This law focuses on the prevention and valuation of waste in all their aspects

The new Framework Law on the Management of waste, Extended Producer Liability and Recycling Promotion was published on June 1, 2016. This important regulation, whose central premise is that "every waste that may acquire value must be used for that purpose and its disposal prevented", gradually incorporates new obligations for producers, importers, exporters, waste generators and public institutions such as Municipalities and the Superintendence for the Environment, among others. In addition, it defines a catalog of priority products that will receive special treatment where the producer, understood in the broad sense set forth in the law, must observe a series of additional provisions. The new law also establishes a waste management system, the achievement of goals and education, among other provisions.

The new law establishes the obligations for producers to organize and finance the management of waste derived from their products. The provision centers on the prevention and valuation of waste in all their aspects, ordering that all producers, sellers or importers of priority products must take responsibility for their products upon the end of their service life. That is, these unusable products must be dealt with in order to gradually reduce their generation, while their recycling and other types of valuation are stimulated to protect people’s health and the environment in the long term.

The priority products are:

  • lubricating oils
  • electric and electronic devices
  • electrical energy accumulators
  • batteries
  • containers and packaging materials
  • tires

Additionally, the law creates the Extended Producer Liability (Responsabilidad Extendida del Productor, REP), recognizes the existing environmental laws on waste management and stipulates new waste management areas under the Ministry for the Environment:

  • certification, tagging and labelling
  • deposit and reimbursement system
  • ecological design
  • mechanisms for separation at the source and selective picking
  • mechanisms for rational waste management
  • mechanisms to prevent the generation of waste

To learn more please click here.

If you you need additional information, please write to Joaquín Vicuña, Associate at Alessandri.