 

-  22 -

Whereas  the  European  Environment  Agency  should  be  made  responsible  for 

certain  tasks  in  connection  with  the  preparation  of  environmental  labels 

and criteria  for  the award of such  labels to products, technologies, goods, 

services and programmes which  preserve natural  resources, 

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION : 

-  23 

CHAPTER  I : OBJECTIVES AND FIELD OF APPLICATION 

Article 1 

Objectives 

1.  This  Regulation  establishes  a  Community  award  scheme  for  an  Eco-label 

with  a  view  to  promoting  products  which  are  environmentally  less 

harmful,  and  therefore  have  an  overall 

environmental 

impact 

significantly  less  than  that  of  other  products  in  the  same  product 

group. 

2.  The award  scheme  is designed  to : 

encourage manufacturers  to design and produce  products which  have a 

reduced  environmental  impact  during  manufacturing,  distribution, 

consumption and use as well  as during disposal  after use; 

provide  consumers  with  better  information  on  the  environmental 

performance of products. 

These  environmentally  more  benign  product  alternatives  should  not 

compromise  product  or  workers'  safety  nor  significantly  affect  the 

fitness for use of  the product. 

3.  The  reduction  of  environmental  impact  will  be  achieved  through  the 

minimisât ion of : 

use of  natural  resources and energy  resources; 

emissions  into air, water  and  to soil; 

generation of waste and noise; 

and  through  the  maximisation  of  product  life  and,  where  applicable, 

through  the  use  of  clean  technologies  to  ensure  a  high  level  of 

environmental  protection. 

-  24 -

Article 2 

Field of applIcation 

This Regulation shall  not apply  to food, drink or pharmaceuticals 

Article 3 

Definitions 

For  the purpose of  this Regulation: 

(a) 'substance' means  chemical  elements  and  their  compounds  as  defined  in 

Article 2 of Council  Directive 67/548/EEC(5> ; 

(b) 'preparation'  means  mixtures  or  solutions  as  defined  in Article  2 of 

Council  Directive 88/379/EEC<6>; 

. 

(c)  'product  group' means  products  which  serve  similar  purposes  and  which 

have equivalence of use. 

(d) 'cradle  to grave' means the  life cycle of a product  from manufacturing, 

distribution, consumption and use to disposal  after use. 

Article 4 

Other Community  provisions 

The  provisions  laid  down  in  this  Regulation  shall  apply  without  prejudice 

either  to  other  Community  provisions  relating  to  the  classification, 

packaging  and  labelling  of  products  or  to  the  provisions  laid  down  in 

Council  Directive  83/189/EEC<7). 

(5) OJ No 196, 16.8.1967, p. 1. 
(6) OJ No L 187, 16.7.1988, p. 14. 
(7) OJ No L 109, 26.4.1983, p. 8. 

-  25 -

CHAPTER  11  : ESTABLISHMENT OF PRODUCT GROUPS AND CRITERIA 

Article 5 

Product  groups 

1.  Product  groups  shall  be  established  in  accordance  with  the  procedure 

laid down  in Article 9. 

2.  Each product  group shall  be defined  in such a way  as to ensure  that all 

competing  products  which  serve  similar  purposes  and  which  have 

equivalence of use are  included  in the same group. 

3.  General  and  specific  criteria  for  each  product  group  shall  conform  to 

the requirements of Articles 6 and 7. 

4.  Requests  for  the  establishment  of  a  new  product  group  shall  be 

addressed  to  the  Competent  Bodies  referred  to  in  Article  11.  The 

Competent  Body  shall  decide  if  it wishes  to  request  the  Commission  to 

submit  a proposal  to the advisory committee  referred  to  in Article  9. 

Article 6 

General  principles 

1.  The Eco-label  shall only  be awarded  to products which  do not  contravene 

Community  health, safety and environment  requirements. 

