Article 1 Objectives
The purpose of this Directive is, as a first priority, the prevention of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), and in addition, the reuse, recycling and other forms of recovery of such wastes so as to reduce the disposal of waste. It also seeks to improve the environmental performance of all operators involved in the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment, e.g. producers, distributors and consumers and in particular those operators directly involved in the treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment.
Article 2 Scope
1. This Directive shall apply to electrical and electronic equipment falling under the categories set out in Annex IA provided that the equipment concerned is not part of another type of equipment that does not fall within the scope of this Directive. Annex IB contains a list of products which fall under the categories set out in Annex IA. 2. This Directive shall apply without prejudice to Community legislation on safety and health requirements and specific Community waste management legislation. 3. Equipment which is connected with the protection of the essential interests of the security of Member States, arms, munitions and war material shall be excluded from this Directive. This does not, however, apply to products which are not intended for specifically military purposes.
Article 3 Definitions
For the purposes of this Directive, the following definitions shall apply: (a) ‘electrical and electronic equipment’ or ‘EEE’ means equipment which is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to work properly and equipment for the generation, transfer and measurement of such currents and fields falling under the categories set out in Annex IA and designed for use with a voltage rating not exceeding 1 000 Volt for alternating current and 1 500 Volt for direct current; (b) ‘waste electrical and electronic equipment’ or ‘WEEE’ means electrical or electronic equipment which is waste within the meaning of Article 1(a) of Directive 75/442/EEC, including all components, subassemblies and consumables which are part of the product at the time of discarding; (c) ‘prevention’ means measures aimed at reducing the quantity and the harmfulness to the environment of WEEE and materials and substances contained therein; (d) ‘reuse’ means any operation by which WEEE or components thereof are used for the same purpose for which they were conceived, including the continued use of the equipment or components thereof which are returned to collection points, distributors, recyclers or manufacturers; (e) ‘recycling’ means the reprocessing in a production process of the waste materials for the original purpose or for other purposes, but excluding energy recovery which means the use of combustible waste as a means of generating energy through direct incineration with or without other waste but with recovery of the heat; (f) ‘recovery’ means any of the applicable operations provided for in Annex IIB to Directive 75/442/EEC; (g) ‘disposal’ means any of the applicable operations provided for in Annex IIA to Directive 75/442/EEC; (h) ‘treatment’ means any activity after the WEEE has been handed over to a facility for depollution, disassembly, shredding, recovery or preparation for disposal and any other operation carried out for the recovery and/or the disposal of the WEEE; (i) ‘producer’ means any person who, irrespective of the selling technique used, including by means of distance communication in accordance with Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 1997 on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts ( 12 ): (i) manufactures and sells electrical and electronic equipment under his own brand, (ii) resells under his own brand equipment produced by other suppliers, a reseller not being regarded as the ‘producer’ if the brand of the producer appears on the equipment, as provided for in subpoint (i), or (iii) imports or exports electrical and electronic equipment on a professional basis into a Member State. Whoever exclusively provides financing under or pursuant to any finance agreement shall not be deemed a ‘producer’ unless he also acts as a producer within the meaning of subpoints (i) to (iii); (i) ‘producer’ means any person who, irrespective of the selling technique used, including by means of distance communication in accordance with Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 1997 on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts ( 12 ): (i) manufactures and sells electrical and electronic equipment under his own brand, (ii) resells under his own brand equipment produced by other suppliers, a reseller not being regarded as the ‘producer’ if the brand of the producer appears on the equipment, as provided for in subpoint (i), or (iii) imports or exports electrical and electronic equipment on a professional basis into a Member State. Whoever exclusively provides financing under or pursuant to any finance agreement shall not be deemed a ‘producer’ unless he also acts as a producer within the meaning of subpoints (i) to (iii); (j) ‘distributor’ means any person who provides electrical or electronic equipment on a commercial basis to the party who is going to use it; (k) ‘WEEE from private households’ means WEEE which comes from private households and from commercial, industrial, institutional and other sources which, because of its nature and quantity, is similar to that from private households; (l) ‘dangerous substance or mixture ’ means any substance or mixture which has to be considered dangerous under Council Directive 67/548/EEC ( 13 ) or Directive 1999/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 14 ). (m) ‘finance agreement’ means any loan, lease, hiring or deferred sale agreement or arrangement relating to any equipment whether or not the terms of that agreement or arrangement or any collateral agreement or arrangement provide that a transfer of ownership of that equipment will or may take place.
