WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1034/98 by David BOWE to the Commission. Shipment of waste to certain non-OECD countries
Date: 1998-04-06
Institutions: BOWE, European Parliament
Subjects: clothing, export of waste, waste management

C 31/12

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

5.2.1999

the Commission directly promotes the network using information technology (Europa web site, and the 100 or so
web sites devoted to EICs), the (cid:145)Euro-Info(cid:146) newsletter, and events and specialised fairs for small and medium-
sized enterprises in which the Commission participates. The Commission finally recalls that self-promotion at a
local level is one of the tasks of Euro info centres. An activity report produced by EICs is contained in the report
from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee, and the
Committee of the Regions (25 November 1997) (1).

(1) COM(97) 610 final.

(1999/C 31/014)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1034/98

by David Bowe (PSE) to the Commission

(6 April 1998)

Subject: Shipment of waste to certain non-OECD countries

With regard to the proposal for a Council regulation establishing common rules and procedures to apply to
shipments to certain non-OECD countries of certain types of waste (COM(94) 0678), there has been much
concern expressed by exporters of second-hand clothes.

(cid:145)Worn clothing and textiles(cid:146) appear under Annex II (the Green List) of the Waste Shipments Regulation 259/
93 (1), although this covers these materials only when they are considered as waste. Can the Commission define
when (cid:145)worn clothing and textiles(cid:146) constitute waste?

(1) OJ L 30, 6.2.1993, p. 1.

Answer given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission

(8 June 1998)

The qualification of items as waste has to be made in the light of the definition of waste as laid down in Article 1
a) of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste (1). On the basis of this provision waste is any
substance or object in the categories set out in Annex I which the holder discards or intends or is required to
discard. As Annex I contains a catch all entry (Q16 (cid:145)Any materials, substances or products which are not
contained in the above categories(cid:146)) the qualification of a material as waste depends on whether it is discarded or
intended or required to be discarded by the holder.

Clothes have to be considered as discarded when the holder puts them into a collection scheme for worn clothes.
Re-usable clothes which are separated from the overall mass of discarded clothes no longer qualify as waste after
having been sorted, washed and if necessary repaired. The product quality of the item can only be determined
after the completion of these operations which ensure their re-usability.

It should be noted that these criteria for the distinction between waste and product are specific to the case of worn
textiles. Accordingly, these criteria of distinction between worn clothes and second hand clothes do not
necessarily apply to other wastes.

(1) OJ L 194, 25.7.1975.

(1999/C 31/015)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1055/98

by Giacomo Santini (PPE), Claudio Azzolini (PPE)
and Umberto Scapagnini (PPE) to the Commission

(6 April 1998)

Subject: Encouraging the non-food use of agricultural products

As part of the reform of the CAP the Commission communication to the Council and European Parliament
entitled (cid:145)Development and future of the CAP(cid:146) (COM(91) 258, 22 July 1991) states that the use of agricultural
products for non-food purposes should be encouraged.