(1)

Directive 2011/65/EU requires Member States to ensure that electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market does not contain the hazardous substances listed in Annex II to that Directive. That restriction does not apply to certain exempted applications listed in Annex III to the Directive.

(2)

The categories of electrical and electronic equipment to which Directive 2011/65/EU applies are listed in Annex I to that Directive.

(3)

Mercury is a restricted substance listed in Annex II to Directive 2011/65/EU.

(4)

By Decision 2010/571/EU (2), the Commission granted, among other things, an exemption for the use of mercury in single capped (compact) fluorescent lamps for general lighting purposes (‘the exemption’), which is now listed as exemption 1(a), 1(b), 1(c), 1(d) and 1(e) in Annex III to Directive 2011/65/EU. The exemption was to expire on 21 July 2016, in accordance with Article 5(2), second subparagraph, point (a), of that Directive.

(5)

Mercury is used in single capped (compact) fluorescent lamps to produce ultraviolet light, which is then converted into visible light by the fluorescent coating on the lamp bulb.

(6)

On 19 December 2014 and 15 January 2015, the Commission received two applications for renewal of the exemption (‘the renewal applications’), that is within the time limit laid down in Article 5(5) of Directive 2011/65/EU, of which one was updated with a renewed application on 20 January 2020. In accordance with Article 5(5), second subparagraph, of Directive 2011/65/EU, the exemption remains valid until a decision on the renewal application has been taken.

(7)

The evaluation of the renewal applications, which took into account the availability of substitutes and the socioeconomic impact of substitution, concluded that sufficiently reliable mercury-free substitutes for the lamp types covered by the exemption are already widely available and that the substitution of mercury in these lamps is scientifically and technically practicable. Furthermore, that evaluation concluded that the benefits of substitution will clearly outweigh any negative impact.

(8)

The evaluation of the renewal applications included stakeholder consultations in accordance with Article 5(7) of Directive 2011/65/EU. The comments received during those consultations were made publicly available on a dedicated website.

(9)

As the conditions set out in Article 5(1), point (a), of Directive 2011/65/EU are no longer fulfilled, the renewal application should be rejected.

(10)

An expiry date for the exemption should be set in accordance with Article 5(6) of that Directive. The earliest possible date of 12 months from the Commission decision to revoke the exemption should be set given that there are no practical circumstances that would justify a longer expiry time, in particular considering that many of the lamps in question are also covered by Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/2020 which sets minimum energy efficiency requirements to be respected in order for the products to be placed on the market, which will imply that those lamps will not de facto be placed on the market from 1 September 2021.

(11)

Directive 2011/65/EU should therefore be amended accordingly,