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CO-OPERATION AGREEMENT REGARDING THE PREVENTION AND
MANAGEMENT OF PACKAGING WASTE
In view of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 regarding waste,
amended by Council Directive 91/156/EEC of 18 March 1991;
In view of the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council
94/62/EEC of 20 December 1994 regarding packaging and packaging waste;
In view of the Special Law of 8 August 1980 on institutional reforms,
amended by the Special Law of 8 August 1988, and in particular Article
92bis, § 1, and Article 6, § I, II, 2 and by the Special Law of 16 July
1993 aiming to complete the federal structure of the State;
In view of the Decree of July 1981 regarding the prevention and management
of waste in the Flemish Region, the Decree of 5 July 1985 regarding waste
in the Walloon Region and the ruling regarding the prevention and
management of waste dated 7 March 1991 for the Region of BruxellesCapitale;
Considering that packaging waste forms a major part of the waste created in
Belgian territory and that it is essential that any person involved in the
production, use, import and distribution of packaged goods should be even
more aware of the part played by packaging in the production of waste and
that, in accordance with the “polluter pays” principle, such person should
accept responsibility for this;
Considering that the third person or persons in private law to whom those
responsible for household packaging waste assign their obligations to take
back waste are carrying out a public service under the control of the
public authorities;
Considering that, in accordance with the policies of the European Union and
the Regions in the matter of waste, the management of packaging waste
includes as its top priority the prevention of packaging waste and, as its
supplementary fundamental principles, the re-utilisation of packaging,
recycling and other ways of re-using packaging waste and, in this way, a
reduction in ultimate waste disposal;
Considering that it is necessary that the three Regions together take
measures aimed at preventing and managing packaging waste in order, in the
first place, to prevent or reduce the effects on the environment of such
waste and thus to ensure a high level of protection of the environment
without, on the other hand, disturbing the general normative framework of
the economic union and the monetary unity of Belgium;
Considering that only a co-operation agreement with the force of law offers
sufficient guarantee for the application of uniform regulations throughout
Belgian territory.
CHAPTER 1:
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1
This Co-operation Agreement is for direct application in the Region of
Bruxelles-Capitale, the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region.
Unless otherwise stated, this Co-operation Agreement is applicable without
prejudice to the application of current regional legislation concerning the
prevention and management of waste.
This Co-operation Agreement does not affect the areas of responsibility of
local authorities or cities in matters regarding health and safety on the
public highway.
This Co-operation Agreement applies to the removal and treatment of
household packaging waste and industrial packaging waste, without affecting
the possibility that the local authorities and the Brussels city
authorities may, within the sphere of their respective areas of
responsibility, introduce further regulations applicable to the collection
of packaging waste.
Article 2
In application of this Co-operation Agreement, the terms below are defined
as follows:
I.“packaging”: any product made of any type of material intended to contain
and protect the given merchandise, from the raw materials to the
finished products, to allow them to be handled and transported from
the producer to the consumer or user and for presentation purposes;
II.“sales packaging or primary packaging”: any packaging designed in such a
way as to constitute, at the point of sale, a unit of sale for the
final user or the consumer;
III.“bulk packaging or secondary packaging”: any packaging designed in such
a way as to constitute, at the point of sale, a group of a certain
number of selling units, whether such group is sold as it is to the
final user or consumer, or whether this packaging is used solely for
decoration at the point of sale; these packagings may be removed from
the product without changing its characteristics;
IV.“transport packaging or tertiary packaging”: any packaging designed in
such a way as to facilitate handling or transport of a certain number
of units of sale or bulk packs in order to prevent any damage caused
by their handling or transport. Transport packaging does not cover
containers for transport by road, rail, sea or air;
V.“packaging waste”: any packaging or packaging material covered by the
definition of waste given in Council Directive 75/442/EEC regarding
waste, except for packaging production residue;
VI.“household packaging waste”: packaging waste arising from normal
household activities and the packaging waste that is the equivalent
of this. The three Regional governments are preparing a joint list of
packaging waste that is the equivalent of household packaging waste.
VII.“industrial packaging waste”: any packaging waste not regarded as
household packaging waste;
VIII.“re-usable packaging”: any packaging intended and designed to pass
through a certain minimum number of cycles or rotations during its
lifetime and to be refilled or re-used for the same purpose as that
for which it was designed with or without use of the secondary
products available on the market which allow the packaging itself to
be refilled; the said packaging shall become a packaging waste when
it stops being re-used;
IX.“lost packaging”: any packaging that is not a re-usable packaging as
defined in (8);
X.“packaging material”: a simple or composite material, of natural or
artificial origin, making up a packaging;
XI.“prevention”: reduction in the quantity and harmfulness to the
environment:
a) of matters and substances used in packaging and packaging waste;
b) of packaging and packaging waste in the production, marketing,
distribution, use, re-use and elimination stages
especially by the development of non-polluting products and techniques.
XII.“re-use”: any operation set out in Appendix IIB of Council Directive
75/442/EEC relating to waste;
XIII.“re-use of energy”: use of combustible packaging waste as a means of
producing energy, by direct incineration with or without the addition
of other waste, but with heat recovery;
XIV.“recycling”: reprocessing in a production process of waste to restore
it to its initial function or for other purposes, including organic
recycling, but excluding re-use of energy;
XV.“organic recycling”: aerobic treatment (composting) or anaerobic
treatment (biomethanisation) using micro-organisms and in controlled
conditions of the biodegradable part of packaging waste, with
production of stabilised organic enriching agents or of methane.
