MOSCOW, May 17. Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that the bill obliging manufacturers to completely recycle the packaging of goods should be promptly considered by the State Duma — according to him, There is no reason to postpone it.
During Putin's meeting with the Cabinet, Deputy Prime Minister Victoria Abramchenko said that it is important to ensure that the relevant law enters into force on January 1, 2024.
«The approach, as they say, to the projectile has long begun, since 2014. There is nothing unexpected for the participants in this process, everyone should be ready for this. Therefore, there is no reason to shift, I absolutely agree,» Putin said at a meeting with the Cabinet of Ministers.
He noted that a lot of work has been done in this direction.
EPR (extended producer responsibility) is the obligation of manufacturers and importers of goods to be responsible for the disposal of those goods that they have produced and the packaging that they used when releasing goods on market.
The ROP mechanism was introduced in Russia in 2014, the recycling standard of 5-10% appeared in 2016-2017 only for some goods, without affecting the packaging. It was proposed to introduce the responsibility of the manufacturer for the disposal of 100% of the packaging from January 1, 2022, but the decision was postponed and then postponed several times. In May of this year, a bill establishing such a norm was submitted to the State Duma.
The bill shifts the responsibility for the disposal of packaging from sellers to its manufacturers. If the company does not have the opportunity to do this on its own, it is obliged to pay an environmental fee. Responsibility will increase gradually, in 2025 companies will have to dispose of 55% of all packaging produced, in 2026 — 75%, from 2027 — 100%. . Such a requirement may come into force from 2026. Before that, an experiment will be carried out with respect to certain groups of imported goods.
In addition, within the framework of the reform, it is proposed to introduce eco-coefficients — the more environmentally friendly the product, the less the manufacturer will pay. Such a decision should encourage businesses to use environmentally friendly materials, including recyclable materials.
The problem of fake packaging disposal certificates should be solved by increased control over the destruction and recycling of waste. It is proposed to create a register of utilizers and conduct checks on the real capacities of such companies.