2.  The  Eco-label  shall  not  be  awarded  to  substances  and  preparations 

classified  as  dangerous  in  accordance  with  Directive  67/548/EEC.  Nor 

shall  the  Eco-label  be  awarded  to  products  containing  a  substance  or 

preparation  classified  as  dangerous  in  accordance  with  the  said 

Directive and  likely to harm man and/or  the environment. 

3.  The  Eco-label  shall  only  be  conferred  on  products  manufactured  by  a 

process  which  do  not  contravene  Community  environmental  legislation 

and  is unlikely  to harm significantly man and/or  the environment. 

-  26 -

4.  The  Eco-label  shall  be  awarded  to  products  which  meet  the  objectives 

set  out  in  Article  1  and  represent  a  "state  of  the  art"  approach  in 

contributing  to an  improvement  in the quality of  the environment. 

Article  7 

Elaboration of specific criteria 

Specific  environmental  criteria  for  each  product  group  shall  be 

established  using  a  "cradle  to grave" approach  including  consideration 

of  the  objectives  set  out  in  Article  1.  The  criteria  shall  be 

established  by  reference  to  the  matrix  format  shown  in Annex  I, shall 

be  based  on  the  use  of  clean  technologies  where  applicable  and  shall 

ensure a high  level of environmental  protection. 

The  European  Environment  Agency,  hereinafter  referred  to  as  the 

"Agency",  shall  undertake,  at  the  request  of  the  Commission, 

preparatory  work of  a scientific  and  technical  nature  necessary  for  the 

establishment of  criteria. 

Article  8 

Adoption of  the specific criteria 

Without  prejudice  to  Article  22,  the  specific  environmental  criteria 

referred  to  in  Article  7  for  each  product  group  shall  be  adopted  by  the 

Commission  in accordance with  the procedure  laid down  in Article  9. 

Article  9 

Advisory  Committee 

1.  The  Commission  shall  be  assisted  by  a  committee  of  an  advisory  nature 

composed  of  the representatives of  the Member  States and  chaired  by  the 

representative of  the Commission. 

-  27 -

The  representative  of  the  Commission  shall  submit  to  the  committee  a 

draft  of  the  measures  to  be  taken.  The  committee  shall  deliver  its 

opinion  on  the  draft, within  a  time  limit  which  the  chairman  may  lay 

down  according  to  the urgency  of  the matter,  if  necessary  by  taking  a 

vote. 

The opinion  shall  be  recorded  in the minutes;  in addition, each Member 

State shall  have  the  right  to ask  to have  its position  recorded  in the 

minutes. 

The  Commission  shall  take  the  utmost  account  of  the  opinion  delivered 

by  the committee.  It shall  inform  the committee of  the manner  in which 

its opinion  has been  taken  into account. 

2.  The  Commission  may  consult  the  committee  on  any  matter  related  to  the 

operation of  the award  scheme  for an Eco-label. 

CHAPTER  I I 1 : AWARD OF AN ECO-LABEL TO  INDIVIDUAL  PRODUCTS 

Article 10 

The Eco-label 

1.  To  achieve  the  objectives  set  out  in  Article  1,  the  Eco-label, 

illustrated  in Annex  II,  shall  be  awarded  to  products  best  fulfilling 

the requirements of Articles 6 and 7. 

2.  Applications  for  the use of  the  label  shall  be made  in accordance  with 

the procedures set out  in Article 12. 

The  decision  to  award  a  label  to  individual  products  amongst  those 

which  best  fulfill  the  criteria  referred  to  in Articles  6  and  7  shall 

be  taken by  the Jury established under Article 13. 

3.  The  main  reasons  for  granting  the  Eco-label  shall  be  mentioned,  if 

possible,  in or  near  the  label  in code  form  and  shall  form  an  integral 

part  of  the  label.  The  code  shall  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the 

procedure set out  in Article 9. 

-  28 -

4.  The  label  shall  be awarded  for a fixed period of  time, dependent on the 

period  of  validity  of  the  criteria,  which  may  be  altered  where 

necessary  after  review. 