Burying of waste cannot be considered as a form of organic recycling;
XVI.“elimination”: any operation set out in Appendix IIA of Council
Directive 75/442/EEC regarding waste;
XVII.“collection”: activity of collecting and sorting, with or without
regrading of waste;
XVIII.“obligation to take
responsible for the
objectives fixed by
and recycling given
Agreement;
back”: obligation imposed on the party
packaging to achieve, within the framework of the
this Co-operation Agreement, the levels of re-use
in Article 3, §§2 and 3 of this Co-operation
XIX.”party responsible for packaging”:
a) any person who packages products in Belgium or who has others package
products in Belgium on his behalf with a view to marketing them or
when they are marketed on the Belgian market;
b) in the event that the products sold on the Belgian market have not been
packaged in Belgium, the importer of the packaged products if he is
not the consumer;
c) as regards industrial packaging waste from products which are not
packaged by a person covered under a) and which are not imported by a
person under b), the consumer of the packaged products;
XX.“vendor”: any person who presents for sale packaged goods to the
consumer in Belgium;
XXI.“retailer”: the natural or legal person selling the public products and
merchandise in one or several points of sale where the total sales
area or consumption area is less than or equal to 200 m2;
XXII.“approved body”: a legal entity approved in accordance with Articles 9
and 10 of this Co-operation Agreement, who takes on the obligation to
take back waste incumbent on the parties responsible for packaging;
XXIII.“Inter-regional Packaging Commission”: committee described in Article
22 of this Co-operation Agreement responsible for certain
administrative, monitoring and advisory tasks within the framework of
this Co-operation Agreement;
XXIV.“competent regional administration”: as regards the Flemish Region,
this is the Openbare Afvalstoffenmaatschappij voor het Vlaamse Gewest
(=Public waste materials company for the Flemish Region); for the
Walloon Region, the Direction générale des ressources naturelles et
de l’environnement du Ministère de la Région wallonne (= General
directorate for natural resources and the environment of the Ministry
for the Walloon Region); and for the Region of Brussels, the Institut
bruxellois de gestion de l’environnement (= Brussels institute for
management of the environment).
XXV.“regional waste plan”: the plan or plans adopted at regional level in
execution of Article 7 of Council Directive 75/442/EEC regarding
waste and Article 14 of the Directive no. 94/62/EC of the European
Parliament and the Council regarding packaging and packaging waste.
Article 3.
§ 1.
This Co-operation Agreement applies to all transport, bulk and sales
packaging and packaging waste and aims to:
1.prevent or reduce the production or harmfulness of packaging waste;
2.guarantee that the proportion of packaging that can be re-used for the
same marketed goods does not decrease in comparison with the
previous year and guarantee that the total weight of lost
packaging for the same marketed goods falls in relation to the
previous year;
3.encourage re-utilisation, promote and if necessary require re-use and
more particularly recycling in order to prevent or reduce
incineration without recovering energy and the dumping of
packaging waste;
4.oblige the parties responsible for packaging, by instigating an
obligation to take back waste, to bear the real and total cost
of collection, re-use and elimination of packaging waste within
the limits and scope described in this Co-operation Agreement;
5.establish and organise an obligation to provide information on the part
of the parties responsible for packaging and other persons
involved in production and marketing of packaged goods or
taking back of packaging waste.
§ 2.The minimum global percentages for re-use and recycling expressed as a
percentage by weight of the total weight of the lost packaging on the
market in Belgium are as follows:
for 1996:
- recycling: 35%
- total re-use: 50%
for 1997:
- recycling: 40%
- total re-use: 60%
for 1998:
- recycling: 45%
- total re-use: 70%
for 1999:
- recycling: 50%
- total re-use: 80%.
These percentages must be achieved in each of the Regions, both for
household packaging waste and for industrial packaging waste.
The percentages to be achieved for recycling and total re-use are
calculated in accordance with the methods worked out by the Interregional Packaging Commission. The total re-use percentage used in
this calculation is the sum of the percentages achieved for
recycling, re-use of energy and organic recycling.
For 1996, the calculation will be carried out on the basis of the period
between the start of validity of this Co-operation Agreement and 31
December 1996.
No later than 1 January 1999, the Inter-regional Packaging Commission will
submit proposals to the Regions with a view to increasing the
percentages given in point 1 of this paragraph. These percentages are
fixed with a view to achieving total re-use of all packaging waste
and transferring the full cost of packaging waste management to the
parties responsible for packaging.
§ 3Before 1 January 1998, for each type of packaging material contained in
both household packaging waste and industrial packaging waste, a
recycling rate of at least 15% must be achieved as a proportion of
the total weight of each of these lost packaging materials marketed
during the previous year in Belgium.
CHAPTER II: GENERAL PREVENTION PLAN
Article 4.
§ 1Any party responsible for packaging as described in Article 2, 19, a)
who has packaged products, or who has others package products for
him, with at least ten tonnes of packaging per year is obliged to
submit to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission a general
prevention plan every three years and for the first time one year
after this Agreement becomes valid.
