The Senate approved the Electric and Electronic Wastes Law Project

The RAEE Law Project has been presented by Senator Filmus; after the green light given in internal commissions, the Senate finally approved same.

According to the approved project, the RAEE Law is passed in accordance with Section 41 of the Argentine Constitution, which empowers the Federal Congress to determine the environment’s minimum standards of protection. These minimum standards of protection are mandatory for the provinces, which nevertheless could enact their own specific legislation with higher -but not lower- standards of protection than those determined by the Federal regime.

The most important provisions of the RAEE Law Project are the following:

1. To create the producer’s extended liability principle: electric and electronic devices (“AEE”) producers are bound to intervene in the AEE post consumption stage to (i) mitigate or reduce the generation of AEE wastes (“RAEE”), (ii) promote the reuse and recycling of such wastes and (iii) finance RAEE reuse and recycling programs.
2. An exhaustive list of AEE is included as Annex I, which after its use or consumption would be considered RAEE under the Law.
3. To create a Federal Fund for the Management of RAEE, which would be administered by the Federal Secretary of Environment.
4. To create a RAEE Management Federal Commission, which would be empowered to create, promote and administrate federal policies of RAEE management under the Law.
5. RAEE generators are bound to dispose same in accordance with the Law’s provisions. For small scale RAEE generators (domiciliary generators) it provides a specific RAEE recovery program through AEE commercializers and distributors.
6. Provides the minimum technical conditions that RAEE treatment facilities must comply with.
7. Sanctions under the Law vary from warnings, fines ranging from 1 to 1.000 basic salaries of the initial category of the public federal administration, suspension of activities up to 1-year term, closure of facilities and cancellation of administrative authorizations.

Now the RAEE Law Project has to be considered at the House of Representatives. If same is also approved without amendments, then the Executive Branch would promulgate the Law.