WEEE Ireland to present at Solas Webinar
May 12, 2021
WEEE Ireland is delighted to announce it’s involvement in the Solus webinar on mandatory new EU Commission Energy Labelling regulations. The Webinar will be presented by broadcaster Jonathan Healy with a panel of experts from government and compliance bodies including Minister Pippa Hackett, SEAI programme manager Tim Stokes and Elizabeth O’Reilly, environmental compliance & membership manager for WEEE Ireland.
Solas highlighted that on 1 September 2021, mandatory new European Commission regulations come into effect which will have significant consequences for the lighting industry and its retailers.
According to Solas, a brand-new version of the widely-recognised EU energy label will be applicable in all shops and online retailers for light bulbs and lamps with fixed light sources to help EU consumers cut their energy bills and carbon footprint.
The new label for light sources comes into effect on 1 September with an 18-month transition period for light sources already placed on the market.
‘The most important change is a return to a simple A-G scale on energy labels because more and more products are now achieving ratings as A, A+ or A++ according to the current scale causing confusion for consumers. The new energy label will leave empty energy efficiency classes at the top of the scale for advancing technologies and to encourage manufacturers to develop more energy efficient products,’ the company said.
A further significant change is the introduction of a QR code. By scanning the QR-code, consumers can find additional information about the product model. By law, all energy labelled products on the EU market have to be registered in a new EU-wide database – European Product Registry for Energy Labels (EPREL).
‘Repealed and Replaced’
Eco-design rules are mandatory for almost all lamps sold in the EU, Solas said.
From 1 September 2021, the existing rules will be repealed and replaced to include circular economy requirements.
According to WEEE Ireland 3.2 million light bulbs were recycled in Ireland in their last full recorded year in 2019 and 38,000 tonnes of electrical waste was taken back from landfill for use in manufacturing again.
The extensive new EU regulations are the result of nearly five years of negotiations and it will be mandatory for all manufacturers and retailers to comply, the group explained.
The new rules consist of the Single Lighting Regulation (SLR) and the Energy Labelling Regulation (ELR), it added.
What The New New Legislation Entails
The webinar on 20 May 20 at 11 am will bring clarity from government and compliance body speakers on exactly what this new legislation entails, what timelines are in place and how the industry and its retailers can be compliant.
Solus said it welcomes these new regulations which are in line with their progressive Planet First sustainability programme. The new energy labels will give clarity on energy efficiency for consumers and also ensure that businesses continue to innovate.