PV CYCLE Applauds UK Legislation
The new UK WEEE Regulations were placed before Parliament on 10th December and will come into force on 1st January 2014. UK is the first Member State to introduce its own national legislation before the transposition deadline of mid-February. Country Manager of Producer Compliance Scheme PV CYCLE UK, David Burton, commented "While it's unusual to see the introduction of new regulations take effect before the legal deadline, it makes sense in this instance, as the new regulations come into force at the start of a new compliance year, which is defined on a calendar year basis, and to introduce changes part way through the year would have caused confusion and additional costs."
The new WEEE Regulations see the introduction of PV panels as a new category, lobbied for by the PV sector in order to avoid the costs of financing collections of waste consumer products. David Burton picked up on the issue "The Regulations are traditionally focused upon ensuring collection and recycling of consumer products but not necessarily on the very nature of PV panels with their long lifecycle and B2B character. Thankfully the Department of Business, Skills and Innovation (BIS) have taken a pragmatic approach, in consultation with the PV sector, to ensure that the industry takes responsibility without damaging its long term sustainability objectives."
All companies who import PV panels in the UK are required to register with a Producer Compliance Scheme with effect from 1st January and to report important data and take financial responsibility for waste PV panels as they arise.
