International Review of Waste Management Policy - Department of ...

12.0 Producer Responsibility, Packaging - Ireland
12.1 Outline of Policy
The introduction of Producer Responsibility in relation to packaging in Europe was
brought about through a number of Council Directives including; the Packaging Waste
Directive (Council Directive 94/62/EC), Council Directive 2004/12/EC and Council
Directive 2005/20/EC, both of which amend the 1994 Directive.
In Ireland, the requirements of the Packaging Waste Directive (Council Directive
94/62/EC) were first introduced through the “1997 Packaging Regulations” (S.I. No.
242 of 1997) and the “1998 Packaging Amendments Regulations” (S.I. No. 382 of
1998), both of which are now revoked in legislation.
Following on from these, the existing Irish legislation was updated and replaced
through the introduction of the Waste Management (Packaging) Regulations, 2003
(S.I. No. 61 of 2003). The 1997 regulations (and 2003 regulations which replaced
them) place primary obligations on all producers 220 of packaging waste to:
199
� To separate certain ‘specified categories’ (‘glass, aluminium, steel, paper and
fibreboard, plastics, wood and textiles, or such other categories as may be
specified by the Minister from time to time’) of waste packaging at source into
segregated waste streams to allow for the collection by or on the behalf of the
producer, or by a recovery operator 221 for the purposes of recycling and
recovery; and
� Ensure that producer packaging waste other than specific categories,
including back door waste, is collected by or on the behalf of the producer, or
by a recovery operator for the purposes of treatment, recovery or disposal.
The 2003 Regulations (and 1997 Regulations) effectively prohibit the landfilling, from
commercial sources, of such ‘specified categories’ of waste packaging.
The 2003 Statutory Instrument came into effect on 1 st March 2003, and was
introduced for the purposes of giving effect in Ireland to the Packaging Waste
Directive (Council Directive 94/62/EC) and to set the legislative target in Ireland for
220 “Producer” is specified, under and in accordance with section 27 of the Waste Management Act,
1996 (No. 10 of 1996) as amended by the Waste Management (Amendment) Act, 2001 (No. 36 of
2001) to mean a person who, for the purpose of trade or otherwise in the course of business, sells or
otherwise supplies to other persons packaging material, packaging or packaged products, and
“produce” shall be construed accordingly.
221 Recovery Operator” means (a) a local authority or other person engaged in waste recovery or waste
collection for the purposes of recovery, subject to that person having obtained all necessary licences or
permits required under the Act, or (b) a major producer when acting in accordance with the exemption
from the requirement to hold a permit when collecting packaging waste in accordance with article
22(e) of the Waste Management (Collection Permit) Regulations, 2001 (S.I. No. 402 of 2001), or with
any regulation replacing or amending that article.
International Review of Waste Policy: Annexes