This plan shall include the measures planned by the party responsible for
packaging aimed at prevention in compliance with the regional waste
management plans. He shall in particular describe the measures
planned and the objectives, in figures, relating to:
a)increasing the proportion of the quantity of recyclable packaging waste
in relation to the quantity of non-recyclable packaging waste;
b)increasing the proportion of the quantity of re-usable waste in relation
to the quantity of lost packaging;
c)improving the physical properties and characteristics of the packaging in
order that it may be suitable for several cycles or rotations
in normally foreseeable conditions of use, or to be recycled;
d)improving the physical properties and chemical composition of the
packaging in order to reduce the harmfulness of the materials
contained therein and the minimise the environmental impact of
the packaging waste during waste management;
e)reducing the quantities of lost packaging.
§ 2In each sector of economic activity, the party responsible for packaging
mentioned in §1 may assign, by agreement, the obligations under this
Article to a legal entity. The regional governments, acting on the
advice of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission, may determine the
conditions of this delegation.
Article 5
The Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall evaluate and, as applicable,
approve or reject each general prevention plan.
If the prevention plan is rejected, it must be resubmitted within the
period of time specified by the Inter-regional Packaging Commission taking
into account the comments given by the Commission.
CHAPTER III:
MANAGEMENT OF PACKAGING WASTE
Section 1: Obligation to take back waste on the part of the parties
responsible for packaging
Article 6
All parties responsible for packaging are obliged to take back waste.
If the party responsible for packaging is the person described in Article
2, 19, a) or b), the percentages given in §§ 2 and 3 of Article 3 are
expressed as a percentage by weight in relation to the total weight of lost
packaging arising from the goods consumed by the persons responsible for
packaging which were not packaged by a person described in Article 2, 19,
a) or imported by a person described in Article 2, 19, b).
Article 7
§ 1The party responsible for packaging may, in order to meet the
requirements of Article 6, fulfil his obligation to take back waste,
if applicable, by contracting with any third party in public or
private law to meet his obligation to take back waste in whole or in
part.
In this case, he is obliged to inform the Inter-regional Packaging
Commission within 6 months of the start of application of this Cooperation Agreement of how he is meeting his obligation to take back
waste or how the third person with whom he has contracted is ensuring
that his individual obligation to take back waste is met.
This information shall be sent each year before 31 March and will mention,
if applicable, any change in the working method used.
As regards household packaging waste, meeting the obligation to take back
waste as mentioned in the first paragraph shall apply without
prejudice to the responsibilities of the public authority responsible
for collecting household waste on the public highway.
§ 2The Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall evaluate and, if
applicable, approve or reject the manner in which the party
responsible for packaging as mentioned in § 1 of this Article is
meeting his obligation to take back waste. It may always ask for
additional information.
Article 8
Without prejudice to the application of the other provisions of this Cooperation Agreement, any party responsible for packaging who does not wish
himself to meet his obligation to take back waste as set out under Article
7 may instruct an approved body, under the terms of Article 10, to meet his
obligation for him
Retailers responsible for packaging may instruct a natural or legal person
entitled to represent them to the approved body.
The party responsible for packaging shall be deemed to have met the
obligation to take back waste as soon as he proves that he has contracted
directly or through a natural or legal person entitled to represent him
with such approved body and that the latter meets the conditions required
of him under Article 12,2.
Section 2:
Approved bodies
Sub-section 1
Article 9
Approval of a body
The approval of a body which may be instructed by parties responsible for
packaging to fulfil their obligations arising from Article 6 can only be
granted to legal persons who meet the following conditions:
XXVI.they have been established as a non-profit-making organisation in
accordance with the law of 27 June 1921 granting civil personality to
non-profit-making organisations and public utility bodies;
XXVII.their sole legal object shall be to undertake to fulfil on behalf of
their clients the obligation to take back waste under the terms of
Article 6 of this Agreement;
XXVIII.they shall only include amongst their directors or amongst the
persons who can make commitments for the association persons in
possession of their civil and political rights;
XXIX.they shall not include amongst their directors or amongst the persons
who can make commitments for the association anyone who has been
convicted for violation of the environmental legislation of the
Regions or a Member State of the European Union;
XXX.they shall have sufficient means to meet the obligation to take back
waste.
Article 10
§ 1Ten copies of the application for approval must be submitted by
registered letter with receipt acknowledgement to the Inter-regional
Packaging Commission.
§ 2The application shall contain the following information:
1.A copy of the Articles of Association published in the Belgian Monitor;
2.A financial plan and a budget forecast for the period of approval
comprising in particular:
- an estimate of the revenue, per kilo, from the various products
from the recycling networks;
- the methods of calculation and evaluation and the level of the
charges covering the actual full cost of the obligations
which are payable by the approved body and, per material,
its method of collection;
- the conditions and methods of revision of the charges as a function
of the changes in the obligations assigned to the
approved body under the terms of this Co-operation
Agreement;
- the methods in which revenue is allocated in order to assist the
operation of the system in particular by the formation of
any reserves;
- an estimate of expenses;
- financing of any losses.
3. the geographical area to be covered;
4. the nature of the waste in question;
5. a standard draft contract which the approved body must conclude with the
party responsible for packaging in order to take over their
obligation to take back the waste.
6. if the approval relates to household packaging waste, a draft agreement
drawn up in compliance with the regional waste plans which it
must conclude with the legal entities under public law who are
territorially responsible for the collection of household
waste; this draft convention must define:
- the methods for collecting the household packaging waste and for
accepting all the packaging waste collected;
- the minimum technical conditions by material or type of waste for sorting
and for planning and organisation of removal and the sale
of the materials sorted either by the relevant legal
person under public law or by the networks proposed by
the approved body;
- the rules and methods of repayment of the actual, complete costs,
including general expenses, of the operations carried out
by the legal person or persons under public law,
including thermal re-use and elimination of the residues
from such operations;
- the rules and methods of repayment of the costs for communication
regarding the practical methods for collection of the
packaging waste;
- the manner in which the body intends to guarantee and increase jobs
in the associations or companies with a social welfare
function whose company objective is the recycling and reuse of packaging waste.
