India Drafts EPR Regulation for Non-Ferrous Metals

On August 14, 2024, India's Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) released a draft notification on the Gazette of India, which proposed to introduce Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for Scrap of Non-Ferrous metals under the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Second Amendment Rules, 2024. 

The draft came as the Ministry of Mines has recently brought out a “National Non-Ferrous Metal Scrap Recycling Framework, 2020”, especially for the non-ferrous metal sector to promote non-ferrous metal recycling.  In 2023, India also introduced an EPR framework for key metals recycled from E-waste (Click here to learn more). These combined regulatory instruments are implemented to address the urgent concern of pollution and resource scarcity and promote a well organized and formal recycling ecosystem. 

EPR Scope

The covered products made of non-ferrous metals include:

• Cans for Beverages, aerosols and other such product  

• Packaging Foils for food, pharma and other such product  

• Doors, windows, shutters

• Aluminium composite panel (ACP)  

• Aluminium partitioning, grills and other such product  

• Utensils

• Furniture tables, chairs, benches, ladders etc.

• Roofing & Ceiling sheets 
  

• Motors, pumps, alternators and other such product  

• Conductor cables & Wires, strips 

• Sanitary ware & fittings 

• Electrical fittings 

• Aluminium Alloy Bicycle  

• Transformer

• Centralized air conditioning plants  

• Apparel products e.g. Belt Buckles, Zip, Shoes

• Toys 

Notably, certain products like toys (like game consoles, electrical trains) already fall under the EPR framework for E-waste. 

EPR Registration

As per the EPR regulation, manufacturer, producer, collection agent, refurbisher and recycler are required to register on the EPR portal. Specifically, producer is defined as any person or entity who: 

• manufactures and sells products made of non-ferrous metals under its own brand;

• sells under its brand assembled products made of non-ferrous metals; 

• sells imported products made of made of non-ferrous metals;

• imports used devices or products or scrap of non-ferrous metals.

EPR Certificate

All producers are required to fulfill their EPR obligations in Schedule II through online purchase of EPR certificates from registered recyclers.  The EPR certificates available for purchase are limited the EPR liability of the current year (Year Y) plus any leftover liability of preceding years plus ten per cent of the current year liability. 

The producer may also defer the duration for the corresponding products made of non-ferrous metals by purchasing refurbishing certificates from registered refurbishers. 

All transactions of relevant certificates are performed and recorded on the portal developed by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). 

The EPR obligations for producer are established as follows: 

* "X" is the average life of the product

It should be noted that for importer, the EPR obligations should be 100% of the non-ferrous metals imported in the last year.

Annual Return

Manufacturer, producer, collection agent, refurbisher and recycler are required to file annual returns on the portal on or before June 30 following the financial year to which that return relates.

The draft regulation can be accessed here. 

More about EPR in India

To help you navigate the EPR compliance in India, we are organizing a webinar to demystify the certification requirements and discuss the latest trends. 

Join us on August 23 for EPR insights and compliance strategies crucial to your business.