Government proposing up to €100 fine for disposal of electronic waste in black bags

The government is considering the introduction of a fine for those individuals who throw away electronic waste in the black garbage bags.

Speaking at a conference organised by WEEE Malta, Minister for the Environment Jose herrera said that there is a proposal for the introduction of a fine of up to €100 for those who do not throw away their electronic waste responsibly.

Minister Herrera said that its time for the authorities to introduce harsher fines for those who do not abide by the regulations.

The conference organised yesterday was aimed at addressing the electronic waste issue in Malta and discuss future solutions with relevant stakeholders.

Representatives from the Environmental and Resources Authority, Malta Recyclers Association and from WasteServ were among those taking part in the conference.

More than 10,000 tonnes of electronic waste was generated in 2015, the minister said.

Addressing the conference, Shadow Minister for the Environment Marthese Portelli said that the latest PN document published recently, presents a set of proposals on waste management.

She pointed out that Malta does not have concrete statistics which show the current e-waste situation in Malta. That is why, she insisted on the need for a national e-waste survey. This point was also mentioned by Marcel Mizzi, Chairman of WEEE.

Sergio Mallia, Chief Operations Officer, presented statistics following the first year at WEEE. The company collected up to 670 tonnes of waste, 120 tonnes of which from WasteServ. It operated with one contractor which carried out 570 trips around Malta and Gozo.