Understanding WEEE Guide

This guide has been drafted by a special working group set up by Orgalime and European Sector Associations in the electrical and electronic and telecommunication industries (including the ICT industry, white and brown goods, lighting, cables, etc…) representing nearly the complete range of products falling under the scope of the WEEE and RoHS Directives.

The guide, which aims to provide practical guidance to manufacturers as they prepare themselves for the new legislation, is divided into a number of sections:

• The background to the WEEE and ROHS Directives.

• The timeline which manufacturers will have to take into account.

• An examination in some detail of the directives and their requirements with a view to providing practical guidelines to manufacturers and those in the distribution chain.

• An outline of existing legislation in the same area at national level, as well as an overview of the systems already set up for managing WEEE in different countries, pursuant to existing national or regional regulations.

Annexes, which include the text of the directives, an example of an interpretative guideline (“fiche”) as well as a list of associations participating in the work of the group.