Environmental respect and recycling

What is eco-contribution or eco-participation?

Eco-contribution, formerly known as eco-participation, corresponds to the cost of collecting and recycling waste from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

This contribution to the costs of recovery and disposal of WEEE makes buyers more responsible and enables effective recycling.

Which products are affected?

This includes all devices powered by electrical currents (plugged in, battery-operated, or using electromagnetic fields). This includes so-called “white” goods (household appliances), “brown” goods (audiovisual equipment), and “gray” goods (IT equipment: from alarm clocks to computers, washing machines to televisions, as well as toys and DIY or gardening tools).

Since November 15, 2006, these electrical and electronic equipment wastes (WEEE or D3E) have been managed by a specialized system set up by the producers of these products.

Any electrical or electronic device, even incomplete, discarded as waste is considered WEEE: whether it is out of order, reusable, or replaced by a newer version.

These products are classified into ten main categories:

• Consumer electronics: hi-fi systems, radios, televisions, camcorders, VCRs…
• Furniture: chairs, furniture, TV stands, shelves, racks…
• Large household appliances: refrigerators, freezers, electric stoves, washing machines, dryers…
• Small household appliances: coffee makers, vacuum cleaners, sewing machines, toasters, irons, hairdryers
• IT and telecommunications equipment: computers, printers…
• Lighting equipment: energy-saving lamps, fluorescent tubes…
• Electrical and electronic tools (excluding large fixed industrial tools): drills, saws, gardening tools
• Toys, leisure, and sports equipment: game consoles, remote-controlled toys…
• Medical devices (excluding implanted and infected products): blood pressure monitors, electronic scales, thermometers…
• Monitoring and control instruments: fire detectors, video surveillance devices
• Vending machines (professional equipment)

Directive 2002/96-EC on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)

The production of electrical and electronic equipment is one of the fastest-growing industrial sectors in the Western world. Consequently, the issue of managing electrical and electronic waste has arisen. In June 2000, the European Commission introduced proposals to address the issue, and in December 2002, these proposals were accepted and defined by the directive on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

The main provisions of the WEEE Directive are:

• To make producers (or anyone introducing a product to the European market) responsible for paying for the collection, treatment, and recycling of end-of-life equipment.
• To improve the recycling of electrical and electronic waste.
• To ensure the selective collection of electrical and electronic waste.
• To inform the public about their role in managing this waste.

The French decree transposing the two European directives was published in the Official Journal on July 22, 2005. For household WEEE, the effective start date of the system (the WEEE collection and treatment system) was set for November 15, 2006.

Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) are devices powered by an electrical outlet, battery, or accumulator. Each producer must affix a pictogram of a crossed-out wheeled bin on all household electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market after August 13, 2005.

From November 15, 2006, you must not dispose of electrical and electronic equipment waste with household waste or other unsorted municipal waste.

Consumers will contribute to the process by paying an “eco-contribution” or “environmental contribution,” included in the purchase price of new equipment.

The amount of this eco-contribution will be included in the price of each product displayed on the site and indicated on the invoices sent with each order.

Consumers must return their used equipment to a recycling center, a distributor when purchasing a new product, or donate it to a social economy association.

For certain high-quality and functional IT or hi-fi equipment, donating to charitable organizations can be a good solution, also supporting people in need.

Electrical and electronic equipment waste may contain hazardous substances, with potentially serious effects on the environment and human health. By participating in the collection of end-of-life electronic equipment, you contribute to preserving natural resources and protecting human health.

Who recycles WEEE?

From November 15, 2006, for producers who comply, four eco-organizations handle the removal and recycling of WEEE:

• ERP 0810 130 805 (local call rate)
• Récylum 0810 001 777 (local call rate)
• Ecologic 0825 825 732 (€0.12/min)
• Eco-Systèmes 0825 886 879 (€0.12/min)

The OCAD3E company was approved by decree on September 22, 2006, to ensure the compensation of selective collection costs for WEEE borne by local authorities.

How to read the labels?

From now on, for every electrical or electronic device you purchase, you contribute to the collective financing of the new system by paying an eco-contribution. This is displayed very clearly, separately from the product price, for transparency purposes. This amount is first paid by the producer to the eco-organization to finance the collection, reuse, and recycling of equivalent used equipment and varies depending on the product and the type of treatment it requires. It is then passed on identically by the producer to the distributor and finally to the consumer, within a non-profit system.

This display also serves an educational purpose so that we all become aware of the cost of managing the end-of-life of the products we consume. The eco-contribution is subject to VAT and cannot be discounted.

Some indicative rates, for example: €0.10 for an alarm clock, €1 for a vacuum cleaner, €6 for a dishwasher, €1 to €8 for a television, or €13 for a refrigerator.

Nature and composition of WEEE

An electrical or electronic device is discarded (and thus becomes waste electrical and electronic equipment - WEEE) for the following reasons:

• It is out of order,
• It is repairable, but the repair cost is prohibitive,
• It is part of a whole, one element of which is out of order,
• It works but is obsolete and replaced by newer equipment.
• Production rejects are generally also considered waste electrical and electronic equipment.

WEEE is highly varied and complex in composition. Thus, a typical composition cannot be defined. However, they are mainly composed of:

• Ferrous and non-ferrous metals (10% to 85%),
• Inert materials: glass (excluding cathode ray tubes), wood, concrete… (0% to 20%),
• Plastics with or without halogenated flame retardants (1% to 70%),
• Specific components:
  • CFCs and other greenhouse gases (currently replaced by HCs),
  • Batteries and accumulators,
  • Cathode ray tubes (about 65% of a television),
  • PCB capacitors,
  • Electronic boards,
  • LCD screens,
  • Mercury relays or switches,
  • Cables,
  • Printer cartridges and toners.

Some WEEE is hazardous waste.

Key Figures

Each year, approximately 1.7 million tons of WEEE are generated by businesses and households. These wastes have a high growth rate: 3% to 5% per year.

The amount of WEEE from households is estimated at about 14 kg/year/person, representing about 50% of WEEE. However, these data remain approximate, as no specific tracking system for these waste quantities currently exists.

Indeed, it is difficult today to estimate the WEEE stock due to:

• The diversity of devices on the market and the manufacturers involved,
• The highly variable lifespan of devices,
• Significant storage phenomena, especially among individuals, due to various factors: “it might still be useful,” financial or sentimental value attributed to the product, lack of collection, lack of knowledge about treatment possibilities, lack of awareness of pollution risks,
• Collection currently mixed with other waste (bulky items or raw household waste for household waste, DIB or DIS for professionals).

In the long term, the producer registry will allow detailed tracking:

• Of annual market introductions of electrical and electronic equipment
• Of the quantities of waste collected and recovered from households through declarations as well.

The European directive on WEEE (see regulatory framework) sets a collection target of 4 kg/year/person for household WEEE by December 31, 2006. This target will be revised every two years.

As part of the Recycling Initiative operation, a collection rate of 4.7 kg/year/person was achieved after two years of experience.