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Trade and Industry Department The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Brand Hong Kong - Asia world city
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Commercial Information Circulars

24-hour hotline : 23 922 922

Ref : EIC 230/2/11

23 April 2001

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 80/01

European Union (EU)*: Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste
Conditions for a Derogation for Glass Packaging

Further to Commercial Information Circular No. 192/97 of 31 December 1997 informing the trade of the application of the essential requirements of the EU's Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste, we have received information that the European Commission has recently adopted a Decision allowing glass packaging to derogate from the heavy metal concentration levels in the Directive.

  1. The conditions allowing the derogation and other details are set out in the appended (pdf format ) Commission Decision. In brief, the Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste specifies that the sum of the concentration levels of lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium present in packaging and packaging components should not exceed 100 ppm by weight after 30 June 2001. Taking into account that full application of the level of 100 ppm might reduce the usage of recycled glass as it is contaminated by glass material containing high quantities of lead, the Commission has decided to allow glass packaging to exceed, after the date of 30 June 2001, the heavy metal concentration limit of 100 ppm by weight. The conditions allowing the derogation are.

    (a) no lead, cadmium, mercury or hexavalent chromium shall be intentionally introduced during the manufacturing process; and

    (b) the packaging material may only exceed the concentration limits because of the addition of recycled materials.

    There are additional reporting obligations for glass packaging manufacturers when the heavy metal concentration levels of their products exceed 200 ppm.

  2. The derogation will expire on 30 June 2006 unless this deadline is extended.

ENQUIRIES

  1. For enquiries about the contents of this Circular, please contact the undersigned at telephone number 2398 5351.

Yours faithfully,

 

(Thomas CHEUNG)

for Director-General of Trade and Industry

* : The EU Member States are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.



Note : While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, the Department cannot guarantee this to be so and will not be held liable for any reliance placed on the same.