Packaging Regulations introduced in the UK in March 1997 following an EU Directive imposed obligations on all businesses handling waste in the course of their business who had a turnover of £2million or more and generated waste exceeding 50 tonnes a year.
Who: Hillier Nurseries of Romsey and the Dieries of Romsey and the Divisional Court
When: Late January 2001
Where: London
What happened:
Packaging Regulations introduced in the UK in March 1997 following an EU Directive imposed obligations on all businesses handling waste in the course of their business who had a turnover of £2million or more and generated waste exceeding 50 tonnes a year. They had to register with a central agency, take steps to recover and recycle their packaging waste and pay a proportion of the collection and recycling cost. Hillier Nurseries of Romsey were surprised when the Environment Agency ("EA") informed them that the plastic flowerpots they handled were caught by the Regulations and when they dug in their heels the EA prosecuted. The local magistrate sent the regulators packing (!) but on appeal the Divisional Court took a different view. They could see no reason why flowerpots should not classify as packaging and directed the magistrates to convict and impose a penalty.
Why this matters:
The verdict was greeted with howls of protest by Eurosceptics and the press headline writers had a flowerpot field day. As the environment agency said, however, if the ruling increases the volume of plastic that comes within the Regulations and stays out of heaving landfill sites, we will all benefit in the long run. Hillier were certainly not alone in not appreciating the wide ambit of the Regulations. All businesses handling significant levels of packaging who are not already registered should conduct a waste audit and take advice on the requirements.
