51999AP0053

A4-0053/99

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on marking of packaging and on the establishment of a conformity assessment procedure for packaging (COM(96)0191 - C4-0627/96 - 96/0123(COD))

The proposal was approved with the following amendments:

(Amendment 1)

Recital 1

>Original text>

Whereas markings are necessary to inform the consumer about the nature of packaging, and to provide a possible choice between different types of packaging;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas markings are necessary to inform consumer

s about the nature of packaging material(s), and enable them to participate in return or collection schemes for the various types of packaging;

(Amendment 2)

Recital 2

>Original text>

Whereas markings are essential to enable the consumer to contribute to promoting reuse and recycling of packaging, and thus prevent the creation of packaging waste;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas markings are essential to enable the consumer to contribute to promoting

return, collection and recovery systems for packaging, and thus prevent the creation of packaging waste;

(Amendment 3)

Recital 3

>Original text>

Whereas the current use of different symbols for the same purpose and vice versa creates an urgent need to harmonise the symbols for reusable, recoverable and recyclable packaging to remove confusion;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas the current use of different symbols for the same purpose and vice versa creates an urgent need to harmonise the symbols

indicating the nature of the packaging material(s) used in order to remove confusion;

(Amendment 4)

Recital 4

>Original text>

Whereas this harmonisation should be done at Community level, since packaging is a product that is circulating all over the Community, thus the markings of this Directive should be the only ones at Community level to indicate the reusable and recyclable nature of packaging;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas this harmonisation should be done at Community level, since packaging is a product that is circulating all over the Community, thus the markings of this Directive

and Decision 97/129/EC(1) should be the only ones at Community level to indicate the nature of the packaging material(s) used;

_____________

(1) OJ L 50, 20.2.1997, p. 28.

(Amendment 5)

Recital 5

>Original text>

Whereas the marking should be linked to the essential requirements of Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste, to ensure that the understanding of the reusable and recyclable nature of packaging is in line with that Directive;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas the marking should be linked to the essential requirements of Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste;

(Amendment 6)

Recital 7

>Original text>

Whereas marking of packaging to indicate that it is reusable or recyclable shall be voluntary;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas marking of packaging to indicate

the nature of its material(s) shall be voluntary;

(Amendment 7)

Recital 8

>Original text>

Whereas Member States shall not impede the placing on the market of packaging which does not bear the symbol for reusable or recyclable;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas Member States shall not impede the placing on the market of packaging which does not bear the symbol for

the packaging material(s) used;

(Amendment 20)

Recital 10a (new)

>Original text>

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas the packaging industry is complex, with a large number of professionals intervening at the various stages of manufacture, and whereas there is a need to impose on each of them, at the stage of manufacture in which they intervene, the requirements deriving from implementation of Article 7, concerning the conformity assessment procedure as described in Annex III of this Directive;

(Amendment 8)

Recital 10b (new)

>Original text>

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas the treatment of packaging is different in each Member State;

(Amendment 9)

Article 1, 1st and 2nd paragraphs

>Original text>

This Directive aims to facilitate reuse and recycling of packaging and packaging waste by providing harmonised information to the consumer by marking.

>Text following EP vote>

This Directive aims to facilitate

the return and collection of packaging and packaging waste by providing harmonised information to the consumer by marking.

>Original text>

For this purpose the Directive harmonises the marking of packaging to be placed on a voluntary basis by the operators to indicate its reusability or recyclability.

>Text following EP vote>

For this purpose the Directive harmonises the marking of packaging to be placed on a voluntary basis by the operators to indicate

to the consumer the nature of the packaging material(s) used.

(Amendment 10)

Article 2

>Original text>

For the purpose of this Directive:

>Text following EP vote>

For the purpose of this Directive:

>Original text>

1. 'reusable packaging' shall mean packaging that complies with the essential requirements as defined in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 9 and paragraph 1 of Annex II and paragraph 2 of the Directive 94/62/EC, as well as Article 11 of this, related to the concentration levels of heavy metals present in packaging;

>Text following EP vote>

1. the definitions set out in Article 3 of Directive 94/62/EC shall apply where appropriate;

>Original text>

2. 'recyclable packaging' shall mean packaging that complies with the essential requirements as defined in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 9 and paragraph 1 of Annex II and paragraph 3(a) or (c) or (d) of the Directive 94/62/EC, as well as Article 11 of this, related to concentration levels of heavy metals present in packaging.

