Royal Decree 110/2015 on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment

Royal Decree 110/2015, of February 20, on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment.

http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2015/02/21/pdfs/BOE-A-2015-1762.pdf

However, these devices contain hazardous substances themselves, which, while necessary to ensure their functionality, can be emitted into the environment or be harmful to human health if not managed and treated properly once they become waste. These devices may contain cadmium, mercury, lead, arsenic, phosphorus, hazardous oils, and gases that deplete the ozone layer or contribute to global warming, such as chlorofluorocarbons, hydrofluorocarbons, or hydrofluorocarbons, whose emission must be particularly controlled and which are present in cooling circuits and insulating foams of temperature exchange devices. Therefore, all stages of management, from collection, storage, transport, and treatment, must be carried out under safe conditions, without mixing with other waste streams (separate collection), and avoiding handling or breakage that could release these hazardous substances into the environment or expose workers who come into contact with these wastes during their treatment to hazardous substances.

The two facets of these wastes, their high content of valuable materials and hazardous substances, determine the peculiarity of this type of waste and why the Directive aims to improve the environmental performance of all the actors involved in the life cycle of electrical and electronic devices, such as AEE producers, distributors, and consumers, and particularly those agents directly involved in the collection and treatment of WEEE.

A. General conditions for the collection and transport of WEEE

The collection and transport conditions will allow for the preparation for reuse of WEEE and its components and should avoid their breakage, excessive stacking, the emission of substances or loss of materials, and the leakage of oils and liquids.

Collection fractions containing exclusively waste from treatment groups 23, 32, 42, 52, and 71 of Annex VIII will be considered fractions of non-hazardous waste.

B. Specific conditions for collection and transport

  1. Lamps containing mercury.

a) Collection conditions:

  1. These lamps will only be collected in special containers to prevent their breakage. If the collection is carried out in a public place or sales outlets without ventilation, the containers will be covered to prevent the release of mercury vapors in case of accidental breakage of lamps.
  2. Containers will exist to guarantee the selective and differentiated collection of compact lamps and straight lamps so that both typologies are not mixed. They may be collected in different compartments in the same container.

b) Transport conditions:

  1. Measures will be taken during transport to prevent the breakage of lamps and the release of mercury.
  2. In no case will dumping of the contents of the transport vehicle be allowed as a method of emptying the vehicle.
  3. Screens and monitors with cathode ray tubes (CRT) and flat screens and monitors that do not have LED technology.

a) Collection conditions.

The collection of these wastes will be carried out in a way that avoids the risk of screen or monitor breakage. To minimize this risk, cages will preferably be used, and depositing in large containers that cause stacking of these WEEE, thereby increasing the chances of breakage, will not be allowed.

b) Transport conditions.

  1. Measures will be taken during transport to prevent the breakage of the devices and the release of hazardous substances.
  2. In no case will dumping of the contents of the transport vehicle be allowed as a method of emptying the vehicle.
  3. Appliances containing refrigerant gases.

a) Collection conditions.

When collecting these appliances, appropriate measures will be taken, especially in their stacking, to prevent the rupture of the cooling circuit or powdery materials. Collection conditions must avoid the emission of gases into the atmosphere or oil spills.

b) Transport conditions.

During the transport of these appliances, appropriate measures will be taken to prevent them from being hit and suffering breakages in the cooling circuit, thereby avoiding the emission of gases into the atmosphere, powdery materials, or oil spills. These measures may include, among others, protecting the equipment with impact-absorbing materials or restraint systems that prevent the equipment from moving during transport.