Secondary Materials and Waste Recycling Commercialization - Republic and European legislation

Republic Legislation

Summary: Waste management is regulated by laws enacted by the Republic of Serbia, and including some enacted previously by the Federation of Serbia & Montenegro. A summary of key regulations governing waste management in Serbia are outlined below, beginning with the Laws on Waste Management and Packaging, passed on May 23, 2009. These two laws are the ones primarily driving the current situation of waste management in Serbia, and to which municipalities, waste management operators, and recyclers are now responding.

Law on Waste Management: Establishes classification of waste; waste management planning; stakeholders; obligations and liabilities; permitting procedures; trans-boundary waste movement; and reporting, financing, supervision and other aspects of waste management (Official Gazette, RS, No. 36/09). Until specific by-laws are developed, a host of previous regulations not mentioned here remain valid (these are outlined in the Strategy).

The law prescribes deadlines for harmonization of operations, specifically:

i) Companies working in the area of recycling shall register their information with SEPA by May 23, 2009; this information will be used to issue the necessary permits.

ii) Waste generators in existing facilities that are required to obtain permits in accordance with the law, shall, by May 23, 2010, develop a facility waste management plan and action plan for harmonizing operations in accordance with the law by Dec. 31, 2015. If the facility served as temporary waste storage, the generator shall remove the stored waste within three years from the date of the law.

iii) Operators of existing waste management facilities shall, by Nov. 23, 2009, report their operations to the permitting authority and develop an action plan to harmonize the facility by Dec. 31, 2012.

iv) Local governments shall: conduct an inventory of undeveloped landfills that do not adhere to stipulated provisions within one year of the date of the law; develop a sanitation and re-cultivation program for illegal landfills within two years; and designate a location for constructing a waste storage, treatment or disposal facility in collaboration with one or more surrounding municipalities by May 23, 2010.

v) Producers and importers of electrical and electronic goods shall align their electrical and electronic waste management with the law by Dec. 31, 2012.

vi) Disposal, decontamination and removal of PCBs from PCB-containing devices shall be conducted no later than 2015, with other obligations shall be prescribed by a specific by-law.

Law on Waste Management By-Laws: Over the past several months and during the time of this assessment, a number of by-laws (20 in total) are in various phases of preparation and adoption. All are expected to be drafted and passed in 2010. Generally speaking, there will be a separate by-law for each type of waste, as well as by-laws related to reporting, monitoring, polluter cadastres, recycler registration, and other administrative areas. With respect to specific waste streams, by-laws have been adopted or are being prepared for tires, batteries, PCB, electronic, fluorescent, used oils and other types of wastes.

Law on Packaging & Packaging Waste: Establishes packaging requirements for allowed sale of products, packaging waste management, reporting, economic instruments, and other issues related to packaging and packaging waste (Official Gazette, RS, No. 36/09). The law regulates imported packaging; packaging waste generated in Serbia, regardless of its origin or purpose; and used packaging material. The law prescribes deadlines of 12-18 months for the period of harmonization:

i) Producers, importers, packaging/bottling plants and delivery companies in terms of organizing packaging waste and providing of space for collection, sorting and temporary storage; concluding an agreement with the municipal and non-municipal waste operator, or obtaining of permit to independently manage packaging waste; establishing packaging waste management; labeling marketed packaging with information on the possibility to leave packaging waste immediately at the point of purchase or return it later free-of-charge.

ii) End users who import or purchase packaging or raw materials for production of packaging for the purpose of their own businesses, including those who do not cooperate with a supplier; these must provide adequate management of non-municipal packaging waste by way of concluding an agreement with an operator or relying on their own resources to re-use, recycle or dispose of packaging waste.

iii) Postponement of law enforcement is stipulated for: producers and importers of packaging who align their operations with respect to labeling of packaging within twelve months from the date of the law; and packaging which was produced prior to the day the law came into force, is not compliant with basic prerequisites for marketing, and which may be on the market no longer than two years from the day the law came into force.

Law on Environmental Protection, 2004, 2009: Broad law establishing the Environmental Protection Agency and the system of environmental protection (Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia”, no. 135/04 and 36/09). The law outlines conditions and instruments for sustainable management and preservation of natural resources; biological diversity and quality of environment; prevention, control, reduction and sanitation of all forms of pollution; promotion and utilization of products, processes, technologies and practices that have less harmful effects on environment; codes of conduct in waste management from generation to disposal (prevention, reduction, reuse, separation and recycling, and waste-to-energy); waste import, export and transit; action planning; and awareness-raising, access to information and public participation in decision-making processes. Several by-laws have been passed, with separate by-laws planned for individual categories of waste; those passed include:

i) By-Law for Entities Specialized in Waste Examination (Official Gazette, Republic of Serbia, No. 53/06);

ii) By-Law on Waste Oil Management (Official Gazette, Republic of Serbia, No. 60/08);

iii) By-Law on Methods & Procedures of Asbestos-Containing Waste (Official Gazette, Republic of Serbia, No. 60/08).

