The progress in applying packaging taxes and the introduction of new EC and national drafts cross Europe are detailed in the 40th edition of the "Europen Bulletin" published by the European Organization for Packaging and the Environment (Europen, Brussels / Belgium; www.europen.be). Nation-by-nation its highlights include:

Belgium
In Belgium, the government's aborted plan to impose a tax on non-refillable containers has been replaced with a revised tax which is additionally applicable to refillable beverage containers, leaving the tax on non-refillable containers unchanged. The new published tax rates include: EUR 9.86/hl for non-refillables and EUR 1.41/hl for refillables.

The Belgian government's attempt to introduce a carbon-based tax on all packaging materials failed in light of opposition from a coalition of environmentalists, industry and consumers which viewed the plans for a general tax on packaging as a stealth tax that could not be justified on environmental grounds. However, a tax on selected types of packaging will become effective on 1 July 2007, Europen says, including EUR 3/kg on plastic carrier bags and EUR 2.70/kg on plastic films.

France
In France, reflecting the obligation under a 2005 Law on Agriculture Policy of the country's agriculture ministry to promote biodegradable plastics, a proposal has been notified to the European Commission (EC) to require plastic used to produce small rubbish bags and cotton buds to contain a minimum of 40% by weight of "vegetable origin." The law also requires that all plastic carrier bags should be biodegradable by 2010 and France has drafted a separate decree to implement this. The bulletin says that the EC has argued that a ban on non-biodegradable carrier bags would contravene the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive.

Italy
A law banning non-biodegradable plastic bags by 2010 has additionally been passed in Italy. The country's 2007 Finance Act also includes a tax on plastic carrier bags and a EUR 0.01 tax on plastic bottles for mineral or table water.

Hungary
Detailed regulations on how to certify compliance of packaging have been adopted in Hungary. After 1 January 2009, packaging can only be distributed if it complies with the essential requirements of the EU Packaging Waste Directive.

The Netherlands
The newly-elected government has proposed to introduce a tax on all packaging in The Netherlands. The tax will bring in EUR 250m annually from 2008. It is not clear how the tax will be collected but Europen believes that it may be modelled on an existing tax in Denmark which is calculated on number of variables including environmental impact, resource consumption and CO2 emissions. A proposal to introduce deposits for beverage containers, with the aim of ensuring that 55% of small plastic bottles are collected, is also under discussion.

Germany
The fifth revision of the Packaging Ordinance update has been published and the German Federal Government anticipates it will take effect on 1 January 2008. Europen says that the main thrust of the proposal remains but there are some changes in detail including the clearing arrangement for dual systems and reporting requirements for manufacturers and distributors. There are also changes to the simplified reporting requirements for small companies with material-specific thresholds, rather than a single limit, being proposed. It is proposed that mandatory deposits will be waived on drinks containers made from bio-plastics.

Slovenia
The authorities in Slovenia are drafting guidance to help companies to produce a conformity statement for all packaging materials to comply with the essential requirements of the European Packaging Waste Directive.

e-Service:
Europen bulletin (issue 40, May/June 2007) as PDF document (457 KB)