European Union to look at extended producer responsibility to encourage recycling

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European Union Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik has said that guidance is being produced on extended producer responsibility (EPR).

In a speech to the 3rd Annual European Raw Materials Conference he said that as part of a range of policies to encourage resource efficiency, the EU had looked across Europe to find the best practice examples of producer responsibility.

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He said: “On top of specially adapted fiscal policies (such as landfill and incineration taxes, pay as you throw schemes), producer responsibility schemes are essential.

“There are large differences in cost effectiveness of the various systems in place in the European Union and we are now preparing guidance on extended producer responsibility on the basis of these experiences.”

In his speech, he also reiterated the targets of the Roadmap for a Resource Efficient Europe that include a decline in waste generated per person, re-use and recycling should be at their maximum level as well as attractive markets for secondary materials, incineration should be limited to non-recyclable materials, and landfilling should be virtually eliminated as a waste management option.