PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY IN ACTION - Latvijas Zaļais punkts

and recycling, prevention and optimisation of packaging,
system development and management of waste electrical
and electronic equipment (WEEE). Via the working
groups, PRO EUROPE’s members actively contribute
to the development of European and national legislative
frameworks in the area of packaging waste management,
with a particular focus on producer responsibility. Over
the years, PRO EUROPE has established itself as a recognised
knowledge partner of the European authorities
and stakeholders in this field, and has presented detailed
position papers on key policies such as the revision of
Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste,
the review of Directive 75/442/EEC on Waste (Waste
Framework Directive) and the ongoing revision of the
WEEE Directive 2002/96/EC. PRO EUROPE has also
collaborated widely with the European institutions in
shaping the revised Packaging Directive by sharing experience
and expertise.
The working groups have also examined the clarification
of definition-based questions, for instance what falls
under “packaging” and “products”. All position papers
are readily available on PRO EUROPE’s website (http://
pro-e.org/Position_paper1.html). International cooperation
between producer responsibility organisations has
led to the creation of numerous European projects on a
variety of issues such as prevention and environmental
education. PRO EUROPE’s goal is to continue to encourage
this international collaboration. The Youth Eco-
Parliament, for example, exemplifies international cooperation
and citizens’ involvement in tackling environmental
issues (www.eyep.info).
‘Green Dot’ systems have become internationally recognised
models that contribute to the efficient fulfilment of
the EU Directive on packaging and packaging waste, and
the successful implementation of producer responsibility
by the companies involved.
Today, the ‘Green Dot’ is the most widely used trademark
in the world. More than 170,000 companies are
licensees of the ‘Green Dot’ trademark, while over 460
billion packaging items are labelled annually with the
symbol.
How does a national compliance scheme become a
member of PRO EUROPE
The system has to be nationally approved and must a-
gree to respect the meaning of the Green Dot trademark.
The principle of “Uniformity in Diversity” applies, meaning
that the national producer responsibility organisations all
have their own special features and do not necessarily
offer the same services. However, in spite of their differences,
all the systems have the same goals and fulfil
the same conditions: operation of the nationwide system
in a transparent way, running the system in the interest
and with the consent of fillers, retailers and packaging
producers, engaging in packaging prevention and environmental
education, optimising recycling and recovery
as well as the conservation of resources.
Every two years, PRO EUROPE organises an international
Congress to provide stakeholders with a platform
to debate current EU policy on packaging and
waste management, reflect on past achievements,
and voice new strategies. The biannual Congress has
become a well-known meeting platform. The fifth edition
of the Congress will take place in Brussels on 7 and 8
October 2010 (www.proeurope-congress.com).
What is the ‘Green Dot’ symbol and what does it
mean
When you see the ‘Green Dot’ on packaging (a registered
trademark in more than 170 countries) it means that for
such packaging, a financial contribution has been paid
to a qualified national packaging recovery organisation,
set up in accordance with the principles defined in EU
Directive 94/62 on packaging and packaging waste and
the respective national laws.
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