Contribute to cleaning up plastic litter

Extended producer responsibility from 1 January 2023

Extended Producer Responsibility (Uitgebreide Producentenverantwoordelijkheid, UPV in Dutch) will apply to several disposable plastic products. That means:

• you pay to clean up litter;
• you must encourage consumers to avoid littering.

The EPR measures will take effect on 1 January 2023.

For which products do you have to pay?

The EPR applies to single-use plastic products that are often found in litter. From 1 January 2023, the EPR will apply to the following products:

• Tobacco products with filters
• Single-person food packaging
• Disposable cups
• Bags and wrappers
• Lightweight plastic carrier bags
• Beverage packaging
• Balloons
• Wet wipes

How much do you pay for cleaning up litter?

The government is looking at which products typically end up in litter and how expensive it is to clean up. The government will then determine the price per product (in Dutch). Producers will pay a fixed amount for each product they sell. The price varies per product.

Annual payments

Every year on 1 June, Rijkswaterstaat publishes what producers have to pay per product. You then pay your clean-up contribution in retrospect. For the products you put on the market the year before, the payment must be made by 1 August. That means, for example, for the products you put on the market in 2023, you pay for the first time by August 2024.

It is not yet known to which organisation you will make this payment. The chosen organisation pays the fees to the government organisations that clean up the litter. Rijkswaterstaat will make a test calculation in 2023 so that you know approximately what costs you can expect before 2024.

Pay individually or together

You can pay yourself or together with other producers through a producer organisation. Check with your sector organisation if there is a producer organisation that organises your payment.

Encourage consumers to avoid littering

Extended producer responsibility also includes challenging consumers to avoid and prevent littering. Every 3 years you make a plan with measures to make consumers aware that:

• the product does not degrade in the environment;
• where it is often found in litter;
• why it causes damage.

With these measures, you encourage consumers to dispose of the product in the correct way.

Joint campaigns

You can make consumers aware in many different ways. For example, with a communication campaign. Or influencing behaviour where customers use your product. You can also inform consumers together with other producers. Nederland Schoon (in Dutch), for example, is an initiative that tackles litter on behalf of packaging producers.

Send your report to Rijkswaterstaat before 12 February 2023

Do you produce a product that falls under the EPR? You must report to Rijkswaterstaat between 1 January 2023 and 12 February 2023. You can soon learn how to report (in Dutch) or how your producer organisation can do this on your behalf.

Then the government knows which producers fall under the EPR and how the obligations are fulfilled. You must also file an annual report.

Annual report

On 1 April 2023, and every year thereafter, you report on how you are meeting the EPR obligations. And how many products you have brought to the market that fall under the measures. This too can be done by your producer organisation. The government needs this data to calculate the contribution per product (in Dutch).

Read more about how you or your producer organisation should report (in Dutch).

For more information about the annual report or other questions about these rules, please contact Rijkswaterstaat:

• Questions about making a report and about reporting can be sent to producers responsibility@rws.nl.
• You can ask other questions via the Waste Management Helpdesk (in Dutch).