Commission Decision of 15 December 2006 establishing revised ecological criteria and the related assessment and verification requirements for the award of the Community eco-label to growing media (notified under document number C(2006) 6962) (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2006-12-15
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European standard, consumer information, eco-label, environmental standard, hydroponics

6.2.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 32/137

COMMISSION DECISION

of 15 December 2006

establishing revised ecological criteria and the related assessment and verification requirements for
the award of the Community eco-label to growing media

(notified under document number C(2006) 6962)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2007/64/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu-
nity,

been awarded the eco-label before 1 October 2006 or who
have applied for such an award before that date, so that they
have sufficient time to adapt their products to comply with
the revised criteria and requirements.

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 1980/2000 of
the
European Parliament and of the Council of 17 July 2000 on a
revised Community eco-label award scheme (1), and in particular
the second subparagraph of Article 6(1) thereof,

(7)

in this Decision are in
The measures provided for
accordance with the opinion of the Committee instituted
by Article 17 of Regulation (EC) No 1980/2000,

After consulting the European Union Eco-Labelling Board,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Whereas:

Article 1

(1)

(2)

Pursuant
to Regulation (EC) No 1980/2000, a timely
review has been carried out of the ecological criteria, as well
as of the related assessment and verification requirements,
established by Commission Decision 2001/688/EC (2) for
the award of the Community eco-label to soil improvers
and growing media.

Following that review, the product group was divided into
two separate product groups and accordingly Decision
2006/799/EC (3) on soil
improvers was adopted. That
Decision replaced Decision 2001/688/EC in so far as soil
improvers were concerned.

The product group ‘growing media’ shall comprise material other
than soils in situ, in which plants are grown.

Article 2

In order to be awarded the Community eco-label for growing
media, under Regulation (EC) No 1980/2000, a product must
fall within the product group ‘growing media’ as defined in Article
1, and must comply with the ecological criteria set out in the
Annex to this Decision.

(3) However, it is necessary to replace Decision 2001/688/EC

in so far as growing media are concerned.

Article 3

(4)

(5)

(6)

In the light of the review, it is appropriate, in order to take
account of scientific and market developments, to revise the
criteria and requirements relating to growing media, the
period of validity of which expires on 28 August 2007.

The environmental performance of the product group ‘growing
media’ shall be assessed by reference to the specific ecological
criteria set out in the Annex.

Article 4

The revised ecological criteria and requirements should be
valid for a period of four years.

For administrative purposes, the code number assigned to the
product group ‘growing media’ shall be ‘029’

It is appropriate to allow a transitional period of not more
than eighteen months for producers whose products have

Article 5

(1) OJ L 237, 21.9.2000, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 242, 12.9.2001, p. 17. Decision as amended by Decision 2005/

384/EC (OJ L 127, 12.5.2005, p. 20).

(3) OJ L 325, 24.11.2006, p. 28.

Eco-labels awarded before 1 October 2006 in respect of products
falling within the product group ‘soil improvers and growing
media’ may continue to be used until 30 April 2008.

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Official Journal of the European Union

6.2.2007

Where applications have been submitted before 1 October 2006
for award of the eco-label in respect of products falling within
the product group ‘soil improvers and growing media’, those
products may be awarded the eco-label under the conditions
applicable until 28 August 2007. In such cases, the eco-label may
be used until 30 April 2008.

Article 6

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 15 December 2006.

For the Commission

Stavros DIMAS

Member of the Commission

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ANNEX

FRAMEWORK

Testing and sampling shall where applicable be carried out in accordance with test methods developed by Technical
Committee CEN 223 ‘Soil improvers and growing media’ until relevant horizontal standards elaborated under the guidance
of CEN Task Force 151 ‘Horizontal’ become available.

Sampling shall be carried out in accordance with methodologies set out by CEN/TC 223 (WG 3) as specified and approved
by CEN in EN 12579 — Soil improvers and growing media — Sampling. Where testing or sampling is required that is not
covered by these methods and sampling techniques, the Competent Body or bodies assessing the application (hereinafter
referred to as the ‘Competent Body’) shall indicate which testing and/or sampling methods it considers acceptable.

Where appropriate, other test methods may be used if their equivalence is accepted by the Competent Body. 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 recognized 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 use of renewable materials and/or recycling of organic matter derived from the collection and/or processing of
waste material and therefore contributing to a minimization of solid waste at the final disposal (e.g. at landfill);

— minimization of environmental impact in retrieval and production of non renewable materials.

The criteria are set at levels that promote the labelling of growing media that have a lower environmental impact during the
whole life-cycle of the product.

ECOLOGICAL CRITERIA

1.

Ingredients

The following ingredients are admitted:

1.1. Organic ingredients

A product shall only be considered for the award of the eco-label if it does not contain peat and its organic matter
content is derived from the processing and/or re-use of waste (as defined in Council Directive 75/442/EEC on waste (1)
and in Annex I to the said Directive).

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with the detailed composition of the product, and a declaration of compliance with
the above requirement.

(1) OJ L 194, 25.7.1975, p. 39.

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1.2. Sludges

Products shall not contain sewage sludge. (Non-sewage) sludges are allowed only if they meet the following criteria:

Sludges are identified as one of the following wastes according the European list of wastes (as defined by Commission
Decision 2001/118/EC amending Decision 2000/532/EC (2):

02 03 05

02 04 03

02 05 02

02 06 03

02 07 05

sludges from on-site effluent treatment in the preparation and processing of
fruit, vegetables, cereals, edible oils, cocoa, coffee, tea and tobacco; conserve
production; yeast and yeast extract production, molasses preparation and
fermentation

sludges from on-site effluent treatment in sugar processing.

sludges from on-site effluent treatment in the dairy products industry.

sludges from on-site effluent treatment in the baking and confectionery industry.

sludges from on-site effluent treatment in the production of alcoholic and non-
alcoholic beverages (except coffee, tea and cocoa).