>Text following EP vote>

2. 'composite packaging' shall mean packaging made up of different materials which cannot be separated by hand, none exceeding a given percentage by weight which shall be established by the procedure laid down in Article 21 of Directive 94/62/EC. Exemptions for some materials may be established by that same procedure.

(Amendment 11)

Article 3

>Original text>

1. The symbols, shown in Annex I and II of this Directive, shall indicate either the reusable or the recyclable nature of packaging.

>Text following EP vote>

1.

The symbols shown in Annex I of this Directive shall inform the consumer of the nature of the packaging material(s).

>Original text>

2. The Member States take the necessary measures to ensure that these symbols are used only on packaging that corresponds to the definitions indicated in Article 2 of this Directive.

>Text following EP vote>

2.

The Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that these symbols are used only on packaging that corresponds to the essential requirements laid down in Annex II to Directive 94/62/EC.

(Amendment 16)

Article 4, 1st and 2nd paragraphs

>Original text>

The Member States shall take the necessary measures to prohibit the application on packaging of other symbols than those set out in this Directive intended to indicate reusable or recyclable nature of packaging.

>Text following EP vote>

The Member States shall take the necessary measures to prohibit the application on packaging of other symbols than those set out in this Directive intended to indicate

the nature of the packaging material or materials used.

>Original text>

This is without prejudice to the application of internationally agreed and adopted standards for indicating reusability or recyclability.

>Text following EP vote>

This is without prejudice to the

numbering and abbreviations of the identification system established by Commission Decision 97/129/EC of 28 January 1997(1) establishing the identification system for packaging materials pursuant to European Parliament and Council Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste.

__________

(1) OJ L 50, 20.2.1997, p. 28.

(Amendment 17)

Article 5

>Original text>

Numbers and abbreviations for material identification according to the material identification system determined by the Commission Decision 96/. . ./EC shall be located in the centre of or below the markings of this Directive.

>Text following EP vote>

Numbers and abbreviations for material identification according to the material identification system determined by the Commission Decision

97/129/EC shall be located in the centre of or below the markings of this Directive.

(Amendment 12)

Article 6, 2nd paragraph (new)

>Original text>

>Text following EP vote>

Before being placed on the market, all packaging covered by Directive 94/62/EC shall undergo the conformity assessment procedure referred to in Annex III.

(Amendment 18)

Annex I

>TABLE>

(Amendment 14)

ANNEX II

>Original text>

>Text following EP vote>

Annex II is deleted

(Amendment 19)

Annex III

>Original text>

>Text following EP vote>

Throughout Annex III, the words 'manufacturer¨ is replaced by 'packaging manufacturer or packer/filler¨ and the word 'product¨ is replaced by 'packaging¨.

Legislative resolution embodying Parliament's opinion on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on marking of packaging and on the establishment of a conformity assessment procedure for packaging (COM(96)0191 - C4-0627/96 - 96/0123(COD))(Codecision procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(96)0191 - 96/0123(COD) ((OJ C 382, 18.12.1996, p. 10.)),

- having regard to Articles 189b(2) and 100a of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C4-0627/96),

- having regard to Rule 58 of its Rules of Procedure,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection and the opinion of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy (A4-0053/99),

1. Approves the Commission proposal, subject to Parliament's amendments;

2. Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 189a(2) of the EC Treaty;

3. Calls on the Council to incorporate Parliament's amendments in the common position that it adopts in accordance with Article 189b(2) of the EC Treaty;

4. Points out that the Commission is required to submit to Parliament any modification it may intend to make to its proposal as amended by Parliament;

5. Instructs its President to forward this opinion to the Council and Commission.