Editing Extended producer responsibility (section)

==Take-back==

In response to the growing problem of excessive waste, several countries adopted waste management policies in which manufacturers are responsible for [[take-back|taking back]] their products from end users at the end of the products' useful life, or partially financing a collection and recycling infrastructure. These policies were adopted due to the lack of collection infrastructure for certain products that contain [[hazardous material]]s, or due to the high costs to local governments of providing such collection services. The primary goals of these take-back laws therefore are to partner with the private sector to ensure that all waste is managed in a way that protects public health and the environment.
The goals of take-back laws are to
# encourage companies to design products for [[reuse]], [[recyclability]], and materials reduction;
# correct market signals to the consumer by incorporating waste management costs into product price;
# promote innovation in recycling technology.<ref>James Sallzman, Sustainable Consumption and the Law, 27ENVTL. L. 1274 (1997)</ref>
Take-back programs help promote these goals by creating incentives for companies to design products that minimize waste management costs, to design products that contain safer materials (so they do not need to be managed separately), or to design products that are easier to recycle and reuse (so recycling becomes more profitable).<ref>Linda Roeder, Hazardous Waste: Advocacy Group Recommendations Promote Manufacturer Responsibility, DAILY ENV"T REP., 2004-03-16</ref> The earliest take-back activity began in Europe, where government-sponsored take-back initiatives arose from concerns about scarce landfill space and potentially hazardous substances in component parts. The European Union adopted a directive on [[WEEE|Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)]]. The purpose of this directive is to prevent the production of waste electronics and also to encourage reuse and recycling of such waste. The directive requires the Member States to encourage design and production methods that take into account the future dismantling and recovery of their products.<ref>Directive 2002/96/EC of 2003-01-27 on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), 203 O.J. (l 37) 46</ref> These take-back programs have been adopted in nearly every OECD country{{Specify|date=2024-09-30}}. In the United States, most of these policies have been implemented at the state level.