Two euros per kilogram. Brussels wants money for electronic waste
This is about new own resources of the European Union, i.e. new sources of money for the new EU budget for 2028–2034. The European Commission's proposals, in addition to revenues from the ETS, part of the tobacco excise tax and fees from large corporations, include money for uncollected e-waste. Brussels wants countries to pay two euros for each kilogram of uncollected electronic waste, i.e. old washing machines, refrigerators, TVs and computers. The EC estimates that this would amount to approximately EUR 15 billion per year.
The problem is the way of counting uncollected electronic waste. The quantity is to be calculated on the basis of the difference between equipment placed on the market and that collected. The industry points out that a washing machine sold today does not immediately become waste. It can work for many years.
The issue is important for Poland because it is one of the largest producers of household appliances in the European Union.
Household appliances industry: it's a hidden tax
APPLiA Polska, which brings together producers of household appliances, sharply criticizes Brussels' proposal. It cannot be that an official like the emperor decides about the life or death of individual factories or even the entire industry - says Wojciech Konecki, head of APPLiA Polska to RMF FM.
The industry argues that producers already finance the collection and recycling of electronic waste, and the additional burden may mean an increase in production costs and equipment prices.
With household budgets already tight, this proposal could amount to a hidden tax on basic home appliances. Manufacturers already fully finance the collection and recycling of e-waste. Imposing an additional fee of two euros per kilogram will inevitably increase prices for consumers - especially those with lower incomes, and at the same time it will not help Poland or the European Union in building better recycling infrastructure - says Paolo Falcioni, director general of APPLiA Europe, to RMF FM.
“We won't get far without washing machines and refrigerators”
Wojciech Konecki asks whether Brussels is aware of the consequences for the industry. We won't be able to get very far without washing machines and refrigerators, he warns.
The head of APPLiA Polska claims that during a conversation in Brussels, the director of the office of the Commissioner for the Budget, Piotr Serafin, said with a smile: "Someone has to pay for own resources" (new revenues to the EU budget - editor's note).
However, the European Commission presents a different position. A person from the EC close to the subject, who wanted to remain anonymous, denied in an interview with an RMF FM journalist that such words had been uttered. She emphasized that it was not a new tax or fee imposed directly on the industry, but the so-called a statistical resource, similar to the mechanism for unrecycled plastic packaging waste. The state's payment would depend on how it manages the collection of electronic waste.
The European Commission denies the allegations
Brussels argues that the mechanism is intended to be an incentive to increase collection, recover valuable, including critical, raw materials and improve competition conditions for companies that comply with EU environmental standards.
At the same time, he admits that the calculations are not perfect. It assures that it is working to improve the statistical basis and data quality, and some of the comments regarding the use of household appliances "should be analyzed even more thoroughly."
However, the industry speaks of a sense of loneliness and appeals to the Polish government for a stronger defense of the industry in Brussels.
In recent years, most EU countries have lost production of household appliances. For this reason, their involvement in this matter is not visible. That is why effective action by Polish ministers sitting in the EU Council is so important now, says Wojciech Konecki.
Poland says: we have reservations
As an RMF FM journalist found out, the Polish authorities also have some reservations about Brussels' proposal, regarding e.g. the quality and comparability of data, the method of calculating uncollected waste and whether the mechanism will actually encourage increasing its collection. However, Poland does not say a firm 'no' to this proposal.