Article 4 Product design
Member States shall encourage the design and production of electrical and electronic equipment which take into account and facilitate dismantling and recovery, in particular the reuse and recycling of WEEE, their components and materials. In this context, Member States shall take appropriate measures so that producers do not prevent, through specific design features or manufacturing processes, WEEE from being reused, unless such specific design features or manufacturing processes present overriding advantages, for example, with regard to the protection of the environment and/or safety requirements.
Article 5 Separate collection
1. Member States shall adopt appropriate measures in order to minimise the disposal of WEEE as unsorted municipal waste and to achieve a high level of separate collection of WEEE. 2. For WEEE from private households, Member States shall ensure that by the 13 August 2005: (a) systems are set up allowing final holders and distributors to return such waste at least free of charge. Member States shall ensure the availability and accessibility of the necessary collection facilities, taking into account in particular the population density; (b) when supplying a new product, distributors shall be responsible for ensuring that such waste can be returned to the distributor at least free of charge on a one-to-one basis as long as the equipment is of equivalent type and has fulfilled the same functions as the supplied equipment. Member States may depart from this provision provided they ensure that returning the WEEE is not thereby made more difficult for the final holder and provided that these systems remain free of charge for the final holder. Member States making use of this provision shall inform the Commission thereof; (c) without prejudice to the provisions of (a) and (b), producers are allowed to set up and operate individual and/or collective take-back systems for WEEE from private households provided that these are in line with the objectives of this Directive; (d) having regard to national and Community health and safety standards, WEEE that presents a health and safety risk to personnel because of contamination may be refused for return under (a) and (b). Member States shall make specific arrangements for such WEEE. Member States may provide for specific arrangements for the return of WEEE as under (a) and (b) if the equipment does not contain the essential components or if the equipment contains waste other than WEEE. 3. In the case of WEEE other than WEEE from private households, and without prejudice to Article 9, Member States shall ensure that producers or third parties acting on their behalf provide for the collection of such waste. 4. Member States shall ensure that all WEEE collected under paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 above is transported to treatment facilities authorised under Article 6 unless the appliances are reused as a whole. Member States shall ensure that the envisaged reuse does not lead to a circumvention of this Directive, in particular as regards Articles 6 and 7. The collection and transport of separately collected WEEE shall be carried out in a way which optimises reuse and recycling of those components or whole appliances capable of being reused or recycled. 5. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, Member States shall ensure that by 31 December 2006 at the latest a rate of separate collection of at least four kilograms on average per inhabitant per year of WEEE from private households is achieved. The European Parliament and the Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission and taking account of technical and economic experience in the Member States, shall establish a new mandatory target by 31 December 2008. This may take the form of a percentage of the quantities of electrical and electronic equipment sold to private households in the preceding years.
Article 6 Treatment
1. Member States shall ensure that producers or third parties acting on their behalf, in accordance with Community legislation, set up systems to provide for the treatment of WEEE using best available treatment, recovery and recycling techniques. The systems may be set up by producers individually and/or collectively. To ensure compliance with Article 4 of Directive 75/442/EEC, the treatment shall, as a minimum, include the removal of all fluids and a selective treatment in accordance with Annex II to this Directive.
