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WEEE & RoHS Directives Relevance of WEEE and RoHS Directives to City Technology Ltd The European Union Directives 2002/95/EC on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment and 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment are designed to tackle the fast increasing waste stream of electrical and electronic equipment and complements European Union measures on landfill and incineration of waste. Member States are required to introduce legislation to meet these directives by 1st July 2006. Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE): 2002/96/EC This imposes certain requirements on the re-use and recycling of Electronic equipment at the end of it's life. Electrical equipment is defined to belong to one of 10 categories with different requirements for each. Gas detection equipment is likely to fall into category 9 "Monitoring and Control Equipment". This has less onerous requirements than some of the others but will involve marking the equipment with a "crossed out wheely bin" symbol and making some arrangements for re-use/recycling. The later may be most likely be discharged by belonging to some kind of national scheme involving a levy on items produced. Such schemes are still being discussed in most countries. The WEEE directive does not forbid the use of any materials, but no doubt charges for disposal of Toxic and Heavy metals will continue to rise. Restrictions on Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS): 2002/95/EC The sister directive covers the restrictions on the use of cetain highly toxic heavy metals in electrical equipment, of which Lead is one. The good news for gas detection is that the directive uses the same categories of equipment as the WEEE directive and category 9 (Monitoring and Control Equipment) is specifically excluded from all the requirements of the directive. A second stakeholder consultation on exemptions to The RoHS directive has just closed. A request for an exemption for Lead in Gas sensors has been proposed. More details can be found by clicking here. Useful web Sites |