7. if the approval is for industrial packaging waste, a study covering the
technical methods and the infrastructure which will ensure that
the percentages given in this Agreement can be achieved in each
year of the period for which approval is requested, and
covering the manner in which the body intends to guarantee and
expand jobs in the associations or companies with a social
welfare function whose company objective is the collection,
recycling and re-use of packaging waste.
§ 3The Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall pronounce its decision
within six months of the receipt of the application.
If the application file is not complete, if it does not cover all the
points mentioned in §§1 and 2 or if the Inter-regional Packaging
Commission asks for additional information, this deadline shall be
postponed until the time when the file is completed or the request
for information is met by documents sent by registered post.
§ 4The approval shall specify the conditions with which the body is obliged
to comply.
Approval is granted for a maximum period of 5 years. Reasons must be given
for if approval is granted for a period of less than 5 years. The
decision will be published in extract form in the Belgian Monitor.
Approval shall not become valid until the obligation set out in Article 12,
3, has been fulfilled.
Sub-section 2:Financial securities payable by the approved bodies for
household packaging waste
Article 11
§ 1
The Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall define in the approval
granted to the approved body for household packaging waste the level
of the financial securities which are equivalent to the costs
estimated for taking responsibility, during the course of the last
year of the approval, for the obligation to take back waste on the
part of the legal persons under public law for a period of one year.
§ 2
Each financial security is submitted within a period of sixty working
days starting from the date of the approval of the contract by the
Regional government concerned in accordance with Article 13, 2 § 2,
to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission for the benefit of each
legal person under public law who is territorially responsible for
the collection of household waste. An account shall be opened in the
name of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission for each legal person
under public law.
The financial security may be created by a payment into the Deposits Fund
account or by a bank guarantee. Whichever may be the case, the
approved body shall state that the security can be released in whole
or in part at the simple request of the Commission in the event that
the obligations are not fulfilled.
If the financial security consists
compulsory matter, be issued
by the Financial and Banking
Member State of the European
credit institutions.
of a bank guarantee, this must, as a
by a credit institution approved either
Commission or by an authority of a
Community which is authorised to monitor
The approved body is obliged each year to increase the security in the sum
of the interest produced during the previous year. If the financial
security consists of a bank guarantee, the latter shall be increased
by a sum equivalent to the interest that the security would have
produced if it had been in the Deposits Fund account.
§ 3
In the event of a partial or total failure to meet the obligations
undertaken by the approved body, whether this is through any fault of
its own or further to an administrative sanction, the Inter-regional
Packaging Commission shall request the release of all or part of the
financial security to cover the costs incurred by the legal persons
under public law for the fulfilment of the obligations incumbent upon
the approved body.
§ 4
The securities shall be returned:
1. at the end of the period of approval if the renewal of such approval has
not be requested by the approved body;
2. and provided that the Inter-regional Packaging Commission has stated
that all the obligations have been met by the approved body.
Sub-section 3:
Obligations for which the approved bodies are responsible
Article 12.
The approved body is responsible for:
1.
complying with the conditions set out in the Approval;
2
meeting, for all the parties responsible for packaging with whom he
has signed contracts, and within the times set out, all the
obligations for recycling and total re-use as set out in Article 3,
§§ 2 and 3; these percentages are expressed as a percentage by weight
in relation to the total weight of the lost packaging for which its
customers are the parties responsible for packaging;
3.
taking out an insurance contract covering damages that could be
caused by his activities;
4.
collecting, in a non-discriminatory manner, from his customers the
charges essential to cover the real, complete costs of all the
obligations incumbent upon him under the terms of this Agreement;
5.
submitting to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission each year his
balance sheets and accounts for the past year and his draft budgets
for the following year within the times and forms laid down by the
said Commission.
Article 13.
§ 1
If the obligation to take back waste is for household packaging
waste, the approved body is carrying out a public service and shall
in addition to the obligations set out in Article 12:
1.
cover in a uniform manner the whole of the Belgian territory over
which the parties responsible for packaging are selling their
products such that the collection, re-use and elimination of
the waste taken back shall be guaranteed or, as the case may
be, supply the proof of an agreement with third parties in this
respect.
2.achieve in a uniform manner the percentages set out in Article 3, §§ 2
and 3 of this Agreement in each year of the period for which
approval is requested;
3.serve an equivalent percentage of the population in each Region;
4.calculate the levies payable by his client by packaging material on a
prorata basis:
- for the actual complete costs that can be ascribed to each of the
materials;
- of the income derived from the sale of the collected and sorted materials
with a view to financing in particular the actual and complete cost of
- existing collections and collections to be created in accordance with the
conditions determined by the legal person under public
law who is territorially responsible for collection of
household waste;
- operational information and creating awareness amongst the public
regarding these collections;
- sorting the collected packaging waste;
- eliminating the residues from sorting, recycling and re-use of the
packaging waste and any shortfall from the networks;
5.guarantee and increase jobs in the associations or companies with a
social welfare function whose company objective is the
recycling and re-use of packaging waste;
6.comply with the methods of collection determined by the legal persons
under public law who are territorially responsible for
collection of household waste;
7.subject to the express or tacit agreement of the Government concerned,
under the terms of the procedure set out in § 2 of this
Article, conclude with each legal person under public law who
is territorially responsible for the collection of household
waste a contract conforming with the model contract approved by
the Inter-regional Packaging Commission within the framework of
the approval procedure set out in Article 10;
8.supply a financial security in accordance with Article 11 within sixty
days of approval by the Government under the terms of § 2 of
the present article of the contract mentioned under 7;
9.agree to conclude a contract, conforming with that set out in Article 10,
§2, 5, with any party responsible for packaging who requires
it.