Article 7 Recovery
1. Member States shall ensure that producers or third parties acting on their behalf set up systems either on an individual or on a collective basis, in accordance with Community legislation, to provide for the recovery of WEEE collected separately in accordance with Article 5. Member States shall give priority to the reuse of whole appliances. Until the date referred to in paragraph 4, such appliances shall not be taken into account for the calculation of the targets set out in paragraph 2. 2. Regarding WEEE sent for treatment in accordance with Article 6, Member States shall ensure that, by 31 December 2006, producers meet the following targets: (a) for WEEE falling under categories 1 and 10 of Annex IA, — the rate of recovery shall be increased to a minimum of 80 % by an average weight per appliance, and — component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall be increased to a minimum of 75 % by an average weight per appliance; (a) for WEEE falling under categories 1 and 10 of Annex IA, — the rate of recovery shall be increased to a minimum of 80 % by an average weight per appliance, and — component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall be increased to a minimum of 75 % by an average weight per appliance; (b) for WEEE falling under categories 3 and 4 of Annex IA, — the rate of recovery shall be increased to a minimum of 75 % by an average weight per appliance, and — component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall be increased to a minimum of 65 % by an average weight per appliance; (b) for WEEE falling under categories 3 and 4 of Annex IA, — the rate of recovery shall be increased to a minimum of 75 % by an average weight per appliance, and — component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall be increased to a minimum of 65 % by an average weight per appliance; (c) for WEEE falling under categories 2, 5, 6, 7 and 9 of Annex IA, — the rate of recovery shall be increased to a minimum of 70 % by an average weight per appliance, and — component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall be increased to a minimum of 50 % by an average weight per appliance; (c) for WEEE falling under categories 2, 5, 6, 7 and 9 of Annex IA, — the rate of recovery shall be increased to a minimum of 70 % by an average weight per appliance, and — component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall be increased to a minimum of 50 % by an average weight per appliance; (d) for gas discharge lamps, the rate of component, material and substance reuse and recycling shall reach a minimum of 80 % by weight of the lamps. 3. Member States shall ensure that, for the purpose of calculating these targets, producers or third parties acting on their behalf keep records on the mass of WEEE, their components, materials or substances when entering (input) and leaving (output) the treatment facility and/or when entering (input) the recovery or recycling facility. Detailed rules for monitoring the compliance of Member States with the targets set out in paragraph 2, including specifications for materials, shall be established. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 14(3). 4. The European Parliament and the Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission, shall establish new targets for recovery and reuse/recycling, including for the reuse of whole appliances as appropriate, and for the products falling under category 8 of Annex IA, by 31 December 2008. This shall be done with account being taken of the environmental benefits of electrical and electronic equipment in use, such as improved resource efficiency resulting from developments in the areas of materials and technology. Technical progress in reuse, recovery and recycling, products and materials, and the experience gained by the Member States and the industry, shall also be taken into account. 5. Member States shall encourage the development of new recovery, recycling and treatment technologies.
Article 8 Financing in respect of WEEE from private households
1. Member States shall ensure that, by 13 August 2005, producers provide at least for the financing of the collection, treatment, recovery and environmentally sound disposal of WEEE from private households deposited at collection facilities, set up under Article 5(2). 2. For products put on the market later than 13 August 2005, each producer shall be responsible for financing the operations referred to in paragraph 1 relating to the waste from his own products. The producer can choose to fulfil this obligation either individually or by joining a collective scheme. Member States shall ensure that each producer provides a guarantee when placing a product on the market showing that the management of all WEEE will be financed and that producers clearly mark their products in accordance with Article 11(2). This guarantee shall ensure that the operations referred to in paragraph 1 relating to this product will be financed. The guarantee may take the form of participation by the producer in appropriate schemes for the financing of the management of WEEE, a recycling insurance or a blocked bank account. The costs of collection, treatment and environmentally sound disposal shall not be shown separately to purchasers at the time of sale of new products. 3. The responsibility for the financing of the costs of the management of WEEE from products put on the market before the date referred to in paragraph 1 (historical waste) shall be provided by one or more systems to which all producers, existing on the market when the respective costs occur, contribute proportionately, e.g. in proportion to their respective share of the market by type of equipment. Member States shall ensure that for a transitional period of eight years (10 years for category 1 of Annex IA) after entry into force of this Directive, producers are allowed to show purchasers, at the time of sale of new products, the costs of collection, treatment and disposal in an environmentally sound way. The costs mentioned shall not exceed the actual costs incurred. 4. Member States shall ensure that producers supplying electrical or electronic equipment by means of distance communication also comply with the requirements set out in this Article for the equipment supplied in the Member State where the purchaser of that equipment resides.
