The Council of the EU, the European Parliament and the European Commission reached a provisional agreement on Tuesday 21 June to tighten concentration limits for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in waste in order to protect human health and the environment from the most toxic chemical substances.
The text agreed by the negotiators concerns the updating of Annexes IV and V of Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 on POPs, to adapt it to the Stockholm Convention, which it transposes. It should promote a non-toxic circular economy.
For dioxins and furans (PCDDs/PCDFs and dioxin-like PCBs) - one of the most sensitive issues in the inter-institutional negotiations (see EUROPE 12963/9) - the limit value is set at 5 μg/kg. For these substances in household ash and soot, this limit value will apply from 1 January 2025.
The limit values for these substances in fly ash from biomass units for heat and power generation will apply one year after the entry into force of the regulation, with a transitional value of 10 μg/kg in the meantime. Member States shall collect and make available such data by 1 July 2026. The limit values will be reviewed 5 years after the entry into force of the Regulation.
For PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) and its salts, the maximum limit value will be 1 mg/kg; for PFOA-related components, it will be 40 mg/kg, with a revision clause to reassess the situation 5 years after the entry into force of the regulation.
For PBDEs, the agreement provides for a three-step approach, with a limit value of 500 mg/kg upon entry into force of the regulation, a reduction to 350 mg/kg 3 years after entry into force and a further reduction to 200 mg/kg 5 years after entry into force, provided that the limit value for placing the substance on the market is not higher.
This is to avoid a situation where a product can be legally placed on the EU market (Annex I), but is considered POPs waste once it is removed from the market (Annex IV).
PFHxS. This substance was added to the Commission’s original proposal in line with the outcome of the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention.
The limit value is set at 1 mg/kg for PFHxS and their salts and 40 mg/kg for PFHxS-related components.
For short-chain chlorinated paraffins (C10-C13 alkanes) (SCCPs) - flame retardants present in some rubber and plastic wastes - the limit value is 1500 mg/kg, with a revision clause 5 years after entry into force.
In addition, the Commission will assess whether EU waste legislation should be amended to establish whether waste containing POPs exceeding the limit values in Annex IV should be classified as hazardous.
The provisional agreement still needs to be validated by the Member States and the Parliament. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)