§ 2
Within ten days from the conclusion of the contract mentioned in §1,
7, the legal person under public law shall submit a copy of it to the
Government of the Region in the area in which it is located and to
the competent regional administration and to the Inter-regional
Packaging Commission. The Government has a period of sixty working
days to check the conformity of the said contract with regard to the
regional waste plan and the conditions of approval, and to approve or
reject it. If, at the end of this period of time, the Government has
not issued an official statement, the contract is deemed to have been
approved.
§ 3
In the case of disagreement between the approved body and the legal
person under public law regarding the conclusion and execution of the
contract mentioned in §1, the parties concerned shall request
mediation on the part of the competent regional administration.
Sub-section 4:
Monitoring of approved bodies.
Article 14.
The Inter-regional Packaging Commission may question the company auditors
of the approved bodies to obtain any necessary information it requires. If
the approved body has not appointed any auditors, the Inter-regional
Packaging Commission may have the accounts examined by an auditor that it
shall nominate. This task shall be carried out at the cost of the approved
body.
Article 15
In order to ensure that the public service duties and the obligations
imposed under this Agreement are fulfilled, the governments of each Region
shall have the right to nominate and dismiss a delegate, and his deputy, to
the approved body for household packaging waste.
The delegates shall report, at their request, to the Board of Directors of
the approved body. They may at any time question the company auditor and
inspect the books, correspondence, minutes and in general all the documents
and all the written papers belonging to the approved body. They may require
the directors and officers of the approved body to provide all the
explanations and information and to carry out all verifications which seem
necessary to them in the execution of their task.
The delegates may, within a period of eight working days, submit an
objection to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission against any decision
made by the approved body in the matter of annual budgets and tariff rates.
This period of time shall run from the date of the meeting on which the
decision was reached, provided that the delegates have been duly called
thereto, and, if this is not the case, from the date on which they have
learned of it. The objection is of a suspensory nature. If, within a period
of thirty working days starting on the same date as the period of time
given in paragraph 3, the Inter-regional Packaging Commission has made no
pronouncement, the decision of the approved body shall be cancelled. The
Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall notify its decision to the
approved body.
Section 3:
Obligations on the part of vendors and consumers
Article 16.
§ 1Any vendor of household packaged goods shall be obliged to accept, on
his own responsibility, in containers provided for this purpose, any
transport and bulk packaging used as sales packaging that is brought
in or left by the consumer, provided that this packaging comes from
the products that he sells.
§ 2
As regards industrial packaging waste and where the party responsible
for the packaging is the person mentioned in Article 2, 19, a) or b),
the consumer of the packaged goods must:
- either return the packaging waste to the party responsible for packaging
or the person designed under the terms of Article 7;
- or send the packaging waste to the approved body designated under the
terms of Article 8;
- or recycle or re-use the packaging waste, providing proof of recycling or
re-use to the party responsible for packaging either directly
or through the vendors of the packaged goods.
CHAPTER IV
OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE INFORMATION
Section 1:Obligation to provide information to the Inter-regional Packaging
Commission
Article 17
§ 1
The party responsible for packaging shall be obliged, no later than
31 March each year, to submit to the Inter-regional Packaging
Commission, on a form for which the model has been designed by the
Commission, the information for each type of packaging relating to
the previous year and estimates as regards the current year for:
1. the total quantity of transport, bulk and sales packaging which has been
marketed, given in kg, volume and number of units, with a
distinction being made between lost packaging and recyclable
packaging;
2. the composition of each type of packaging, mentioned the materials used
and at least the presence of heavy metals and recycled
materials, expressed as a percentage by weight;
3. the total quantity of packaging waste collected, recycled, re-used,
burnt with or without heat recovery and disposed of, broken
down by type of material;
4. the total quantity, in weight and volume, of the goods marketed in lost
packaging, broken down by type of packaging material;
5. the total quantity of packaging, by material, considered to be dangerous
because of its contamination by the products it contains.
The date listed in 1 and 3 shall also be supplied per Region.
§ 2
For each economic activity sector, any party responsible for
packaging may assign the information obligations arising from § 1 of
this Article by agreement to a legal person. The Regional Governments
may, on the advice of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission,
specify the conditions of such assignment.
§ 3
If the party responsible for packaging instructs an approved body to
fulfil its obligation to take back waste, the latter shall supply,
for each of its members, at least the information required under the
terms of § 1, 1, 3 and 4 of this Article. The approved body may
present the information required under §1, 3 in an overall way for
all its members.
§ 4
The party responsible for packaging or the legal person entitled to
represent him shall be obliged, by 31 March of each year at the
latest and for the first time two years after the start of validity
of this Co-operation Agreement, to submit to the Inter-regional
Packaging Commission an evaluation of the execution of the general
prevention plan mentioned in Chapter II of this Co-operation
Agreement.
