Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade - Notification - Poland - Packaging and packaging waste management

NOTIFICATION

The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6

 

1.

Notifying Member: POLAND

If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):

2.

Agency responsible:

Ministry of Climate and Environment

Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:

Ministry of Climate and Environment

Department of Waste Management

Wawelska 52/54, 00-922 Warszawa,

phone: (+48 22) 57-92-262, fax: (+48 22) 57-92-795,

e-mail: Departament.Gospodarki.Odpadami@mos.gov.pl

3.

Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [ ], 5.6.2 [ ], 5.7.1 [ ], 3.2 [ ], 7.2 [ ], other:

4.

Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable): Deposit-Refund System, packaging, beverages, beverages in PET bottles, beverages in meal cans, beverages in reusable glass bottles, excluded beverages that are milk, yogurt or other drinking dairy products;

Beverage packaging that will be covered by the Deposit-Refund system: PET bottles up to 3 liters and metal cans up to 1 liter, and reusable glass bottles up to 1.5 liters.

5.

Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document: Draft Act amending the Act on Packaging and Packaging Waste Management and certain other acts - Projekt ustawy o zmianie ustawy o gospodarce opakowaniami i odpadami opakowaniowymi oraz niektórych innych ustaw; (17 page(s), in Polish), (2 page(s), in Polish)

6.

Description of content: Regulation that introduce the deposit-refund system in Poland was adopted in 2023 (https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=wdu20130000888).

The ongoing draft of Act (number 760) at website of Sejm of the Republic of Poland https://sejm.gov.pl/Sejm10.nsf/druk.xsp?documentId=EE57E2A4A19DF549C1258BC7003E3A85, clarify the legal regulations on the deposit-refund system regarding the issuance, withdrawal and amendment of the permit to operate the system.

The draft also includes legal regulations that establish:

·_        that deposit follows the packaging throughout the whole sales chain,

·_        the exclusion from the obligation to collect in Deposit -refund system: packaging for beverages that are milk, yogurt or other drinking dairy products,

·_        packaging covered by the system is required to display a label on such packaging with the deposit system logo (https://www.gov.pl/web/klimat/oznakowanie-opakowan-w-systemie-kaucyjnym).

·_        the obligation for shops to collect reusable glass packaging if the unit sells such beverages.

·_        the definition of the launch of the deposit system indicates a date no earlier than 1 October 2025. In connection to this, provisions have been introduced to adapt the procedure for updating permits (Article 7), the rules for calculating the level of selective collection of packaging waste in 2025 (Article 9), and time provisions regarding related obligations in this period (Article 10). This solution will extend the deadline for retail outlets to adapt their premises and change procedures for collecting packaging in stores by half a year. Entrepreneurs will benefit from the additional time to develop a method of cooperation between operators and ensure compatibility of systems.

7.

Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where applicable: The aim of introducing changes is to ensure that the system, which will be launched in 2025, is attractive and safe for entrepreneurs, user-friendly and has a clear impact on reducing the problem of littering. Failure to implement the changes proposed in the amendment to the Act may result in irregularities in the scope of:

• planning the operation of deposit systems,

• insufficient supervision at the stage preceding the launch of the system,

• possibility of abuse and fraud in the settlement of packaging and deposits.; Consumer information, labelling

8.

Relevant documents:

Act of 13 July 2023 amending the Act on Packaging and Packaging Waste Management and certain other acts

https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20230001852

9.

Proposed date of adoption: 1 January 2025; Proposed date of adoption: before 1.01.2025

Proposed date of entry into force: 1 January 2025; Proposed date of entry into force: 1.01.2025 (updated provisions, with a possibility to use both DRS labels in 2025)

10.

Final date for comments: 60 days from notification

11.

Texts available from: National enquiry point [X] or address, telephone and fax numbers and email and website addresses, if available, of other body:

At website of Sejm of the Republic of Poland:

Or

Ministry of Climate and Environment

Department of Waste Management

Wawelska 52/54, 00-922 Warszawa,

phone: (+48 22) 57-92-262, fax: (+48 22) 57-92-795,

e-mail: Departament.Gospodarki.Odpadami@mos.gov.pl

https://sejm.gov.pl/Sejm10.nsf/druk.xsp?documentId=EE57E2A4A19DF549C1258BC7003E3A85

https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2024/TBT/POL/24_07532_01_x.pdf