State product fees in Bulgaria are between three and nine times higher than the average costs of managing waste electrical and electronic equipment in the European Union (EU), said on Tuesday Gabriela Chiflichka, Director General of APPLIA Bulgaria – an association of household appliance manufacturers.
According to her, this results in significantly higher costs for managing waste electrical and electronic equipment being borne by Bulgarian consumers compared to other consumers across Europe. Chiflichka gave the example of the fee paid to compliance schemes in Bulgaria for a 70-kilogram refrigerator, which amounts to EUR 33, whereas in Romania and Greece it is only EUR 14. She added that a 65-kilogram washing machine costs Bulgarian consumers EUR 18, compared to EUR 13 in Romania, EUR 8 in Greece and EUR 0.52 in Austria. For a 5-kilogram vacuum cleaner, consumers in Bulgaria pay a EUR 5 fee, while in Romania and Greece it is EUR 1.
“The accumulated problems in Bulgaria’s extended producer responsibility (EPR) system require fundamental changes, the implementation of which will take time. In the meantime, both consumers and businesses need an urgent solution to normalise the current processes in the country,” she said.
APPLIA Bulgaria proposes a specific solution – temporarily reducing state product fees tenfold until a proper, in-depth analysis of the costs associated with waste management and their impact on businesses and Bulgarian consumers is carried out. This would allow manufacturers and importers of electrical and electronic equipment to meet their extended producer responsibility obligations at prices comparable to the average waste management costs in other European countries, Chiflichka noted, adding that this would also benefit Bulgarian consumers.
Chiflichka called for transparency, stability, security and predictability in waste management costs. In her words, these costs should be determined in a transparent and cost-effective manner and should not exceed what is necessary to cover the services provided. In addition, all revenues from recycled materials entering compliance schemes should be taken into account, as waste is a resource and has value, she said.
She also called for an immediate solution and for normalisation of the system through liberalising the regime and issuing permits to new compliance organisations, as this would restore competition and ensure that prices are economically justified and market-based.