The Executive Branch enacted the decree with regulations for the comprehensive management of electrical and electronic equipment waste, the Ministry of the Environment reported on Tuesday, 25 July 2023.
The objective is to establish and regulate the responsibilities of those involved in the integral management of Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), in line with the General Law of Integral Management and Co-processing of Solid Waste that went into effect in 2022.
The Dominican Republic generated 67,000 tons of electrical and electronic equipment waste in 2019, which, in financial terms, is equivalent to about US$71 million, according to data from the Global E-waste Monitor 2020
According to a Ministry of Environment press release, the regulation covers the general provisions and principles that guide the management of WEEE, as well as the necessary definitions for its correct application.
In addition, it establishes the obligations of producers, importers, assemblers, remanufacturers, reconditioners, distributors, marketers and consumers of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE).
Priority products, including EEE, are subject to the Extended Producer Responsibility (REP) and are considered special handling waste.
The regulation applies to all the country yet excludes WEEE related to state security, military products, weapons, ammunition and war material.
Likewise, it is established that EEE producers must be established in the Dominican Republic or designate a legally authorized representative to comply with the legal provisions on WEEE.
Read more in Spanish:
Ministry of Environment
27 July 2023