News from Comply Direct

15 December 2011: Individual WEEE producer responsibility considered

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 14:52:00 +0000

Vince Cable, Business Secretary has said he will take a �long, hard look� at how a system for greater individual producer responsibility for recycling WEEE could be introduced in the UK.

Through the existing WEEE system, producers of electrical and electronic equipment are collectively obligated to pay towards the cost of collecting and recycling of these goods become waste. Producers are not responsible for recycling their own products which means they currently have no incentive to design their products to make them to last longer or make them easier to recycle.

The above issue was highlighted in a Green Alliance report published in October entitled �Reinventing the wheel: a circular economy for resource security� � the idea of the report was to identify that producers need to improve product design.

And, speaking at a Green Alliance event yesterday (November 12) Mr Cable said that his department wanted to improve the situation.

He said: �It is one of my department�s many responsibilities to implement the regulations required for the WEEE directive. They have real economic as well as environmental value, helping to support innovation, growth, investment and jobs. Everyone has a role to play � consumers, business-end users, manufacturers of products, recyclers, local authorities and waste management companies.

�But the Green Alliance report argues that the collective nature of the scheme dilutes the incentive for better design. Such design could help reduce our reliance on difficult-to-mine rare earths.

�We want to improve that. After the negotiations on the revision to the WEEE Directive are concluded, we mean to take a hard look at how a system of greater individual producer responsibility might be introduced to make it better for industry and environment.�

5 December 2011: Uniserve win Large Freight Forwarder

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 13:30:00 +0000

We are pleased to announce the success of our partner company The Uniserve Group who have won the Large Freight Forwarder of the year at the IFW freight awards.

In 1996 Uniserve won the Sea Freight Forwarder of the year but this year in the 15th year of the IFW freight awards, Uniserve were completely unexpecting the award which was made even more special by John Henderson, who collected the award on their behalf.

The Uniserve Group are experts in their field of global logistics and freights, if you would like any further information about their services please do no hesitate to get in touch.

8 November 2011: CRC Performance League Table released

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:55:00 +0000

The Environment Agency have released the first CRC Performance League Table. Find out where your organisation has been placed.

In addition to the league table, the Environment Agency have also published a "Participant Scorecard" for each participant which summarises some of the information submitted within the annual report, including responses to the voluntary "tick-box" questions.

The positioning within this first league table is determined purely by performance under the "Early Action Metric", which is the level of consumption occurring via voluntarily installed automatic meter reading (AMR) meters and certification to one of the EA-accredited carbon management schemes.

If you require assistance in managing your CRC compliance then get in touch or telephone on 0844 873 1034.

26 October 2011: New FREE recycling service

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:40:00 +0100

Through our sister company Recycling in Action, Comply Direct is now able to offer a free of charge UK wide toner and ink cartridge recycling service, providing you with a simple, smooth and effective service.

As you are probably now aware we have a strong presence in the Recycling and Waste Management arena and to assist many of our members and clients we would like to now offer you all a FREE toner and ink cartridge recycling service.

We will organise to have internal cardboard containers sent to your offices, you fill them up with your toners and ink cartridges and then contact us when they are ready for collection.

The contents of the box will then be recovered and recycled and diverted from landfill.� It is really important that we try and do as much as we can to highlight recyclable and recoverable waste streams, and through this process you are adhering to the �waste hierarchy�

Download the Waste Hierarchy guidance

If you would like to arrange a collection scheme for your business please contact value@recyclinginaction.com for the attention of Matthew Burton or call 0844 8731034 for more details.

18 July 2011: Your feedback is important to us

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 15:45:00 +0100

Here at Comply Direct we place great importance on gaining feedback from obligated producers so that we can match our service offering to the market demand.

Members - your feedback is important

If you are a member of a Comply Direct compliance scheme then please let us know your thoughts, we welcome all feedback good or bad as all we want to do is make our service meet what you need.

To say thank you for your views you will be automatically entered into a prize draw to win 50% off your 2012 Comply Direct membership fee:

How do you rate our packaging compliance scheme?

How do you rate our WEEE compliance scheme?

Not a member of Comply Direct yet?�

Even if you are not currently a member of Comply Direct your opinion is still important to us.

Let us know what you consider to be the important aspects of a compliance service.

What is most important to you in a compliance scheme?

If you are currently registered with another scheme for Packaging, WEEE or batteries compliance then call 01756 794951, or get in touch by email to find out a little more about the service we offer.

Alternatively, why not become a registered user to complete a cost comparison online.

17 May 2011: New Commercial Business Manager

Tue, 17 May 2011 09:50:00 +0100

We are happy to announce the arrival of Matthew Burton, our new Commercial Business Manager for Recycling in Action Ltd, the sister comply of Comply Direct Ltd�
Matthew is responsible for the day to day running and all commercial aspects of Recycling in Action Ltd. His initial focus is primarily to increase the amount of waste packaging materials being handled within Recycling in Action but to also develop all the service offerings of both Comply Direct and Recycling in Action. This will involve working with our partners at Uniserve to develop their customer supply chain offering in the areas of compliance, carbon and materials recycling.