5.  The  Eco-label  shall  not  be  used  under  any  circumstances  before  a 

contract on  the conditions of use has been concluded with  the Competent 

Body  to which  the product  application was submitted. 

6.  The  Eco-label  shall  not  be  used  in  a  manner  likely  to  mislead  the 

consumer. 

Article 11 

Designation of Competent  Bodies 

Each Member  State  shall  designate  the body  or  bodies, hereinafter  referred 

to as the  "Competent  Body", responsible  for carrying out  the tasks detailed 

in Article 12 and  inform the Commission  thereof.  The Competent  Body shall 

be  independent  from  industrial or  commercial  interests. 

Article  12 

Requests for award of an Eco-label 

1.  Manufacturers  or  importers  may  apply  for  award  of  a  label  to  the 

Competent  Body  in the Member  State  in which  the product  is manufactured 

or  into which  the product  is  imported. 

The  Competent  Body  shall  assess  the  environmental  performance  of  the 

product  by  reference  to  the  agreed  general  principles  and  specific 

performance  criteria for  the product group. 

2.  The  Competent  Body may  also  request  that  applicants  for  a  label  submit 

all or part of  the product  for  testing. 

3.  After  the  product  assessment  the  Competent  Body  shall  decide  if  a 

request  for  the  award  of  a  label  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Jury 

provided  for  in Article 13. 

-  29 -

4.  If  an  application  for  a  label  is  rejected  the  Competent  Body  shall 

advise  the applicant of  the reasons for rejection. 

Member  States shall'provide for an appeal  procedure  in such  cases. 

5.  An undertaking may withdraw an application for a new  label, or cease to 

use an existing  label, after  notifying  the Competent  Body. 

Article  13 

Th$ Jury 

A Jury  is hereby established  for  the award of  labels to  individual  products 

amongst  those which best meet  the requirements of Articles 6 and 7. 

1.  The  Jury  shall  consist of  18 full  members, there being  for  each Member 

State  one  representative  and  one  representative  of  the  following 

interest groups : 

industry 

commerce 

consumer  organisations 

environmental  organisations 

workers organisations 

media. 

2.  An alternate member  shall  be appointed  for each  full member. 

3.  Full  members  and  alternate  members  of  the  Jury  shall  be  nominated  by 

the Council  on  the basis of : 

a proposal  from the Member  States for  the representatives of Member 

States 

a  proposal  from  the  Commission  for  the  representative  of  the 

interest groups. 

The  Council  in nominating  the members  of  the  Jury  shall  endeavour  to 

achieve  a  fair  balance  in  the  composition  of  the  Jury  between  the 

various  interest groups. 

-  30 -

4.  The  list of  the members and  the alternate members shall  be published  in 

the  Official  Journal  of  the  European  Communities  for  information 

purposes. 

5.  The term of office of  full members and alternate members shall  be three 

years.  Their  appointments shall  be renewable. 

6.  On  expiry  of  their  term  of  office,  the  full  members  and  alternate 

members  shall  remain  in  office  until  they  are  replaced  or  their 

appointments are renewed. 

7.  A member's term of office shall  end before  the expiry of  the three year 

period  with  his  resignation  or  following  a  communication  from  the 

Member  State  concerned  indicating  that  the  term  of  office  is 

terminated. 

For  the  remainder  of  the  term of office, a member  shall  be  replaced  in 

accordance with  the procedure  laid down  in paragraph  3. 

8.  The Jury shall  elect  a chairman and an alternate and adopt  its rules of 

procedure. 

9.  The Jury shall  take all decisions on  the basis of a two-thirds majority 

of  the members. 

10.  In considering  the proposals  from  the Competent  Bodies  the  Jury  shall, 

in  awarding  labels,  select  those  products  which  best  meet  the 

requirements  set out  in Articles 6 and 7. 

