CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2008
| Author | Markus-Johansson, Miriam Diana |
|---|---|
| Title | A comparative study of the implementation of the EC Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive in Sweden and Hungary. Common objectives, different approaches |
| Summary | The EC Directive on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) introduced producer responsibility for the financing and treatment of WEEE in the EU. Most of the Member States did not have producer responsibility legislation in place before and the implementation has been a resource-demanding and strenuous process. The main objective of this thesis is to give the reader an insight to the implementation by, first, giving a brief account of the overall implementation in the EU and secondly, to carry out a comparative study of the implementation in Sweden and Hungary. The author has chosen to compare an „old” Member State (Sweden) with a “new” Member States (Hungary). Although, they have some features in common, there are important differences in terms of existing waste management infrastructure, access to public funding, political and legal framework and consumer awareness. The rationale was to abstract some wisdom and experience of the EPR system for WEEE in Sweden and translate them into recommendations for Hungary. The main findings of the thesis show that, although, indeed Hungary can learn from Sweden in several aspects, the Swedish system also has its weaknesses and can learn from Hungary as well. The largest differences between the implementation in Sweden and Hungary include the choice of system (e.g. competitive multiple collection schemes or one single nation-wide scheme), the interpretation of the provision of financial guarantees, the size of the national EEE registers and the effectiveness of the compliance system. The thesis also illustrates a divergent and, at times, inconsistent implementation. Member States have an inclination to interpret the Directive to fit the national and local context and the existing waste management infrastructures. There are also ample problems, which virtually all Member States grapple with, such as free-riders, compliance issues, equity of financing systems, and recyclability issues. The thesis demonstrates that there is no one-size-fits-all EPR policy for WEEE but there is a need for greater clarity and guidance on certain issues. This thesis, contributes to bringing further understanding of the implementation in Sweden and Hungary highlighting some of the major advantages and shortcomings. |
| Supervisor | Antypas Alexios |
| Department | Environment Sciences and Policy MSc |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2008/markus-johansson_miriam-diana.pdf |
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