Article 9 Financing in respect of WEEE from users other than private households
1. Member States shall ensure that, by 13 August 2005, the financing of the costs for the collection, treatment, recovery and environmentally sound disposal of WEEE from users other than private households from products put on the market after 13 August 2005 is to be provided for by producers. Member States shall ensure that, by 13 August 2005, for WEEE from products put on the market before 13 August 2005 (historical waste), the financing of the costs of management is as set out in the third and fourth subparagraphs. For historical waste being replaced by new equivalent products or by new products fulfilling the same function, the financing of the costs shall be provided for by producers of those products when supplying them. Member States may, as an alternative, provide that users other than private households also be made, partly or totally, responsible for this financing. For other historical waste, the financing of the costs shall be provided for by the users other than private households. 2. Producers and users other than private households may, without prejudice to this Directive, conclude agreements stipulating other financing methods.
Article 10 Information for users
1. Member States shall ensure that users of electrical and electronic equipment in private households are given the necessary information about: (a) the requirement not to dispose of WEEE as unsorted municipal waste and to collect such WEEE separately; (b) the return and collection systems available to them; (c) their role in contributing to reuse, recycling and other forms of recovery of WEEE; (d) the potential effects on the environment and human health as a result of the presence of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment; (e) the meaning of the symbol shown in Annex IV. 2. Member States shall adopt appropriate measures so that consumers participate in the collection of WEEE and to encourage them to facilitate the process of reuse, treatment and recovery. 3. With a view to minimising the disposal of WEEE as unsorted municipal waste and to facilitating its separate collection, Member States shall ensure that producers appropriately mark electrical and electronic equipment put on the market after 13 August 2005 with the symbol shown in Annex IV. In exceptional cases, where this is necessary because of the size or the function of the product, the symbol shall be printed on the packaging, on the instructions for use and on the warranty of the electrical and electronic equipment. 4. Member States may require that some or all of the information referred to in paragraphs 1 to 3 shall be provided by producers and/or distributors, e.g. in the instructions for use or at the point of sale.
Article 11 Information for treatment facilities
1. In order to facilitate the reuse and the correct and environmentally sound treatment of WEEE, including maintenance, upgrade, refurbishment and recycling, Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that producers provide reuse and treatment information for each type of new EEE put on the market within one year after the equipment is put on the market. This information shall identify, as far as it is needed by reuse centres, treatment and recycling facilities in order to comply with the provisions of this Directive, the different EEE components and materials, as well as the location of dangerous substances and mixtures in EEE. It shall be made available to reuse centres, treatment and recycling facilities by producers of EEE in the form of manuals or by means of electronic media (e.g. CD-ROM, online services). 2. Member States shall ensure that any producer of an electrical or electronic appliance put on the market after 13 August 2005 is clearly identifiable by a mark on the appliance. Furthermore, in order to enable the date upon which the appliance was put on the market to be determined unequivocally, a mark on the appliance shall specify that the latter was put on the market after 13 August 2005 The Commission shall promote the preparation of European standards for this purpose.
Article 12 Information and reporting
1. Member States shall draw up a register of producers and collect information, including substantiated estimates, on an annual basis on the quantities and categories of electrical and electronic equipment put on their market, collected through all routes, reused, recycled and recovered within the Member States, and on collected waste exported, by weight or, if this is not possible, by numbers. Member States shall ensure that producers supplying electrical and electronic equipment by means of distance communication provide information on the compliance with the requirements of Article 8(4) and on the quantities and categories of electrical and electronic equipment put on the market of the Member State where the purchaser of that equipment resides. Member States shall ensure that the information required is transmitted to the Commission on a two-yearly basis within 18 months after the end of the period covered. The first set of information shall cover the years 2005 and 2006. The information shall be provided in a format which shall be established within one year after the entry into force of this Directive in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 14(2) with a view to establishing databases on WEEE and its treatment. Member States shall provide for adequate information exchange in order to comply with this paragraph, in particular for treatment operations as referred to in Article 6(5). 2. Without prejudice to the requirements of paragraph 1, Member States shall send a report to the Commission on the implementation of this Directive at three-year intervals. The report shall be drawn up on the basis of a questionnaire or outline drafted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 6 of Council Directive 91/692/EEC of 23 December 1991 standardising and rationalising reports on the implementation of certain Directives relating to the environment ( 19 ). The questionnaire or outline shall be sent to the Member States six months before the start of the period covered by the report. The report shall be made available to the Commission within nine months of the end of the three-year period covered by it. The first three-year report shall cover the period from 2004 to 2006. The Commission shall publish a report on the implementation of this Directive within nine months after receiving the reports from the Member States.