11.  If  the  Jury  decides  not  to  award  the  label  to  an  individual  product, 

the reasons for  the rejection shall  be stated. 

12. The Jury shall  communicate  its reasoned  decisions to the applicants and 

to  the  Commission.  The  Commission  shall  publish  them  in  the  Official 

Journal  of  the European Communities  to enable all  interested  parties to 

make their comments. 

-  31  -

The  Commission  may  of  its  own  initiative  raise  an  objection  to  such 

decisions, within  a  period  of  two months,  if  it  identifies  a  manifest 

error  of  Judgement  or  in  case  of  major  violation  of  procedures.  In 

this case  it shall  return  the matter  to the Jury  for  reconsideration. 

Furthermore, any  person  for whom  the decision of  the Jury  constitutes a 

grievance  may  within  a  period  of  30  days  from  publication  of  the 

decision  in the Official  Journal  notify  the  Commission  of  a  request  to 

revise  the decision on grounds of manifest  error  or  major  violation of 

procedures.  The Commission  shall  examine  this request  in the  framework 

of  the  appeal  procedure  laid  down  in  the  second  subparagraph.  The 

Commission  shall  return  the  case  to  the  Jury  for  reconsideration  if  it 

considers  that  the  request  should  be  accepted  and  shall  inform  the 

applicant  accordingly.  If  the  request  cannot  be  accepted  the 

Commission  shall  notify  the  applicant  of  the  decision  to  reject  the 

request. 

The  decision  of  the  Jury  shall  be  considered  approved  by  the 

Commission  if  the  latter  has  not  made  any  objection  within  the  two-

month  period. 

Article  14 

The  European  Environment  Agency 

1.  The  Agency  shall  undertake,  in  consultation  with 

appropriate 

specialized  scientific  and  technical  bodies, preparatory  work  necessary 

for  the  establishment  of  the  specific  criteria  as  laid  down  in 

Article 7(2). 

2.  The  Agency,  in  cooperation  with  the  Competent  Bodies,  shall  provide 

suggestions  on  the  format  and  scope  of  the  information  to  be  provided 

to  the  Competent  Body  by  an  applicant  as  set  out  in Article  12(1)  and 

on  the  procedures  to  be  followed  by  Competent  Bodies  when  evaluating 

and  transmitting  the  request  for  an Eco-label. 

3.  The Agency  shall  assist  the Jury  in carrying  out  its tasks. 

-  32  T 

Article 15 

Terms of use 

1.  The  Competent  Body  shall  issue  contracts  for  the  terms  of  use  of  the 

label. 

2.  The  terms and conditions of  the use for  the  label  shall  include  the fee 

to be paid  by  the applicant  for  the use of  the  label.  This  fee should 

be  set  at  a  level  to  cover  all  the  reasonable  costs  incurred  by  the 

Competent Body and the Jury. 

These  terms  of  use  shall  also  include  provisions  for  withdrawing  the 

authorisation to use the  label. 

3.  The  duration  of  the  authorisation  for  the  use  of  the  label  shall  not 

exceed  the period of validity of  the criteria for  the product group. 

CHAPTER  IV : OTHER PROVISIONS 

Article  16 

Confidentiality 

1.  If  the manufacturer  or  Importer  considers  the  information  obtained  in 

pursuance of Article  12 to be confidential, commercially  sensitive  and, 

if  released,  likely  to  cause  his  business  industrial  or  commercial 

harm,  the  applicant  for  a  label  may  indicate  what  specific  details of 

the  information should  be kept  secret  from all other  persons other  than 

the Competent  Bodies, the Members of  the Jury and  the Commission.  Full 

justification must be given  in such cases. 

2.  The  Competent  Body  receiving  the  application  shall  decide  which 

information  should  be  kept  secret  and  inform  the  applicant  for  the 

label. 

-  33 -

3.  In all  cases, the following  information shall  be made available : 

the name of  the product; 

the manufacturer or  importer of  the product; 

the  reasons  and  relevant  information  for  awarding  or  refusing  the 

label. 

