Large chains of household appliance importers propose replacing the current procedure for paying environmental fees and sending them to state-controlled accounts
At a meeting of the Economic Press Club held last Tuesday, dedicated to the EcoVoucher program (which also provides for the disposal of worn-out appliances), Mircea Baciu, owner of the Bomba chain, noted, in particular, that according to the current legislation, the importer (called the "manufacturer" in the law) is subject to "Extended Producer Responsibility" or REP (Responsabilitatea Extinsă a Producătorului). This means that the supplier/manufacturer is obliged to either independently register a waste management (recycling) association or conclude an agreement with one of the existing such organizations. It is assumed that the supplier/manufacturer pays the environmental fee to the account of such an association (with its amount being set by the association itself) and subsequently transfers the worn-out appliances to it for further disposal. As Mircea Baciu noted, only for 2024 the Bomba chain of stores paid 18 million lei in environmental fees, in accordance with the requirements of the law. However, there is no information on how much equipment the waste management association actually took out of the country for recycling. (There are no electronics recycling plants in Moldova, it is assumed that this waste is taken out to neighboring countries: Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic). According to him, there are currently 14 such associations in Moldova and several more are preparing to register, while there is no control over whether used electrical equipment is taken out of the country and in what quantities. He hinted that some of these associations are already preparing for self-liquidation, having received money from suppliers/manufacturers, but not having disposed of the equipment that they were obliged to take out. At the same time, new associations are opening. Herewith, there are only 3 such organizations in Romania, and the money paid by suppliers/manufacturers does not go to their accounts, but to the accounts of the state environmental fund, and the issue of their use for their intended purpose is absolutely transparent. Mircea Baciu believes that such a practice would not only be useful, but also highly effective in the conditions of the Moldovan market. "In the meantime, the currently existing collective systems, public waste management organizations, not only do not inspire confidence, on the contrary: the absence of export of recycling devices for several years gives more and more reason to believe that this recycling will not continue, while they receive payments from suppliers/manufacturers provided by law," Mircea Baciu emphasized. In addition, if large players voluntarily comply with these legal requirements, there are a number of companies that do not pay these environmental fees at all, which violates not only the laws, but also the principles of fair competition. The heads of the Maximum and Hi-Tech retail chains, who took part in the discussion, agreed with his opinion. During the meeting of the Economic Press Club, State Secretary of the Ministry of the Environment Grigore Stratulat confirmed that after the changes in legislation and the transition period of 2023, there have not yet been any inspections of the activities of collective waste management associations, and the first data will be received after April 30, when they submit reports for 2024. Meanwhile, the State Secretary said that suppliers/manufacturers paying the environmental fee must independently monitor the use of these funds and the waste disposal process, in this case, electrical appliances. And demand that the associations with which the relevant agreements have been concluded fulfill their obligations. At the same time, he emphasized that the Ministry of the Environment is constantly working to improve the current legislation and is always ready for dialogue with businesses, including in terms of monitoring of waste management. During the meeting of the Economic Press Club, in addition, the possibility of revising the existing mechanism for paying the environmental fee, establishing state tariffs depending on the type of equipment, checking the activities and efficiency of existing waste management associations based on the results of the previous year, with subsequent analysis of the situation and adoption of appropriate decisions was discussed. The participants of the meeting agreed that such decisions should be truly aimed at protecting the environment, with transparent use of funds for their intended purpose, to preserve and improve the ecology of Moldova.//16.04.2025 – InfoMarket.
