1: What is the WEEE the Directive?
WEEE stands for Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment and is a piece of European Union legislation. All Member states (National Governments) are obligated to implement and transition the Directive into national legislation.
2: Is Keytools as a corporation required to comply with the WEEE Directive?
A corporation is not legally required to comply with the requirements of the WEEE Directive itself, but we will be required to meet the requirements of the National legislation developed by the local Governments in each Member state.
3: When will the National laws be enforced?
The member states will implement the WEEE directive with some variety in time and set-up. Most member states are in the process of developing the National legislation which was scheduled to be completed by August 2004. A number of countries have now completed their National Legislation, some have implemented it as of 13 th August, 2005 and some have communicated delayed implementations. At this time a number of countries are still working on their national laws.
The member states will implement the WEEE directive with some variety in time and set-up. Most member states are in the process of developing the National legislation which was scheduled to be completed by August 2004. A number of countries have now completed their National Legislation, some have implemented it as of 13 th August, 2005 and some have communicated delayed implementations. At this time a number of countries are still working on their national laws.
4: What is the Purpose?
The Directive aims to:
The Directive aims to:
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reduce the waste arising from electrical and electronic equipment; and
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improve the environmental performance of all those involved in the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment.
5: What are the Key elements?
The Directive covers WEEE used by consumers and for professional purposes.
The Directive covers WEEE used by consumers and for professional purposes.
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Private householders will be able to return their WEEE to collection facilities free of charge; and
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Producers (manufacturers, sellers, distributors) will be responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of WEEE from private households deposited at these collection facilities.
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Producers will be responsible for financing the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of WEEE from users other than private householders from products placed on the market after August 2005.
Producers will also be responsible for financing the management of WEEE from products placed on the market before August 2005. However, it may be possible for all or part of these costs to be recovered from users other than private householders.
By 31 December 2006:
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Each country must have reached an average WEEE collection rate of four kilograms for each private householder annually.
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Producers will be required to achieve a series of demanding recycling and recovery targets for different categories of appliance.
