EU compulsory recycling laws a step nearer

Manufacturers of electronic equipment, including PCs, will be forced to collect and recycle their old kit, under proposed EU guidelines.

Jurgen Trittin, EU Environment Minister for Luxembourg, wishes to implement electronic scrap guidelines in which every EU citizen will be expected to collect at least four kilograms of electronic scrap each year.

The scrap will be handed directly to a dealer or collection point. The manufacturers will then be forced to use recyclable materials

After the laws have been enacted EU countries must set up new collection systems or adapt existing ones.

Gotthard Grass, MD of the Central Association for the Electrotechnical and Electronics Industry, criticised the fact that the industry would be responsible not only for disposal costs but also for costs of collecting the items.

.de