Law on Integrated Pollution Prevention & Control: Establishes procedures for issuing integrated operating permits for plants and activities that may have a negative impact on human health, environment, resources or other relevant aspect of the environment (Official Gazette, RS, No. 135/04, 108/08). No integrated permit has yet been issued in Serbia; application periods for specific industries are as follows:

i) Mineral Industry: 12/2009-9/2010;

ii) Food, Animal Waste, Waste Management Facilities, Swine & Poultry, Wood & Paper, Leather Industries: 10/2010-9/2011. Specifically, related to waste management includes operators in charge of animal carcasses and other animal waste disposal in a recycling facility with capacity greater than 10 ton/day (10/2010-3/2011).

iii) Metal Industry: 10/2011-3/2010.

iv) Chemical Industry: 4/2012-12/2012.

v) Waste Management, Energy: 1/2013-12/2013. Specifically, related to waste management, includes operators in charge of waste management, disposal or reuse of hazardous waste in a facility with capacity greater than 10 ton/day, municipal waste incineration facilities with capacity greater than 3 ton/day, non-hazardous waste storing facilities with capacity greater than 50 ton/day and landfills storing more than 10 ton/day or with an overall capacity exceeding 25,000 tons (excluding inert waste landfills).

vi) Mineral Industry, Asbestos Products: 1/2014-3/2014.

Law on Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment, 2004: Sets forth relations between environmental protection policy and other policies (Official Gazette, RS, No. 135/04). Law outlines planning and programming in physical and urban planning, land utilization, agriculture, industry, water, waste, tourism, natural habitat, and a framework for adopting development projects. Furthermore, it regulates procedures for environmental impact assessments, reporting and verification and public engagement. The law conforms to the corresponding EU Directive.

Law on Environmental Impact Assessment, 2004, 2009: Establishes procedures for assessing environmental impacts of certain projects carried out by public and/or private enterprises, permit procedures for developing or reconstructing buildings, technology changes, discontinuation of projects with adverse environmental impact, and public participation (Official Gazette, RS, No. 135/04, 36/09).

Law on Conformity with Basel Convention on Trans-boundary Movement and Disposal of Hazardous Waste, 1999: Internationally aligns mechanisms and instruments for the control of trans-boundary movement of hazardous waste (Official Gazette of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, International Conventions, No. 2/99).

EU Waste Management Policy & Legislation

Strategy & Policy: This Thematic EU Strategy on Waste aims to prevent waste generation and reuse waste as resource for new materials and energy. The strategy instructs that markets must facilitate recycling, high standards must be set, regulatory frameworks must be modernized, life-cycle analysis in management policy must be conducted, and waste legislation must be simplified and clarified. Governing principles require that all activities are planned and implemented so as to cause the least impact on the environment, human health, spatial overload, and raw material and energy consumption in all production, construction, distribution, and consumption processes.

Waste Management Principles: Several relevant waste management principles are common to all EU directives:

Prevention: Preserve nature and natural resources by reducing waste.

Precaution: Reduce impact of waste on environment and human health; reduce use of hazardous materials.

Polluter Pays: Require waste generators and environmental polluters to bear the costs and responsibilities for their actions.

Vicinity: Provide infrastructure for waste collection, treatment and disposal based on the vicinity and responsibility for one’s own waste.

Regulatory, Planning Goals & Measures: Source reduction, reuse and recycling are key goals of EU regulations and planning. Between EU countries, however, there is a significant difference in results: waste recycling ranges from 10-65%, landfill disposal ranges from 10-90%. The EU Policy on Waste outlines measures including: cleaner production & technology; public awareness campaigns; waste treatment; content reduction of hazardous materials in products; economic instruments; product life-cycle analysis; and eco-labeling schemes.

Directive on Waste: The EU General Directive on Waste (2008/98/?C) supersedes and amends General Directive 75/442/??C, and establishes a system for coordinated waste management in the EU aimed at restricting waste production. Under the Directive member states are obliged to develop a waste management plan; the directive contains the following new requirements and revisions:

i) New definitions for bio-waste, waste oil, dealer, collection, sorted collection, treatment, best available techniques and other terms.

ii) Recycling and utilization goals remain unchanged: 50% of total collected municipal waste and 70% of remaining non-hazardous waste by 2020.

iii) Waste utilization for the purpose of generating energy is included in annex.

iv) Adherence to the principle of hierarchy in waste management is applied: reduce, reuse, recycle, recover, dispose.

v) Acceptable disposal methods are stipulated.

vi) Minimum standards for different methods of waste treatment are specified.

Directive on Landfills: The General Directive on Landfills (99/31/?C) aims to introduce strict technical requirements that reduce negative impact of waste disposal on the environment, especially land, underground and aboveground waterways, and human health. The directive defines different waste categories and landfill classes (hazardous, non-hazardous and inert); mandates treatment before disposal; bans landfill disposal of liquid waste, flammable or highly flammable waste, explosive waste, contagious medical waste, old tires, and other specified waste; prescribes reduction of biodegradable waste disposal; and establishes a system for landfill licensing. The directive aims to set standards for reduction of air, water and land pollution originating from waste incineration or co-incineration, in order to reduce adverse impact to human health. The directive supersedes the Directive on Reduction of Air Pollution from Existing Municipal Waste Incineration Facilities (84/429/?C); Directive on Reduction of Air Pollution from New Municipal Waste Incineration Facilities (89/369/?C); and Directive on Hazardous Waste Incineration (94/67/?C).

Note: This text is an excerpt from the document-guide for investors Secondary Materials and Waste Recycling Commercialization.

The project is implemented with the support of the USAID Serbia Competitiveness Project.