Rita Penman - 7-Nov-2007
- Corby toy importer and distributor Zapf
Creation (UK) has been fined a total of
£18,000 and ordered to pay full Environment
Agency costs of £1,132 after admitting
failing its environmental duty.
For more than three years the company should
have been signed up to a recycling scheme
but assumed its parent company in Germany
had dealt with any recycling requirements.
The company’s annual income for at least
three years was in excess of £5 million
and it handled 840 tonnes, 842 tonnes and
962 tonnes in the years 2004, 2005 and 2006.
Under environmental regulations, any company
handling more than 50 tonnes of packaging
per year and with an annual turnover of
more than £2 million per year must
recover and recycle or pay to recover and
recycle a percentage of their packaging
waste.
The aim of these regulations is to make
businesses take responsibility for the packaging
used in their operations and reduce the
amount of packaging waste going to landfill.
Companies carry out their obligation by
registering with the Environment Agency
or a compliance scheme and buying sufficient
packaging waste recovery notes (PRNs) from
accredited packaging waste re-processors
to demonstrate they have paid for enough
recovery to meet their obligation.
Zapf Managing Director Andrew Laughton
told Environment Agency officers that the
company had since registered with a Compliance
Scheme.
Under the regulations, obligated companies
are required to: 1) register with the Environment
Agency or a compliance scheme by 7 April
each year 2) provide evidence of recovery
and recycling of specific tonnages of packaging
waste and 3) provide the Environment Agency
with a certificate stating that they have
met their obligations.
Companies can reduce their obligations
by cutting down on packaging use.
After the hearing Environment Officer Charles
Phillipps said: ‘The Packaging Waste Regulations
ensure businesses take responsibility for
packaging used on their products by contributing
towards packaging recycling and recovery
to minimise their environmental impact.
‘Although these regulations have been in
force since 1997, some companies still ignore
or remain unaware of their responsibilities.
We actively seek to find and prosecute such
companies as we have done in this case.’
Zapf pleaded guilty to the following charges
(three for each year 2004, 2005,2006) and
asked for one year of offences for 2003
to be taken into consideration.
1. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 3(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
1997 failed to register by 7 April 2004
as required by Regulations 3(5)(a) and 5
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 34(1)(a) and (5)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
2. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 3(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
1997 failed to take reasonable steps to
recover and recycle packaging waste during
the year ending 31 December 2004 as required
by Regulation 3(5)(b)(i) of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 34(1)(b) and (5)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
3. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 3(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
1997 failed to furnish a certificate of
compliance in respect of the recovery and
recycling obligations by 31 January 2005
as required by Regulations 3(5)(b)(ii) and
23 of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 34(1)(c) and (5)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
4. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 3(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
1997 failed to register by 7 April 2005
as required by Regulations 3(5)(a) and 5
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 34(1)(a) and (5)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
5. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 4(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
2005 failed to recover and recycle packaging
waste during the year ending 31 December
2005 as required by Regulation 4(4)(b)(i)
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 40(1)(b) and (9)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
6. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 4(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
2005 failed to furnish a certificate of
compliance in respect of the recovery and
recycling obligations by 31 January 2006
as required by Regulations 4(4)(c) and 21
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 40(1)(c) and (9)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
7. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 4(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
2005 failed to register by 7 April 2006
as required by Regulations 4(4)(a) and 6
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 40(1)(a) and (9)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
8. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 4(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
2005 failed to recover and recycle packaging
waste during the year ending 31 December
2006 as required by Regulation 4(4)(b)(i)
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 40(1)(b) and (9)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
9. That you the defendant as a producer
under Regulation 4(2) of the Producer Responsibility
Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations
2005 failed to furnish a certificate of
compliance in respect of the recovery and
recycling obligations by 31 January 2007
as required by Regulations 4(4)(c) and 21
of those Regulations.
Contrary to Regulation 40(1)(c) and (9)
of the Producer Responsibility Obligations
(Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 and Section
95 of the Environment Act 1995.
Fined £2,000
