New packaging waste data system
10th March 2006:
The Government’s Advisory Committee on Packagin (ACP) [www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/topics/packaging/acp/] has announced it is to develop a new system to handle and disseminate information and data on packaging waste.
The National Packaging Waste Database will be designed to help with the packaging waste recycling and recovery regime, which place obligations on businesses to put to better use some of the packaging that they deal with.
It will remove the need for businesses to submit hardcopy data to regulators and could eventually lead to the use of electronic packaging recovery notes (PRNs) and packaging export recovery notes (PERNs).
Other potential benefits of the new system are expected to include the following:
The new database will help industry obtain the latest data in a more timely way, thereby helping the packaging market to operate more effectively.
It is also expected to help combat incidences of fraud by reprocessors and help identify so-called “free-riders”, i.e. businesses who avoid meeting their obligations under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005.
Regulators will benefit from considerable administrative time savings, allowing them to spend more time on enforcing the regulations.
The system will be designed and implemented through a project team reporting to the ACP and on completion will be owned and operated by the regulators, i.e. the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and the Northern Ireland Environment and Heritage Service.
The system is expected to cost in the region of £350,000 and has been funded largely by some of the businesses affected by the regulations. Sponsors include Corus, Coca Cola Enterprises, SCA, Sims Metals, EMR, Choice Waste Management, Recoup, Redfearn Glass, Rockware Glass, BPI, Novelis, Owens Illinois and St Regis.
It is expected that the reprocessor module will be in operation in 2006 and that the registration module will be available for the 2007 registration process.
