On November 27, 2009, the Official Journal of the European Union published a European Commission resolution to conduct a questionnaire survey on the implementation of Battery Directive 2006/66/EC in the Member States. The survey results will be reported to the European Commission to assess the effectiveness of current measures and to serve as a reference for future policy development.
The European Commission has requested member states to provide information on a number of aspects, including:
◆ The Battery Directive was adopted into domestic law;
◆ Steps taken to improve the environmental performance of batteries and accumulators;
◆ Battery and accumulator recycling targets and whether they have been met;
◆ Current battery and accumulator disposal and recycling measures;
◆ The funding agreement, and measures taken to ensure that the manufacturer assumes funding responsibility for all recycling, processing, and remanufacturing of used batteries and accumulators. Measures to ensure that the manufacturer is not subject to double taxation, in case other recycling programs have already been implemented;
◆ Monitoring and enforcement actions, including the number of cases found to be in violation of regulations and whether products in violation of regulations have been withdrawn from the market.
The Battery Directive came into effect in all Member States on September 26, 2008. The obligations under the Directive apply to all types of batteries, including those for consumer, industrial, or automotive use. The following batteries are prohibited from sale on the market as of September 26, 2008:
◆ Batteries and accumulators, whether or not they are installed in electrical appliances, have a mercury content exceeding 0.0005% by weight (except for button batteries with a mercury content of less than 2% by weight);
◆ Portable batteries and accumulators, including batteries assembled in electrical appliances, have a mercury content of more than 0.002% by weight (except for portable batteries and accumulators used in emergency and alarm systems, medical devices or cordless power tools).
To ensure that the majority of used batteries and accumulators are recycled, Member States must take all necessary measures (including economic measures) to promote and implement waste sorting and collection as much as possible, and prevent used batteries and accumulators from becoming unsorted waste. The directive also requires Member States to establish battery and accumulator recycling stations near end users, and manufacturers must collect used batteries and accumulators free of charge. Recycling rates must reach at least 25% by September 26, 2012, and at least 45% by September 26, 2016.
The Battery Directive also stipulates labeling requirements for batteries installed in electrical appliances:
◆ All batteries must be marked with a cross-shaped trash can symbol;
◆ Batteries, accumulators, and button batteries containing more than 0.0005% mercury, 0.002% cadmium, and 0.004% lead must be labeled with the chemical symbols of the relevant metals, namely Hg, Cd, or Pb.
◆ Indicates the electrical capacity of all portable and automotive batteries and accumulators.
Furthermore, the Battery Directive establishes recycling regulations for used batteries, requiring importers to register with the government of the Member State in which the batteries are sold when importing them and electrical appliances equipped with them. A manufacturer is defined as someone who, for the first time, professionally supplies or provides batteries or accumulators (including batteries installed in electrical appliances or automobiles) to a third party within the territory of a Member State.
The Battery Directive sets minimum requirements for the operation of battery recycling and reuse programs in various countries, with the provisions regarding manufacturers' funding of the programs being particularly important.
The Battery Directive is available at the following URL:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2006:266:0001:0014:EN:PDF
The Battery Directive implementation questionnaire is available at the following website:
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2009:312:0056:0058:EN:PDF
– Reference source: Hong Kong Trade Development Council website, 2009-12-16
