The WEEE Directive - How does it affect your business?

All businesses that use electrical and electronic equipment must comply with the WEEE Directive (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive).  Rather than disposing of such waste within general waste containers, WEEE must be stored, collected, treated, recycled and disposed of separately.  Documentation must also be kept as proof that WEEE has been collected by an authorised waste management company and dealt with appropriately.

Producers of Electrical and Electronic Equipment

Under the WEEE Directive businesses are classed as ‘producers’ if they manufacture, import or re-brand electrical and electronic equipment.  Producers have a number of responsibilities under the WEEE Directive.  These include the following:

• Provide Information - when selling new electrical and electronic equipment, information must be provided to assist in the treatment and reuse of the equipment.  Such as information on the different materials used to make the equipment and whether it includes any hazardous components.
• Mark Products  - all goods must be marked with a crossed out wheelie bin symbol.
• Collection and Treatment of WEEE - producers are responsible financial for the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of WEEE.  The amount is calculated according to the amount of electrical and electronic waste that a company produces.
• John a Producer Compliance Scheme - by 15th March 2007 all businesses that produce electrical and electronic equipment must have joined a producer compliance scheme.

Distributors of Electrical and Electronic Equipment

Businesses that sell electrical and electronic equipment to end users are classed as distributors under the WEEE Directive.  This includes retailers, companies that sell items on the internet and wholesalers.

Distributors of electrical and electronic waste have two main responsibilities:

• Provide Information - this includes information on the environmental impact of WEEE, the reasons why WEEE should be separated from other waste streams, how WEEE can be deposited for proper treatment and recycling free of charge, and what the crossed out wheelie bin symbol on electrical and electronic items means.
• Take-Back Systems - distributors of electrical and electronic waste must set up and clearly explain a system for their customers to dispose of WEEE free of charge.  This can be either an in-store take-back scheme or a distributor take-back scheme.