Article 13 Adaptation to scientific and technical progress
Any amendments which are necessary in order to adapt Article 7(3), Annex IB (in particular with a view to possibly adding luminaires in households, filament bulbs and photovoltaic products, i.e. solar panels), Annex II (in particular taking into account new technical developments for the treatment of WEEE), and Annexes III and IV to scientific and technical progress shall be adopted. Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 14(3). Before the annexes are amended the Commission shall, inter alia , consult producers of electrical and electronic equipment, recyclers, treatment operators and environmental organisations and employees' and consumer associations.
Article 14 Committee
1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee set up by Article 18 of Directive 75/442/EEC. 2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to Article 8 thereof. The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be set at three months. 3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1) to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.
Article 15 Penalties
Member States shall determine penalties applicable to breaches of the national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive. The penalties thus provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
Article 16 Inspection and monitoring
Member States shall ensure that inspection and monitoring enable the proper implementation of this Directive to be verified.
Article 17 Transposition
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by 13 August 2004. They shall immediately inform the Commission thereof. When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such a reference shall be laid down by the Member States. 2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of all laws, regulations and administrative provisions adopted in the field covered by this Directive. 3. Provided that the objectives set out in this Directive are achieved, Member States may transpose the provisions set out in Articles 6(6), 10(1) and 11 by means of agreements between the competent authorities and the economic sectors concerned. Such agreements shall meet the following requirements: (a) agreements shall be enforceable; (b) agreements shall specify objectives with the corresponding deadlines; (c) agreements shall be published in the national official journal or an official document equally accessible to the public and transmitted to the Commission; (d) the results achieved shall be monitored regularly, reported to the competent authorities and the Commission and made available to the public under the conditions set out in the agreement; (e) the competent authorities shall ensure that the progress reached under the agreement is examined; (f) in case of non-compliance with the agreement Member States must implement the relevant provisions of this Directive by legislative, regulatory or administrative measures. (a) Greece and Ireland which, because of their overall: — recycling infrastructure deficit, — geographical circumstances such as the large number of small islands and the presence of rural and mountain areas, — low population density, and — low level of EEE consumption, are unable to reach either the collection target mentioned in the first subparagraph of Article 5(5) or the recovery targets mentioned in Article 7(2) and which, under the third subparagraph of Article 5(2) of Council Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 on the landfill of waste ( 20 ), may apply for an extension of the deadline mentioned in that Article, may extend the periods referred to in Articles 5(5) and 7(2) of this Directive by up to 24 months. These Member States shall inform the Commission of their Decisions at the latest at the time of transposition of this Directive. (a) Greece and Ireland which, because of their overall: — recycling infrastructure deficit, — geographical circumstances such as the large number of small islands and the presence of rural and mountain areas, — low population density, and — low level of EEE consumption, are unable to reach either the collection target mentioned in the first subparagraph of Article 5(5) or the recovery targets mentioned in Article 7(2) and which, under the third subparagraph of Article 5(2) of Council Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 on the landfill of waste ( 20 ), may apply for an extension of the deadline mentioned in that Article, may extend the periods referred to in Articles 5(5) and 7(2) of this Directive by up to 24 months. These Member States shall inform the Commission of their Decisions at the latest at the time of transposition of this Directive. (b) The Commission shall inform other Member States and the European Parliament of these decisions. 5. Within five years after the entry into force of this Directive, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and the Council based on the experience of the application of this Directive, in particular as regards separate collection, treatment, recovery and financing systems. Furthermore the report shall be based on the development of the state of technology, experience gained, environmental requirements and the functioning of the internal market. The report shall, as appropriate, be accompanied by proposals for revision of the relevant provisions of this Directive.
Article 18 Entry into force
This Directive shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union .
Article 19 Addressees
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.