The packaging revolution—how 2024 ended
In environmental law, December 2024 was a month of many landmark changes. On 18 December, the legislative process for amending Poland’s deposit-refund scheme finally came to an end. And on 16 December the Council of the EU formally adopted the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.
The deposit-refund scheme
The initial legal framework for the deposit-refund scheme in Poland was established in the Act of 13 July 2023 Amending the Act on Packaging and Packaging Waste Management and Certain Other Acts. The deposit-refund scheme was scheduled to go into effect on 1 January 2025.
Ultimately it was decided that the provisions establishing the deposit-refund scheme in Poland will not be applied until 1 October 2025, under the amending act of 21 November 2024, signed by the President on 18 December 2024. Thus the deposit-refund scheme will launch with a nine-month delay. But it is not only the effective date of the provisions that has changed.
In addition to a number of adaptation and transitional provisions, it is important to note:
- Art. 40g(1)(1), establishing the requirement for the representative entity to provide at least one stationary point for collection from end users in each commune of packaging and packaging waste covered by the deposit-refund scheme
- Art. 21a(1a), excluding from collection under the deposit-refund scheme packaged products of milk, yogurt, or other drinkable dairy product
- Art. 40j, establishing new rules on the wording of the application for a permit to operate a deposit-refund system and the wording of the permit itself
- Art. 40g(16), setting up the requirement for collection of deposits at the distribution stages of a packaged product prior to sale of the product to the end user, and from the end user purchasing the product
- Art. 40k(1)–(2b), establishing rules for revocation of a permit to operate a deposit-refund scheme by the minister for climate
- Art. 34(2c), in conjunction with Annex 2, pursuant to which introducers of beverage product packaging who have not joined any deposit-refund scheme will be required to pay a treble product fee
- The amendment to the VAT Act regarding designation of the representative entity obligated to calculate, collect and remit VAT
- The amendment to the Waste Law regarding exemption from the requirement to obtain a permit for collection of packaging waste generated from packaging covered by the deposit-refund scheme from entities conducting non-professional collection of such waste (as defined in Art. 45(1)(1) of the Waste Law).
Most of these changes should be viewed positively. They are the result of months of consultations between the new government and the packaging industry. But there may be serious doubts whether delaying the launch of the deposit-refund scheme by as much as nine months was necessary—particularly as Poland is obliged to achieve certain levels of collection of packaging waste under the Single-Use Plastic Directive. We will address concerns over the new design for operation of the deposit-refund scheme in Poland in separate articles.
PPWR
The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) is an element of the European Green Deal. It replaces the existing Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive. In the view of the European Commission, the existing solutions proved insufficient to reduce the amount of packaging waste, so it was necessary to adopt new rules.
This time, EU lawmakers decided to adopt the legal form of a regulation, to ensure greater effectiveness applying the provisions across the European Union. The new provisions entail significant changes for the broader packaging industry. In particular, manufacturers, importers and distributors need to prepare. The new obligations affect a very large group of entities.
The PPWR covers the entire life cycle of packaging, starting from the moment of its production. Some provisions will take effect 18 months after entry into force of the regulation. Others will be applied on or after 1 January 2030.
Among other things, the following issues are addressed in the PPWR:
- Packaging will have to meet certain sustainability requirements
- Packaging will have to meet concentration standards for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
- All packaging must be recyclable, with recyclability being classified accordingly
- Requirements for minimum recycled content in plastic packaging
- New labelling rules
- Requirements for limiting the weight and volume of packaging
- Rules for when ecological claims are allowed
- Member states are obliged to activate deposit-refund schemes
- A ban on placing certain packaging on the market.
But it should be remembered that there are quite a few exceptions to the new obligations, exhaustively enumerated in the body of the regulation.
The PPWR also contains provisions empowering the Commission to adopt certain delegated acts. This involves, for example, defining specific designs for packaging marks. Only after adoption of these delegated acts will we learn exactly what obligations businesses will have to face in the coming years.
Conclusion
The recently adopted laws are of momentous importance. From the point of view of Polish companies, the President’s signature on the act modifying the framework for operation of the deposit-refund scheme is crucial, coming in at the last minute before the system was set to launch in the shape agreed by the previous parliament. The new act also takes into account most of the demands put forward by the industry. Nonetheless, there are still questions and doubts about some of the rules for functioning of the deposit system.
The PPWR will gain in importance in the coming years, but companies should already start preparing for the obligations resulting from it, which affect many entities and cover the entire life cycle of packaging. The PPWR is a clear signal from EU lawmakers, who have prepared a multi-year plan to reduce the creation of packaging waste. Businesses operating in Poland will also participate in this plan.
Karol Maćkowiak, Environment practice, Wardyński & Partners
