Speaking at a meeting of the European Parliament´s Environment Committee on Thursday 8 September, a representative of the Polish Presidency of the EU suggested compromise solution about how waste producers should be defined in the EU...
The waste electrical and electric equipment (WEEE) Directive, which is currently being revised, raises several contentious issues, in particular as regards the waste collection target and its start date, and whether waste producers should be defined at EU or national level. While the European Commission and MEPs advocate the use of an EU-wide definition of such producers, Member States strongly defend the system of national definitions.

Addressing the Parliament´s Environment Committee last week, a Presidency representative suggested a compromise solution that could see waste producers defined at both national and EU level. The representative argued that an EU-wide definition would not be really functional, since it would reflect variations in the waste regimes of different Member States, thus creating loopholes that would encourage illegal dumping or export of e-waste.

The compromise solution suggested by the Polish Presidency aims at providing some grounds for compromise in heated negotiations between the European Parliament and the Council. Members of the Parliament´s Environment Committee have until 12 September to table amendments to the second-reading position drafted by MEP Karl-Heinz Florenz (EPP, Germany). The Committee vote is scheduled on 4 October.