Sludges are single-source separated, meaning that there has been no mixing with effluents or sludges outside the
specific production process.

Maximum concentrations of heavy metals in the waste before treatment (mg/kg dry weight) meet the requirements of
criterion 2.

Sludges shall meet all other Eco-label criteria specified in this Annex, in which case they are considered to be
sufficiently stabilized and sanitized.

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with the detailed composition of the product, and a declaration of compliance with
each of the above requirements.

1.3. Minerals

Minerals shall not be extracted from:

— notified sites of Community importance pursuant to Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of

natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (3);

— Natura 2000 network areas, composed of the special protection areas pursuant to Council Directive 79/409/
EEC on the conservation of wild birds (4), and those areas under Directive 92/43/EEC together, or equivalent
areas located outside the European Community that fall under the corresponding provisions of the United
Nations' Convention on Biological Diversity.

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with a declaration of compliance with this requirement issued by the appropriate
authorities.

(2) OJ L 47, 16.2.2001, p. 1.
(3) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7.
(4) OJ L 59, 25.4.1979, p. 1.

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2.

Limitation of hazardous substances

In the organic growing medium constituents, the content of the following elements shall be lower than the values
shown below, measured in terms of dry weight:

Element

mg/kg (dry weight)

Zn

Cu

Ni

Cd

Pb

Hg

Cr

Mo (*)

Se (*)

As (*)

F (*)

300

100

50

1

100

1

100

2

1,5

10

200

(*) Data relating to the presence of these elements are needed only for products containing material from industrial processes

Note: These limit values are valid unless national legislation is more strict

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with the relevant test reports, and a declaration of compliance with this
requirement.

3.

Product Performance

Products shall not adversely affect plant emergence or subsequent growth.

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with the relevant test reports, and a declaration of compliance with this
requirement.

4.

Health and safety

Products shall not exceed the maximum levels of primary pathogens as follows:

— Salmonella: absent in 25 g;

— Helminth Ova: absent in 1,5 g. (5)

— E. Coli: <1 000 MPN/g (MPN: most probable number) (6)

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with the relevant test reports and documentation, and a declaration of compliance
with these requirements.

(5)
(6)

For those products whose organic content is not exclusively derived from green, garden or park waste
For those products whose organic content is exclusively derived from green, garden or park waste

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5.

Viable seeds/propagules

In the final product, the content of weed seeds and the vegetative reproductive parts of aggressive weeds shall not
exceed two units per litre.

The applicant shall provide the Competent Body with a declaration of compliance with these requirements, together with any related
test reports and/or documentation.

6.

Other criteria

a)

b)

The electrical conductivity of the products shall not exceed 1,5 dS/m.

Applicable to mineral growing media only:

For all substantial professional markets (i.e. where the applicant's annual sales in any one country in the professional
market exceed 30 000 m3), the applicant shall fully inform the user about available options for the removal and
processing of growing media after use. This information shall be integrated in the accompanying fact sheets.

The applicant shall inform the Competent Body about the option(s) on offer and their response, to these options in particular:

— a description of collection, processing and destinations. At any time, plastics should be separated from minerals/organics and

processed separately;

— an annual overview of the volume of growing media collected (input) and processed (by destination).

The applicant shall demonstrate that at least 50 % by volume of the growing media waste is recycled after use.

7.

Information provided with the product

General information:

The following information shall be provided with the product, either written on the packaging or on accompanying
fact-sheets:

a)

b)

c)

d)

e)

the name and address of the body responsible for marketing;

descriptor identifying the product by type, including the wording ‘GROWING MEDIA’;

batch identification code;

the quantity (in weight or volume);

the main input materials (those over 5 % by volume) from which the product has been manufactured;

If applicable, the following information about the use of the product shall be provided with the product, either written
on the packaging or on accompanying fact-sheets:

a)

b)

c)

d)

e)

f)

g)

the recommended conditions of storage and the recommended ‘use by’ date;

guidelines for safe handling and use;

a description of the purpose for which the product is intended and any limitations on use;

a statement about the suitability of the product for particular plant groups (e.g. calcifuges or calcicoles);

pH and Carbon to Nitrogen (C/N) ratio;

a statement about the stability of organic matter (stable or very stable) by national or international standard;

a statement on recommended methods of use;

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h)

in hobby applications: recommended rate of application expressed in kilograms or litres of product per unit
surface area (m2) per annum;

Information items can only be omitted if a satisfactory justification is provided by the applicant.

Note: This information is supplied unless national legislation requires otherwise.

Detailed information

Parameter

Test methods

Quantity

pH

Electrical conductivity

Carbon to Nitrogen ration (C/N)

Heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Ni, Zn)

Hg

Salmonella

Helminth ova

E. Coli

EN 12580

EN 13037

EN 13038

C/N (*)

EN 13650

ISO 16772

ISO 6579

prXP X 33-017

ISO 11866-3

(*) Carbon = organic matter (EN 13039) × 0,58, total N (prEN 13654/1-2).

8.

Information appearing on the eco-label

Box 2 of the eco-label shall include the following text:

— promotes the recycling of materials;

— promotes the use of materials produced in a more sustainable manner,

thus reducing environmental

degradation.