| Author (Person) | Carstens, Karen |
|---|---|
| Series Title | European Voice |
| Series Details | Vol.10, No.17, 13.5.04 |
| Publication Date | 13/05/2004 |
| Content Type | News |
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By Karen Carstens Date: 13/05/04 EUROPEAN consumer electronics manufacturers, concerned that new 'eco-design' criteria backed by the European Parliament could increase costs and stifle innovation in the sector, hope that member states will now craft a more workable piece of legislation. Scrutinized in an initial Parliamentary vote last month, the eco-design directive aims to increase the efficiency of energy-using products, such as laptops and cell phones, with the aim of helping the EU meet its Kyoto climate-change goals. But manufacturers grouped under the European Information, Communications and Consumer Electronics Technology Industry Associations (EICTA) claim Parliament has gone too far. "This [directive] goes to the heart of our competence," said EICTA's Theo Schoenmakers. MEPs, facing a possible common position from the Council of Ministers in June, beefed up the 'green' criteria for setting the 'implementing measures' and proposed using a dual legal base to allow progressive member states to maintain or introduce stronger product design rules. "What the Parliament didn't realize is that this requires a long-term approach - it wanted energy improvements very quickly," said Schoenmakers. EICTA insists on a single legal base for the directive to "maintain a functioning internal market". Parliament wanted to add the EC treaty's Article 175, on the environment, to the initially proposed Article 95, on the internal market. But Schoenmakers said the Council of Ministers has called for elimination of this dual legal base, and reinserted a key reference to "economic considerations" into the draft law. Other causes for concern are how 'third party verification' would be feasible for industry and a lack of encouragement of voluntary measures. "These have been successful in the past," said Schoenmakers. "But Parliament has put voluntary measures on the same level of scrutiny as mandatory ones, so what is the incentive for voluntary agreements?" European manufacturers of consumer electronics, grouped under the European Information, Communications and Consumer Electronics Technology Industry Associations (EICTA), are concerned about the proposed Directive on the eco-design of energy-using products |
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| Source Link | http://www.european-voice.com/ |
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| Subject Categories | Environment |