4.  Competent  Bodies and the Jury members shall  be required  not  to disclose 

information  to which  they have gained  access through  the proceedings. 

Article  17 

Pub 11cat ion 

1.  The  Commission  shall  publish  the  product  groups  and  the  associated 

specific criteria  in the Official  Journal  of  the European Communities. 

2.  The  Commission  shall  also ensure  that  the  list  of  products  for  which 

an  Eco-label  has  been  granted  and  the  name  of  the  relevant 

manufacturers or  importers  is published. 

3.  The  Commission  shall  also publish  the names of  the Competent  Bodies  in 

the Off icial  Journal. 

Article  18 

Information 

Member  States  shall  ensure  that  consumers  and  undertakings  are  informed 

about  the  fol lowing : 

(a) the objectives of  the Community Award Scheme for an Eco-label; 

(b) product  groups which have been selected; 

(c) the general  and specific criteria for product groups; 

(d) the products which have been awarded an Eco-label; 

(c) the procedures for applying  for a  label; 

(f) the Competent  Body  in the Member  State. 

-  34 -

Article  19 

Advertising 

1.  References  to  the  Eco-label  in advertising  shall  only  be  made  once  a 

label  has been granted  and only  in relation to the specific product  for 

which  the  label  has been granted. 

2.  Any  advertising  or  labelling  which  might  lead  to  confusion  with  the 

Eco-label  shall  be prohibited. 

Article  20 

Implementation 

Member  States  shall  inform  the  Commission  on  measures  they  have  taken  to 

ensure compliance with  this Regulation. 

Article 21 

Free circulation within  the  Communities 

The  fact  that  an  Eco-label  has  been  awarded  or  refused  to  a product  shall 

not  impede, prohibit or  restrict  the marketing  of  this product. 

Article  22 

Revision 

Not  later  than  5  years  after  the  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation  the 

Commission  shall  review the scheme  in the  light of experience gained  during 

its operation, and  in particular 

whether  it  is  appropriate  that  national  systems  should  continue  to 

exist  alongside  the Community  system 

the field of  application of  the scheme as  laid down  in Article 2. 

-  35 -

The  Commission  shall,  if  necessary,  propose  modifications  to  this 

Régulât ion. 

In  its  proposals  presented  in  accordance  with  Article  20  of  Council 

Regulation  1210/90^8^  and  not  later  than  five  years  after  the  entry  into 

force of  this Regulation, the Commission  shall  propose  the  transfer  to the 

Agency  of  the  task  of  determining  the  specific  criteria  referred  to  in 

Art icle 8. 

Article  23 

Entry  into force 

This Regulation  shall  enter  into force on  1 October  1991. 

It shall  apply  from  1 October 1992. 

This Regulation  shall  be binding  in  its entirety  and directly  applicable  in 

a I I Member  States. 

Done at Brussels, 

For  the Council 

(8) OJ  No L 120, 11.5.1990, p. 1. 

- 36 -

ANNEX I 

ASSESSMENT MATRIX 

Product Ion  DlstrIbut ion  Uti1izatlon 

Disposal 

Product  1Ife cycle 
Environmental  fields 

Waste  relevance 

Sol 1 pollut ion and 
dégradât ion 

Water  contamination 

Air contamination 

Noise 

Consumption of energy 

Consumption of  natural 
resources 

For a simplified  model  the following criteria  are suggested  : 
0  almost  none, negllble pollution-, "moderate pollution-, 
••considerable  pollution 

-  37  -

ANNEX  H 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM(91) 37 final 

DOCUMENTS 

EN 

14 

Catalogue number : CB-CO-91-064-EN-C 
ISBN 92-77-69400-9 

TRTCT*. 

• - au pages: *.xi  ru..u 

per «dciiiionHi  lOrwgrx: 1.*.1TU"\TT 

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