Matt commented, �I am delighted to have joined such a forward thinking and progressive team of people and I look forward to helping the business develop its relationships with current clients and to fully explore opportunities in the future beyond our client base.�

Matt can be contacted via: matthew@recyclinginaction.com

Matt is already a key part of our team and we wish Matt the best of luck in this role!

http://www.uniservegroup.co.uk/

9 May 2011: Big Fines for late CRC reports

Mon, 09 May 2011 09:27:00 +0100

The deadline is fast approaching for those companies obligated under the Carbon Reduction Commitment to submit greenhouse gas emissions footprint reports and their first annual emissions data report. Those who are late doing so will face heavy fines.

The management consultancy company Pricewaterhouse Cooper, have warned that companies could face fines equivalent to between 5 and 11% of their energy bills.This is an enormous amount considering some companies spend over �20m on their energy bills. Companies face an initial fine of �5,000 and a further �500 for each day the report is not submitted. Finally, any discrepancies found within the report can trigger fines of �40 a tonne. For the company who spends �20m on their energy bills, they are looking at fines of over �80,000.� (endsreport.com).

Pricewaterhouse Cooper warns that despite the risk of fines and the looming deadlines, many companies are not prepared for the July cut-off date. Furthermore, Henry Le Fleming, carbon reporting specialist, warns last year�s registration phase was the easy part, �Many companies won�t have stressed their processes, systems and controls for gathering data�.��

28 March 2011: Packaging sector boosted by Budget

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:26:00 +0100

On March 23rd George Osborne announced that the Climate Change Agreements (CCA) will be extended to 2023.

In addition, the climate change levy discount on electricity for CCA participants is to be increased from 65 to 85% as of April 2013 to continue to support energy-intensive businesses.

A large percentage of the packaging industry have signed up to the CCA, a government initiative that allows energy-intensive firms a discount on the Climate Change Levy if they achieve energy efficiency targets.

The packaging industry have welcomed the Chancellor�s CCA announcement as most of the packaging industry are joined up to the CCA which makes them exempt from the Carbon Reduction Commitment, which is now nothing but a tax.

28 March 2011: Less demand for recovered exports

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:08:00 +0100

The Chinese markets for recovered paper and plastics � An update on the Chinese markets for recovered paper and plastics reveals continuing strong Chinese demand for recovered paper and plastics.

That is the latest findings of the Waste & Resources Action Programme�s (WRAP) most market report on the Chinese markets for recovered paper and plastics as published March 21st. This report looks at the key developments in the Chinese markets for recovered paper and plastic including trends in demand, prices and the balance between imported and domestically recovered material.

Importantly the report highlights that �China is increasingly tapping into its own resources of domestically-recovered materials.� Imports will continue to remain an important part of meeting China�s need for material, WRAP states that �China�s supply of recovered materials but China seems likely to become�

The report shows that the import of recovered paper has decreased in China, with its level of recovered paper consumption imported falling from 45% in 2007 to 44% in 2009. WRAP claims that is likely that this figure would have fallen again for 2010. In the end, WRAP alleges that Chinese demand for UK exports of recovered paper will continue to grow steadily.

14 March 2011: Revised Guidance Notes for RoHS Directive

Mon, 14 Mar 2011 09:02:00 +0000

The Government have provided revised Guidance Notes for the RoHS Regulations in the UK.

Please find below a link to the recently revised Government Guidance Notes:�

Revised Government Guidance notes

Following agreement of a Recast RoHS Directive by the European Parliament in November 2010, we expect the new RoHS Directive to be approved in Council later next month, followed afterwards by publication in the Official Journal.� After publication there will be an 18 month period before the Directive must be transposed by member states.
�

13 December 2010: CRC consultation closes 17th December

Mon, 13 Dec 2010 14:38:00 +0000

The Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) is currently consulting on how to simplify the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC).

The proposed changes will amend the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme Order 2010 SI 768.

The consultation closes on 17 December 2010 with amendments to the legislation expected to come into force on 1 April 2011.

Who will be affected?
The proposed amendments are likely to affect those organisations that are participants or have to make in information disclosure in phase one of the scheme. The proposals may also be of interest to other businesses, public sector organisations, trade associations, non-governmental organisations and charities that may have CRC obligations in future phases.

Why is the scheme under consultation?
Changes to the CRC were announced in the government�s spending review, including:

simplifying the CRC
delaying the first sale of allowances from 2011 to 2012
revenue raised from sales of CRC allowances not to be recycled back to participants, instead it is proposed this is to support the public finances,

Although the decision has been made to remove the revenue recycling, the performance league table is to be kept as a reputation incentive for the scheme.

What are the proposed amendments?
The key amendments to the CRC Energy Efficiency scheme include:

extending the introductory phase by 12 months, so that it runs until March 2014
postponing the start of phase two until April 2013�
removing the requirement of organisations with less then 6,000MWh usage to register an information disclosure about their energy use in future phases.

The delay of the start of phase two would allow time to make further amendments to help simplify the CRC.

Commenting on the proposal
You can submit comments on the proposals until 17 December 2010.

Email: CRC@decc.gsi.gov.uk