Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the CouncilShow full title

Method for setting generic ecodesign requirements (referred to in Article 15(6))

Generic ecodesign requirements aim at improving the environmental performance of products, focusing on significant environmental aspects thereof without setting limit values. The method referred to in this Annex must be applied when it is not appropriate to set limit values for the product group under examination. The Commission must, when preparing a draft implementing measure to be submitted to the Committee referred to in Article 19(1), identify significant environmental aspects which must be specified in the implementing measure.

In preparing implementing measures laying down generic ecodesign requirements pursuant to Article 15, the Commission must identify, as appropriate to the product covered by the implementing measure, the relevant ecodesign parameters from among those listed in Part 1, the information supply requirements from among those listed in Part 2 and the requirements for the manufacturer listed in Part 3.

Part 1. Ecodesign parameters for products

1.1. In so far as they relate to product design, significant environmental aspects must be identified with reference to the following phases of the life cycle of the product:

(a)

raw material selection and use;

(b)

manufacturing;

(c)

packaging, transport, and distribution;

(d)

installation and maintenance;

(e)

use; and

(f)

end-of-life, meaning the state of a product having reached the end of its first use until its final disposal.

1.2. For each phase, the following environmental aspects must be assessed where relevant:

(a)

predicted consumption of materials, of energy and of other resources such as fresh water;

(b)

anticipated emissions to air, water or soil;

(c)

anticipated pollution through physical effects such as noise, vibration, radiation, electromagnetic fields;

(d)

expected generation of waste material; and

(e)

possibilities for reuse, recycling and recovery of materials and/or of energy, taking into account Directive 2002/96/EC.

1.3. In particular, the following parameters must be used, as appropriate, and supplemented by others, where necessary, for evaluating the potential for improving the environmental aspects referred to in point 1.2:

(a)

weight and volume of the product;

(b)

use of materials issued from recycling activities;

(c)

consumption of energy, water and other resources throughout the life cycle;

(d)

use of substances classified as hazardous to health and/or the environment according to Council Directive 67/548/EEC of 27 June 1967 on the approximation of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to the classification, packaging and labelling of dangerous substances(1) and taking into account legislation on the marketing and use of specific substances, such as Council Directive 76/769/EEC of 27 July 1976 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States relating to restrictions on the marketing and use of certain dangerous substances and preparations(2) or Directive 2002/95/EC;

(e)

quantity and nature of consumables needed for proper use and maintenance;

(f)

ease for reuse and recycling as expressed through: number of materials and components used, use of standard components, time necessary for disassembly, complexity of tools necessary for disassembly, use of component and material coding standards for the identification of components and materials suitable for reuse and recycling (including marking of plastic parts in accordance with ISO standards), use of easily recyclable materials, easy access to valuable and other recyclable components and materials; easy access to components and materials containing hazardous substances;

(g)

incorporation of used components;

(h)

avoidance of technical solutions detrimental to reuse and recycling of components and whole appliances;

(i)

extension of lifetime as expressed through: minimum guaranteed lifetime, minimum time for availability of spare parts, modularity, upgradeability, reparability;

(j)

amounts of waste generated and amounts of hazardous waste generated;

(k)

emissions to air (greenhouse gases, acidifying agents, volatile organic compounds, ozone depleting substances, persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals, fine particulate and suspended particulate matter) without prejudice to Directive 97/68/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 1997 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to measures against the emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants from internal combustion engines to be installed in non-road mobile machinery(3);

(l)

emissions to water (heavy metals, substances with an adverse effect on the oxygen balance, persistent organic pollutants); and

(m)

emissions to soil (especially leakage and spills of dangerous substances during the use phase of the product, and the potential for leaching upon its disposal as waste).

Part 2. Requirements relating to the supply of information

Implementing measures may require information to be supplied by the manufacturer that may influence the way the product is handled, used or recycled by parties other than the manufacturer. This information may include, as applicable:

(a)

information from the designer relating to the manufacturing process;

(b)

information for consumers on the significant environmental characteristics and performance of a product, accompanying the product when it is placed on the market to allow consumers to compare these aspects of the products;

(c)

information for consumers on how to install, use and maintain the product in order to minimise its impact on the environment and to ensure optimal life expectancy, as well as on how to return the product at end-of-life, and, where appropriate, information on the period of availability of spare parts and the possibilities of upgrading products; and

(d)

information for treatment facilities concerning disassembly, recycling, or disposal at end-of-life.

Information should be given on the product itself wherever possible.

This information must take into account obligations under other Community legislation, such as Directive 2002/96/EC.

Part 3. Requirements for the manufacturer

1. Addressing the environmental aspects identified in the implementing measure as capable of being influenced in a substantial manner through product design, manufacturers of products must perform an assessment of the product model throughout its lifecycle, based upon realistic assumptions about normal conditions and purposes of use. Other environmental aspects may be examined on a voluntary basis.

On the basis of this assessment, manufacturers must establish the product's ecological profile. It must be based on environmentally relevant product characteristics and inputs/outputs throughout the product life cycle expressed in physical quantities that can be measured.

2. Manufacturers must make use of this assessment to evaluate alternative design solutions and the achieved environmental performance of the product against benchmarks.

The benchmarks must be identified by the Commission in the implementing measure on the basis of information gathered during the preparation of the measure.

The choice of a specific design solution must achieve a reasonable balance between the various environmental aspects and between environmental aspects and other relevant considerations, such as safety and health, technical requirements for functionality, quality, and performance, and economic aspects, including manufacturing costs and marketability, while complying with all relevant legislation.

(1)

OJ 196, 16.8.1967, p. 1.

(2)

OJ L 262, 27.9.1976, p. 201.

(3)

OJ L 59, 27.2.1998, p. 1.