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The agenda aimed to include many activities, in order to answer concerns related to a wide range of issues. Some of the technical committees meetings took place in parallel with those of the specialised working groups. The collection project was discussed in the plenary meeting and it was an item of great interest for the associations represented here, as it was to be expected in the context of the challenge facing producers as the European Directive is being revised.

The reports on the current stage of on-going projects presented by the working groups specialised in CRT and FPD (flat panel displays) technologies brought once again to the fore the difficulties related to the correct definition of the applicable technologies if manufacturers do not help identify the toxic substances in production ‘networks’. The working group for plastics has finalised yet another important stage, the preliminary study on recycling plastics from WEEE. The results are interesting and they can represent the basis on which applicable technologies and standards will become a reality sooner rather than later. You will find more detailed information on these topics in our future newsletters.

WEEE-LABEX (Label of Excellence) maintains its planned curse, according to Pascal Leroy, General Secretary of WEEE-Forum and project coordinator. There is fruitful cooperation with Cenelec, the European body for electrotechnical standardisation, the decisions adopted by WEEE-Forum during the Athens meeting in November last year were well-timed and by the end of 2010 the sections on processes that are part of the treatment and recycling operators’ responsibilities will have been drafted.

RepTool (Reporting Tools) will undergo a revision process in 2010, according to Renate Gabriel, project manager; soon, RepTool will become a stronger and more flexible instrument, thanks to its new facilities and functional modules. The application will be able to offer better answers to the new requirements, as recycling technologies diversify and the number of operators using it goes up. RepTool is a complex instrument, able to follow over 400 fractions that result from various treatment and recycling technologies. At the same time, RepTool is instrumental for controlling activities, as it is used to assess treatment and recycling processes and to determine the performance indicators correctly.

Our Association was represented by Liviu Popeneciu in the section covering collection aspects. He presented RoRec’s project for the set up of WEEE Drop-off Centres in partnership with town halls, as well as the results of actions that have taken place ever since the launching of this project. Due to the dynamic approach, supported by high-impact pictures and the focus placed on the central message, the 20 minutes available were sufficient to show the causes and then to convince the audience that this partnership is the solution for a rapid electric waste flow at the level of Romanian local communities. The subtitle ‘The Missing Link’ hints at the weak and inadequate infrastructure, which is the main cause of low collection levels. The people’s enthusiasm and the volume of 7-8 metric tons of WEEE handed over within one action prove that a minimal investment in a centre and the involvement of the local authority at the same time make for the ‘recipe’ for involving the responsible citizen in an organised electrical waste collection process. The presentation was followed by questions, comments, details on investments, the depreciation period, the comparison with the collection operational costs, concluding that there are significant differences between Western and Eastern European countries when it comes to facilities for selective collection, as well as the involvement of the local authorities in this process. In this context, the partnership with the town halls project proves to be necessary and well-timed, looking ahead at the next challenge, the foreseeable increase of collection targets once the European directive has been revised. This initiative is particularly appreciated by organisations in Portugal, Spain, Hungary, which were faced with similar reactions when they started their activity.

There was great interest for the results of the Möbius study on small-sized waste equipment, which identified in a professional manner the causes of current difficulties as well as the conditions needed for this activity to have good results. In addition, the interest raised by this study is the starting-point of a new project, namely the creation of a database for specialised containers.

The Amb3e Organisation from Portugal charmed the audience as it presented its small-sized waste equipment collection project promoted though primary and secondary schools. The snap shots showing the interaction with the pupils spoke for themselves. Once again, we were convinced that children and teenagers are very open to environment protection concepts, that they get involved enthusiastically in community projects, that they are creative and show solidarity.