Understanding EPR

Extended Producers Responsibility is a policy tool that promotes the use of financial incentives to encourage manufacturers to design environmentally friendly products. It places the responsibility on producers to manage their products once they reach the end of their life cycle. This is different from product stewardship as it shifts the burden of managing certain products from the government to manufacturers, who include the cost of recycling in the product price. The rationale behind EPR is that brand owners, who have the greatest control over product design, are in the best position to reduce their products' environmental impact.

EPR can be implemented through reuse, buyback, or recycling programs. Producers also have the option to delegate this responsibility to a third party, who they pay for the management of used products. This approach shifts the responsibility for waste management from the government to private industries, making it easier for producers or sellers to internalize waste management and ensure their products are handled safely.

To understand how climate change impacts the environment, visit the linked article.

Pros and Cons of EPR

Like all environmental policy approaches, Extended Product Responsibility has its benefits and drawbacks.

Here are some of them:

Advantages

• Financial or physical responsibility for recycling their products can incentivize producers to design more sustainable and environmentally friendly products.
• Using fewer materials and designing products to last longer can directly lower producers’ end-of-life costs.
• As EPR policy becomes more widespread, it puts pressure on countries that export E-wastes, discouraging them from continuing to export E-wastes and encouraging them to build their own recycling facilities.

Aspirants can check out the following links to further enhance their understanding for the upcoming UPSC examination:

1. Electronic Waste – E-waste Management Rules
2. New Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules 2016
3. Surge in Plastic Waste Imports to India
4. Central Pollution Control Board – CPCB
5. Basel Convention 1989
6. Measures to Improve Delhi's Air Quality
7. Hazardous Substances
8. RSTV – Big Picture – Dangers of Plastics
9. Environment Conventions and Protocols
10. System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR)

Disadvantages

• There is speculation that such laws could increase the cost of electronics because producers would include recycling costs in the initial price.
• There are concerns that manufacturers may use recall programs to remove second-hand electronics from the reuse market, by shredding rather than reusing or repairing goods that come in for recycling.
• While fees are set in place to incentivize recycling, this may discourage the use of better materials for different electronic products.

For more articles related to UPSC preparation, visit the links given in the table below. Candidates can get an idea about the general pattern of the UPSC Exams by visiting the UPSC Syllabus page.

Related Links