Packaging Waste Management: European Standards and Legislation of Ukraine

The article is devoted to the study of the current state and prospects of implementation into national legislation of the normative provisions of the European Union in the field of waste management, in particular the Directive of the European Parliament and the Council «On packaging and packaging waste» (1994, December 20) № 94/62/EU.

Ukraine undertook to implement a number of Directives in the field of waste management. After the enactment of the Law of Ukraine «On Waste Management», which takes into account European approaches based, in particular, on the provisions of the Framework Directive of the European Parliament and the Council № 2008/98/EU of November 19, 2008 «On Waste and Repeal of Certain Directives», a draft law on packaging and packaging waste has been developed. This draft law is aimed at determining the legal, economic and organizational principles in the field of handling packaging and packaging waste.

The main European approaches involve significantly reducing packaging waste, adopting mandatory re-use targets, limiting unnecessary packaging and minimizing packaging, restricting certain types of packaging and using reusable packaging etc. Compliance with European standards in the field of packaging and packaging waste management means not only the adoption of a special law, but also the implementation of an effective mechanism, tools that ensure the organization of the system for preventing the generation of packaging waste, their processing and reuse.

Packaging waste management is an important and complex area of waste management that requires the implementation of various measures, including development of infrastructure for separate collection of packaging waste, carrying out information and educational campaigns to raise public awareness of handling packaging waste, implementation of scientific research work in the field of progressive technologies of processing and production of products from secondary raw materials, introduction of a system of obligations and incentives for business entities and citizens that contribute to the prevention and minimization of packaging waste generation, prosecution for violations of packaging waste management rules.