1. LEGISLATION UPDATE Tessa Bowering Senior Environment Officer

2. BATTERIES From 1 February 2010 if you are a distributor who supplies over 32 kgs of portable batteries per year in an individual store, over the internet, via mail order or telesales, you will need to take back used batteries from the public free of charge

3. What is a portable battery? Portable batteries include AA/AAA cells, button cells, mobile phone batteries and laptop batteries Products that use portable batteries include; hearing aids, watches, portable cameras, cordless power tools, toys, electric toothbrushes, electric razors and hand-held vacuum cleaners

4. YOU MUST: Provide the take back facility free of charge (not require them to purchase goods from you in order to return used portable batteries) Provide information at your sales points about your take back facility Accept all types of portable batters – not just the ones you sell

6. You do not have to take back portable batteries if: The batteries you supply are only in equipment containing batteries and you do not also supply batteries separately You supply less than 32kgs of batteries a year

7. How many batteries is 32kgs a year? Defra have developed an online calculator which will help you work out if you supply more than 32kgs http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/produc er/batteries/calculator.htm Common portable battery example weights: AA – 348 packs of 4 = 32kgs AAA – 666 packs of 4 = 32kgs C – 120 packs of 4 = 32kgs D – 54 packs of 4 = 32kgs

8. What happens to the used batteries once I have collected them? Battery Compliance Schemes (BCS) will collect the used batteries from your premises free of charge You cannot charge the BCS for the collected batteries To arrange collection you can contact any of the approved BCSs The scheme must contact you within 21 days to agree a collection date

9. For further information Defra appointed the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) to enforce the requirements on distributors with effect from 1 February 2010. www.vca.gov.uk Helpline – 0844 8000 819 E-mail: batteries@vca.gov.ukbatteries@vca.gov.uk

10. EXEMPTIONS REVIEW The EA are working with Defra and the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) to review which businesses handling waste can operate under exemptions, and which require a permit. The proposals may affect any business that recycles, stores, treats or disposes of any kind of waste.

11. The main proposals are: The current exemptions will be replaced with updates exemptions under the headings of: use, treatment, disposal and storage at the place of production. Some higher risk activities will move to be regulated through Standard Permits Simple exemptions will no longer be registered for life, you’ll need to re-register every 3 years There will be no charge for registering exemptions (apart from the exemption for the refurbishment of WEEE) The majority of EA Low Risk Positions will benefit from one of the proposed updated exemptions

12. Exemptions Review Regulation of exemptions will be proportionate to the risk they pose The exemption review will reduce the administrative burden to a minimum. Where an operator is carrying out the same exempt activity at different premises they will benefit from a single registration. An operator will be able to register all their exemptions in one go.

13. For further information: http://www.environment- agency.gov.uk/business/topics/permitting/3215 8.aspx http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/wast e-exemption-review/index.htm?lang=_e

14. Hot off the press!! New research commissioned by Defra has found that banning some materials from landfill in countries around the world may mean that as little as 1 per cent of waste ends up in landfill. The research will help inform possible future proposals to ban some materials from landfill in England. In light of this research a public consultation will be held in the next few months on banning certain materials from landfill in England. The timing of any bans will be an important part of this consultation and has not yet been decided.

15. And there’s more….. Consultation on draft guidance on the legal definition of waste and its application The aim of the draft guidance is to help businesses and other organisations take the right decisions about the classification of substances as waste, particularly in the more difficult cases Consultation document (January 2010 – responses by 12 April 2010) http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/waste- definition/100118-waste-condoc.pdf

16. And there’s still more….. EA regulatory position in regard to the dismantling of WEEE for the recovery of its component parts and the secure storage of components for the purpose of recovery elsewhere. EP regs due to be amended this year and will provide an exemption for this activity. The EA will currently not pursue an application for an environmental permit provided certain criteria are met (i.e. total quantity of waste treated or stored over any 12 month period does not exceed 1,000 tonnes, BATRRT is complied with etc.

17. And finally….. Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games medals will be the first to contain metals recovered from processing the circuit boards from end- of-life electronics.