§ 5
As regards household packaging waste, the legal persons under public
law who are territorially responsible for the collection of household
waste shall be obliged at the latest on 31 March of each year and for
the first time 12 months after the start of validity of this Cooperation Agreement, to submit to the Inter-regional Packaging
Commission the quantities and income from sale of the sorted
materials.
Article 18.
Each approved body shall be obliged, before 31 March of each year and for
the first time 6 months after the start of validity of this Co-operation
Agreement to submit to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission the data for
the previous year and estimates for the current year relating to:
1.
the full list of the parties responsible for packaging who have
signed a contract with the approved body under the terms of Article
8;
2.
for each type of packaging waste and for each material of which this
waste is made up, the total quantities marketed by its customers and
the percentages collected, recycled, re-used and disposed of during
the course of the preceding year and the rates of cover obtained;
3.
the finances made available by each party responsible for packaging
who has signed a contract with the approved body under the terms of
Article 8;
4.
the financial information used in the calculation of levies.
The information given under 2 shall be broken down by Region.
Section 2:Information obligations as regards the consumer
Article 19
Apart from communications relating to the practical methods of collecting
packaging waste, as set out in Article 10, §2, 6 and Article 13, §1, 4 and
7, any draft information campaign, consumer awareness campaign and
publicity campaign proposed by the approved body shall be submitted for the
approval of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission. The Commission shall
have sixty working days to pronounce on the draft. If at the end of this
period of time, the Commission has not made any pronouncement, the draft
shall be deemed to have been approved.
The approved body cannot in any case be a sponsor.
Article 20
The affixing on the packaging of any logo or text aimed at explaining the
fulfilment of the obligations arising from this Agreement shall be subject
beforehand, either via the approved body or via the parties responsible for
packaging if they have not assigned the fulfilment of their obligations to
take back packaging to an approved body, to the approval of the Interregional Packaging Commission. The Commission shall have sixty working days
to make a pronouncement on the draft logo or text. If, at the end of this
period of time, the Commission has not many any pronouncement, the draft
logo or text shall be deemed to be approved.
Article 21
§ 1
The vendor, apart from the retailer, shall be obliged to place at the
entrance and exits of each of his points of sale in a place that is
clearly visible a notice to his customers stating the following:
1. The manner in which he is meeting the obligation required of him as
defined in Article 16, § 1;
2. the sums of money which are collected in order to finance the
obligations of this Agreement by the party responsible for
packaging or the person entitled to represent him on each type
of packaging sold in the point of sale.
§ 2
The party responsible for packaging shall be obliged to inform any
vendor who asks of the financial sums collected in order to finance
the obligations under the present agreement on each type of packaging
sold by the vendor.
CHAPTER V:THE INTER-REGIONAL PACKAGING COMMISSION AND THE COMPETENT
REGIONAL ADMINISTRATION
Section 1:The Inter-regional Packaging Commission
Article 22
§ 1
The Regions shall establish an Inter-regional Packaging Commission as
a joint institution as mentioned in Article 92bis of the Special Law
of 8 August 1980 on institutional reforms. The Commission has the
status of legal personality.
The Commission is made up of a decision-making body and a permanent
secretariat whose task is to assist the decision-making body.
The decision-making body is made up of nine members. Each regional
government shall have the right to nominate and dismiss three
effective members and three deputy members who will replace the
effective member in the case of absence.
The permanent secretariat is made up civil servants and agents which each
regional government shall place at the disposal of the Commission to
carry out the administrative and technical functions which occur.
§ 2
The members of the decision-making body and the members of staff of
the permanent secretariat provided by the regional governments shall
still be governed by the statutory provisions which apply to them.
Article 23
The decision-making body of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall
meet at least once a month or at the request of a member. It shall not be
quorate unless all the three Regions are represented.
The members of the decision-making body of the Commission shall designate
each year, on the date on which the Co-operation Agreement became valid, a
president from amongst their members, such presidency to rotate amongst the
regions. The secretariat of the decision-making body shall be represented
by a member of the staff of the permanent secretariat.
Any advice, proposal or decision on the part of the Commission shall be
taken by consensus provided that at least one representative of each Region
is present.
Article 24
The annual budget of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall be
provided by each Region in accordance with the distribution system used in
Article 16bis, §1 of the Special Law of 16 January 1989 regarding the
financing of the Communities and the Regions.
Article 25
§ 1The decision-making body of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission
shall:
1.approve the general prevention plans;
2.approve how the party responsible for packaging who has not instructed an
approved body to fulfil his obligation to take back waste
actually meets his obligations;
3.grant, suspend and withdraw the approval of the body or modify at any
moment, having heard the representatives of the approved body,
if it is in the general interest, the conditions for carrying
out their activities as contained in the approval;
4.determine the sum of any financial security and request its release in
the case of non-fulfilment of the obligations set out in
Article 12, 2 in compliance with Article 11;
5.approve, with the exception of communications regarding the practical
methods of collecting packaging waste, as set out in Article
10, 6 and Article 13, § 1, 4 and 7, any draft information,
consumer-awareness and publicity campaign proposed by the
approved body;
6.approve the affixing of any logo or text on packaging aimed at explaining
the fulfilment of the obligations of this Agreement;
7.establish global reference figures relating to the weight of lost
packaging sold each year in each Region and specific reference
figures relating to the weight of lost packaging sold each year
by the parties responsible for packaging who have signed a
contract with an approved body.
