14.12.2012 Views

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

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

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

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

Retailers selling batteries would also be affected as in many Member States takeback<br />

schemes are required at the point <strong>of</strong> sale. Municipalities are also involved in the<br />

collection process, as <strong>of</strong> course are consumers.<br />

25.4 Pre-implementation / Evaluation Studies Available<br />

The EC commissioned a report entitled ‘Impact Assessment on Selected <strong>Policy</strong><br />

Options for Revision <strong>of</strong> the Battery Directive’. 546 The purpose <strong>of</strong> the study was to<br />

perform an analysis <strong>of</strong> the economic, environmental and social impacts <strong>of</strong> different<br />

battery policy options. This report led to a Commission Staff Working Paper<br />

Environmental Impact Assessment. 547<br />

Evaluations have also been carried out by industry. For example the European Battery<br />

Recycling Association published a position paper on the economic and social aspects<br />

<strong>of</strong> collection and recycling <strong>of</strong> batteries. 548<br />

Similar studies have been carried out at a national level. For example in the UK the<br />

<strong>Department</strong> for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs commissioned a study on life<br />

cycle assessment <strong>of</strong> battery waste management. 549 Those countries which have<br />

already established producer responsibility legislation for batteries routinely<br />

undertake annual reviews <strong>of</strong> the mechanisms in place.<br />

25.5 Environmental Benefits<br />

25.5.1 Environmental Cost<br />

In terms <strong>of</strong> attempting to attach a monetised cost to the environmental benefit <strong>of</strong><br />

recycling waste portable batteries, the UK study referenced above looked at the<br />

environmental implications <strong>of</strong> increased levels <strong>of</strong> battery recycling in the UK. By<br />

combining the performance <strong>of</strong> the best scenario, in terms <strong>of</strong> the avoided air<br />

emissions per tonne <strong>of</strong> portable batteries recycled, with unit damage costs for air<br />

pollutants from the Methodex database it is possible to derive a per tonne external<br />

benefit for portable battery recycling (clearly, this is for a mix <strong>of</strong> such batteries). The<br />

benefits are <strong>of</strong> the order €330 - €657 per tonne <strong>of</strong> batteries recycled. Clearly the<br />

environmental benefits <strong>of</strong> reducing battery waste are potentially significant, and for<br />

546 BIO Intelligence Service (2003) Impact Assessment on Selected <strong>Policy</strong> Options for Revision <strong>of</strong> the<br />

Battery Directive, Final Report for EC, July 2003.<br />

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/batteries/pdf/eia_batteries_final.pdf<br />

547 EC (2003) Directive <strong>of</strong> the European Parliament and <strong>of</strong> the Council on Batteries and Accumulators<br />

and Spent Batteries and Accumulators – Extended Impact Assessment, Commission Staff Working<br />

Paper, November 2003.<br />

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/batteries/pdf/exten_impact_assessment.pdf<br />

548 Economic and social aspects related to the collection and recycling <strong>of</strong> used general purpose<br />

batteries, EBRA, September 2003. http://www.ebrarecycling.org/<br />

549 Defra (2006) Battery <strong>Waste</strong> <strong>Management</strong> Life Cycle Assessment, Final report for publication,<br />

October 2006. http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/topics/batteries/pdf/ermlcareport0610.pdf<br />

466<br />

29/09/09

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!