Environmental guidance for your business in Northern Ireland & Scotland
If you place portable batteries on the UK market, either included with electrical equipment or separately, you must join a battery compliance scheme (BCS) or register directly with either:
If you place more than one tonne of portable batteries per year on the UK market, you must join one of several approved BCSs by 15 October in the year preceding the compliance year. If you do not know by 15 October if you will be placing batteries on the market in the forthcoming compliance year, you must join a compliance scheme within 28 days of when you start placing batteries on the market. BCS act on behalf of producers of portable batteries to meet their collection and recycling obligations. You should consider the services each BCS offers and the associated costs.
You must provide your BCS with the sales data it requires.
A BCS takes responsibility for:
In Northern Ireland: BCS information on the GOV.UK website
In Scotland: SEPA: Batteries compliance schemes (BCS) information
If you place one tonne or less of portable batteries per year on the UK market, you must register directly with your environmental regulator using the NPWD. The NPWD is an integrated system that maintains a register of all types of battery producer - portable, industrial and automotive.
You must register using the NPWD within 28 days of the date when you first place portable batteries on the market. You must provide information about your business and the tonnage and chemistry type of batteries you place on the market.
NIEA: Information on battery producer responsibilities
SEPA: Information on battery producer responsibilities
Environment Agency: National Packaging Waste Database (NPWD) information
All producers must keep written records of the total amount of batteries in tonnes that they place on the market in the UK per year, every year.
GOV.UK: Battery waste - producer and supplier responsibilities
Contact your environmental regulator
Businesses affected by the batteries regulations
Identifying different battery types
Substance restrictions and battery labelling
Industrial and automotive battery producers responsibilites
Portable battery producers responsibilities
Portable batteries: distributor and retailer responsibilities
How end users can recycle batteries
Treating or recycling waste batteries
SEPA Special Waste Consignment Notes – updated position, The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is now accepting special waste consignment notes (SWCNs) by email only.
DAERA Waste Policy Tracker, The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs has published a Waste policy tracker to stay informed of waste policy developments.
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