8.establish the organigram and the internal operating regulations of the
permanent secretariat.
§ 2
The Commission shall verify:
1.how the minimum percentages for re-use and recycling are reached by the
parties responsible for packaging and the approved bodies;
2.the information that has to be sent to it under the terms of Articles 17
and 18.
§ 3
The members of the permanent secretariat to the Commission shall
question the company auditors of the approved body or shall examine
the accounts in accordance with Article 14 and shall be responsible
for monitoring compliance with the provisions of this Co-operation
Agreement.
§ 4
The Commission shall prepare an annual report on its activities to
use by the Regional Governments.
Article 26
The Inter-regional Packaging Commission shall submit proposals and/or
statements to the Regional Governments on the following matters:
1.
its annual budget; this shall be done each year and in any case for
the first time within three months from the start of validity of this
Co-operation Agreement;
2.
the imposition of higher re-use and recycling percentages for
packaging waste than those given in Article 3, §§ 2 and 3;
3.
the imposition, as from 1 January 1998, of higher minimum recycling
percentages per packaging material than those given in Article 3, §3;
4.
the imposition of additional obligations on the parties responsible
for packaging and on the approved bodies in order to achieve higher
recycling and re-use percentages than those given in Article 3, §2;
5.
the exemption from the field of application of this Co-operation
Agreement of certain packaging wastes for reasons of hygiene or
safety or because of the specific treatment that they require;
6.
the methods of calculating the specific recycling rates for drinks
packaging as set out in Chapter II of Book II of the Ordinary Law of
16 July 1993 aimed at achieving the Federal Structure of the State;
7.
the manner in which the levies are collected and the financial income
distributed by the approved body;
8.
the effectiveness of the recycling and re-use networks;
9.
the evaluation of the level of the levies charged by the approved
body to its customers;
10.
the list of packaging waste that is equivalent to household packaging
waste.
Section 2
The competent regional administrations
Article 27
Each competent regional administration shall:
1.
offer to mediate in the case of a disagreement between the approved
body and the legal person under public law regarding the conclusion
and execution of the contract mentioned in Article 13, §1, 7.
2.
submit its comments to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission on the
efficiency of the recycling and re-use networks;
3.
submit its comments to the Inter-regional Packaging Commission on the
compliance of the geographical zoning plan covered by the approved
body with the regional waste plan.
CHAPTER VI:MONITORING AND ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES
Section 1:Monitoring
Article 28
§ 1
Without prejudice to the areas of responsibility of the officers of
the judicial police, the members of staff of the permanent
secretariat of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission and the civil
servants designated from amongst each competent regional
administration by the Governments shall be responsible for monitoring
compliance with the provisions of this Co-operation Agreement. The
reports prepared by them shall be deemed authentic until proved
otherwise.
§ 2
All parties responsible for packaging, all vendors and all approved
bodies shall be obliged to product, at the request of the persons
designed under the terms of § 1, any document and any correspondence
and to supply verbally or in writing any information relating to the
fulfilment of their obligations under this Co-operation Agreement.
If this information is held, prepared, supplied, received or stored using a
computer information system, the persons designated under § 1 have
the right to be given the data recorded on data media in a legible
and intelligible form. The latter may also require the person
mentioned in § 1 to make, in his presence and on his equipment,
copies in any form required, of all or part of the above-mentioned
data and to carry out an computer processes considered necessary to
check that the obligations under this Co-operation Agreement are
being met.
§ 3
All parties responsible for packaging, all vendors and all approved
bodies shall be obliged to grant at any time and without prior
warning free access to the premises where it carries out its
activities in order to allow the persons designated under § 1 to
check that the obligations of this Co-operation Agreement are being
met.
These shall be in particular premises where an activity is carried out,
offices, plants, factories, workshops, warehouses, sheds, garages and
sites used as factories, workshops or depots.
Section 2:
Suspension and withdrawal of approval
Article 29
If any of the obligations mentioned in Articles 12 or 13 has not been met,
the Inter-regional Packaging Commission may send a warning to the approved
body by registered post.
The Inter-regional Packaging Commission may proceed with the suspension or
temporary or permanent withdrawal of approval if:
1.
no satisfactory steps have been taken following the initial warning;
2.
the recycling and re-use percentages that should have been achieved
by the approved body have not been achieved;
3.
the approved body has not met its obligations regarding information;
4.
the approved body no longer meets the conditions for approval;
5.
violations of the regulations on environmental protection have been
found.
Approval can only be suspended or withdrawn to the extent that the
representative(s) of the approved body has/have been consulted first by the
Inter-regional Packaging Commission.
Section 3:
Administrative fines
Article 30.
§ 1
If the person mentioned in Article 4 does not send his general
prevention plan within the required time or resubmits more than once
a plan that is considered unsatisfactory by the Inter-regional
Packaging Commission, the members of staff of the permanent
secretariat of the said Commission may impose on him, in accordance
with the rules set out in Article 31, an administrative fine of
10,000 BF for each plan that has not been sent or which has been
judged to be inadequate with more than one resubmission.
§ 2
In the event that party responsible for packaging or an approved body
does not achieve within the time allowed the percentages that have to
be achieved under the terms of Articles 6 or 12, expressed in tonnes
per year, the members of the permanent secretariat of the Commission
may impose the following administrative fines, on the basis of the
available data of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission and the
competent regional administrations, in compliance with the rules of
Article 31:
1. 20,000 BF for each tonne of packaging waste not re-used in the time
allowed, or;
2. 30,000 BF for each tonne of packaging waste not recycled in the time
allowed.
