The Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (94/62/EC) seeks to harmonise national measures aimed at regaining control over the management of packaging and packaging waste to prevent or reduce their impact on the environment, and to establish targets for the recovery and recycling of packaging waste and to facilitate the reuse of packaging materials.1

 

 

Directive (EU) 2018/852 is the last amendment of Directive 94/62/EC and contains updated measures designed to (i) prevent the production of packaging waste, and (ii) promote the reuse, recycling and other forms of recovering of packaging waste, instead of its final disposal, thus contributing to the transition towards a circular economy.2

 

 

EU initiatives on circular economy promote actions aimed at reducing waste and maximizing resources. This includes encouraging the design of products that will be reused or recycled, promoting sustainable consumption, and making waste management work towards prevention, reuse, and recycling, as opposed to disposal.3 The Court case is C-463/01,4 Commission v Germany, a case where the Court examined the compatibility of Germany’s beverage container deposit refund system with the principle of free movement of goods. The Court found that environmental protection is a legitimate aim pursuant to Article 36 TFEU, but concluded that the effect of Germany’s deposit refund system was to create disproportionate barriers to foreign producers accessing the market. The case illustrates the necessity of ensuring that sustainability measures are imposed in a non-discriminatory and proportionate manner through compliance with the internal market rules. Another instructive ruling is Case C-292/99,5 Commission v Italy, where the court found that Italy had violated the obligations owed under the Directive by failing to provide requested information from the regional governments in Italy on the packaging waste management plans for the data. The judgment stated, as the Commission rightly pointed out, the provision of relevant data and the reporting of such data are the foundation upon which Member States can achieve sustainability targets across the EU. Member States ensure the process is coordinated centrally and covered transparently, especially in federal and decentralised governance.