[Danas] Everyone participates in EE waste management, yet no one feels fully responsible

Electronic waste management in Serbia is often reduced to ad hoc activities in which everyone participates but no one feels fully responsible. The entire electronic waste management system in Serbia seems a bit chaotic, Slobodan Krstović, Head of NALED’s Environment Protection Alliance, told Danas.

One of the reasons for this situation is the insufficiently clear connection of all those who participate in the management system and the insufficiently implemented "extended producer responsibility" principle.

According to him, the recycling system in Serbia is based on subsidies and as such, it is dependent on the state.

However, this system will have to change in the next three to five years, given that the opening of Chapter 8 (Competition Policy) in the EU accession negotiations has been announced for this year, which will require a more restrictive incentive policy in all areas.

One of the shortcomings of the existing system is the absence of social responsibility, so when a manufacturer or importer pays a fee to the state, they usually do not show interest in how their product ends up.

Continue reading in Serbian on the Danas daily newspaper website.