§ 3
If the vendor or the consumer does not meet the obligations arising
from Article 16, the members of the permanent secretariat of the
Commission may impose, in accordance with the rules of Article 31, an
administrative fine in a sum not exceeding 500,000 BF.
Article 31
§ 1
The administrative fines set out in Article 30 are fixed in
accordance with Articles 2 to 10 and 12 ter to 13 of the Law of 30
June 1971 regarding the administrative fines applicable in the case
of a violation of certain social laws, taking the following
regulations into account:
a) for the application of Articles 2, 3, 6 to 8 and 13 of the abovementioned law, the term “employer” is taken to mean the party
responsible for packaging, the vendor or the consumer mentioned
in Article 16 or the approved body
b) for the application of Articles 5, 7 and 13 of the above-mentioned law,
the “work auditor” is taken to mean the Crown Prosecutor;
c) the civil servant mentioned in Articles 4, 6 and 10 of the abovementioned law is the member or members of staff of the
permanent secretariat of the Inter-regional Packaging
Commission;
d) for the application of Articles 8 and 9 of the above-mentioned law, the
“labour tribunal” and “labour jurisdiction” are taken to mean
the Civil Tribunal;
e) for the application of Article 12ter of the above-mentioned law,
“Article 1bis” is Article 30 of this Agreement.
§ 2
The administrative fine shall be paid within a period of three months
from the date of the notice of the decision imposing the
administrative fine. The administrative fine shall be paid by payment
or transfer to the account of the Inter-regional Packaging Commission
using the forms attached to the decision imposing the fine.
§ 3
The profit on the administrative fines shall be given to the Interregional Packaging Commission.
Article 32
If the party responsible for packaging, the vendor or the consumer
mentioned in Article 16 or the approved body contests the decision of the
competent officer, they may submit an objection by an application to the
civil tribunal in accordance with Article 8 of the law of 30 June regarding
the administrative fines applicable in the case of violation of certain
social laws. This objection shall not postpone the execution of the
decision.
CHAPTER VII:
PENAL REGULATIONS
Article 33.
Any person who is obliged to supply a general prevention plan and does not
meet the obligation specified in Article 4 of this Co-operation Agreement
shall be punished by a term of imprisonment of a week to two months and a
fine of between 100 and 5,000 BF or either one of these penalties.
Any person who does not meet the obligations required under the terms of
Articles 6, 12 and 13, § 1 of this Co-operation Agreement shall be
punishable by a term of imprisonment of one month to a year and a fine of
1,000 to 2,000,000 BF or either one of these penalties.
Any vendor or consumer who does not meet the obligations required under the
terms of Article 16 of this Co-operation Agreement shall b punishable by a
term of imprisonment of one month to six months and a fine of 100 to
500,000 BF or either one of these penalties.
Anyone who is obliged to supply information under the terms of Articles 7,
17 and 18 and does not meet his obligations shall be punishable by a term
of imprisonment of one week to a month and a fine of 100 to 5,000 BF or by
one of these penalties.
Any person who hinders in any manner whatsoever, the monitoring as
organised by this Co-operation Agreement shall be punishable by a term of
imprisonment from one month to a year and a fine of 100 to 1,000,000 BF or
by either one of these penalties.
Article 34
Natural or legal persons under private law shall be responsible in civil
terms for the fines and expenses, including the legal costs of the
judgements pronounced against their officials or directors, managers,
liquidators or mandatories.
CHAPTER VIII:
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 35
In order to settle any conflicts which may arise from the interpretation
and execution of this Co-operation Agreement, a co-operation court has been
set up comprising a representative from each Region, appointed by the
respective governments.
The costs of operation of the Co-operation Court shall be payable by each
regional government in accordance with the distribution system used in
Article 16bis, § 1 of the Special Law of 16 January 1989 regarding
financing of the Communities and the Regions.
This court’s procedure shall comply with the above-mentioned provisions of
the law of 23 January 1989 on the jurisdiction mentioned in Articles 92bis
§§ 5 and 6, and 94, § of the Special Law of 8 August 1980 regarding
institutional reforms.
Article 36
This Co-operation Agreement shall become valid as soon as it is published
in the Belgian Monitor.
The parties responsible for industrial packaging waste are only subject to
the obligation to take back waste as required in Article 6 one year after
the start of validity of this Co-operation Agreement.
The retailers responsible for packaging are only subject to the obligation
to take back waste as required in Article 6 and to the information
obligation set out in Article 17 three years after the start of validity of
this Co-operation Agreement.
Brussels, 30 May 1996
Minister for the Environment and
for Water Policy, Renovation,
Nature Conservation and Public
Hygiene for the Region of
Bruxelles-Capitale
The Minister President of the
Government of the Region of
Bruxelles-Capitale, responsible
for local powers, employment,
housing and sites and monuments
Didier GOSUIN
Charles PICQUE
The Minister for the Environment
and Employment for the Flemish
Region
The Minister President of the
Flemish Government, Flemish
Minister for External Policy,
European Affairs, Science and
Technology
Theo KELCHTERMANS
Luc Van DEN BRANDE
The Walloon Minister for the
Environment, Natural Resources
and Agriculture
The Minister President of the
Walloon Government responsible
for the Economy, External Trade,
Small and Medium-sized
enterprises, Tourism and Assets
Guy LUTGEN
Robert COLLIGNON