Newsletter
EPA MOVES TO CURB EXCES-SIVE PACKAGING
In response to the waste collection and disposal issues associated with excessive product pack-aging, the Environmental Protection Admini-stration (EPA) is planning to introduce controls on excessive product packaging under Articles 13 and 14 of the Resource Recycling and Reuse Act (RRRA). Its draft regulations are in part based on similar legislation in the European Union and South Korea.
The controls will apply to the packaging of composite product sets (gift boxes) containing cakes and pastries, cosmetics, alcoholic bever-ages, or processed foods, and to the packaging of computer software works on optical media. In general, the maximum permitted packaging vol-ume ratio will be 25%. However, to encourage the use of single-material secondary packaging to facilitate recycling, the maximum packaging volume ratio for single-material packaging will be 35%. The maximum permitted number of packaging layers will be two for gift boxes con-taining cosmetics, alcoholic beverages, or proc-essed foods, and three for cake and pastry gift boxes and for computer software on optical me-dia.
The EPA plans to introduce the controls in two phases. The first phase, to be implemented on 1 July 2006, will apply to cakes and pastries, cosmetics, alcoholic beverages, and software on optical media. In the second phase, from 1 July 2007, the controls will be extended to include processed foods. In addition, under Article 21 of the RRRA, the EPA will require product manu-facturers, importers, and vendors to supply sample products free of charge to the environ-mental authorities (or a specialist organization commissioned by them) for inspection, and to provide related information such as product catalogues, purchasers, time of sale, source of supply, and time of supply, to assist the authori-ties or commissioned organization in enforcing the controls.
A product manufacturer, importer, or vendor that exceeds the prescribed limits on packaging volume ratio or number of packaging layers may be fined NT$30,000 to NT$150,000. An enter-prise that fails to make required corrections or improvements within a specified period after being given notice to do so may be penalized on a daily basis. In serious cases an enterprise may be ordered to suspend operations for a period of one month to one year, or if necessary to shut down.