Product manufacturers and importers will have to organize collection, treatment, transportation, use and utilization of wastes generated from the use of these products. This requirement was initially introduced by the Environmental Code of Kazakhstan. At the first stage, the requirement only applies to the automotive industry producers and manufacturers, such as those importing vehicles, tyres, accumulators, motor oils, etc.
Notably, the extended producer responsibility concept implemented by Kazakhstan does not allow the operators to opt-out from the obligation to collect, treat, transport, use and utilize the applicable wastes by paying the environmental fee. The possibility to pay such a fee was implemented in Russia which also has recently introduced the extended producer responsibility concept.
According to the Environmental Code, importers and manufacturers of listed products must either establish and use their own scheme for the collection, treatment and utilization of waste or to sign a contract with an Operator of the Extended Producer Responsibility (Operator of EPR) to perform these actions and pay the charges for the services into the Operator’s bank account.
Manufacturers and importers that have set up their own system for the collection, transportation, treatment, neutralization, use and/or utilization of wastes, must submit to the Operator the documents which confirm collection, processing and/or utilization of wastes generated from the use of the listed products and their packaging, in accordance with the prescribed procedure. The procedure was adopted by Order No. 708 dated 10 December 2015.
The extended producer responsibility does not apply to:
1)Manufacture of oils, polymer, glass, paper and/or cardboard packages, if in order to produce them, no less than 30% of recycled oil, polymer, glass and paper/cardboard respectively, processed and recycled in Kazakhstan, has been used;
2)Manufacturers and importers of polymer, glass, paper and/or cardboard packaging or combined material packaging produced in Kazakhstan or imported into Kazakhstan, provided that such packaging is sold outside Kazakhstan;
3)Manufacturers and importers of products produced in Kazakhstan and/or imported into Kazakhstan, if the goods have been sold outside Kazakhstan; and
4)Individuals importing the listed goods into Kazakhstan within the limits set for duty-free import (excluding transport vehicle importers).