The Packaging and Packaging Waste Law of 2002 (Law 32 (I) / 2002) with all its amendments defines the obligations of the various economic actors regarding the management of packaging and packaging waste. But is this law enough to ensure the achievement of the high goals that we have as a state and which are constantly increasing or must be implemented and a series of other actions and / or institutional interventions that will contribute to the achievement of these goals.
The Cyprus legislation, regarding waste management and particularly management of packaging waste, was drafted based on the corresponding European Legislation and relevant directives and came into force in 2002.
Then, the issuance of regulations, orders and amendments was completed, to enable its implementation on a practical level.
Below in the relevant list are the Basic Legislations concerning the management of packaging from 2002 to 2017.
All the Law links below are in Greek.
In the relevant list shown below the Basic Laws are depicted concerning the management of the remaining waste streams included in the webpage of the Environment Service of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment.
A full list of the relative laws of the European Union can be found on the European Union webpage.
Below is a selective list of the most basic European legislations that concerns packaging waste management from 1985 – 2020.
These legislations have been amended based on the existing laws of the Cypriot Legislation and for the purposes of harmonization with the respective European Legislation, are pending for vote of approval.
All the below laws are in Greek
| Legislation | Description |
|---|---|
| Law amending the Packaging and Packaging Waste Laws from 2002 to 2019 | Law amending the Packaging and Packaging Waste Laws from 2002 to 2019 |
| The Packaging and Waste Packaging Laws of 2002 to 2019 | THE PACKAGING AND WASTE PACKAGING LAWS OF 2002 TO 2019 “Directive (EU) 2015/720 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 amending Directive 94/62 / EC in order to reduce the consumption of thin plastic carrier bags” |
| The Waste Laws of 2011 to 2016 | THE WASTE LAWS OF 2011 TO 2016 Regulations under Articles 11, 13, 23 and 54 (1) For the purposes of harmonizing with the European Community Act entitled “Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on reducing the impact of certain plastic products on the environment” |
Further below we set out some actions and/or legal interventions which are necessary for achieving recycling goals.
These actions are implemented in other European countries with great success contributing substantially to the increase of public participation in the recycling programmes.
Sorting at the source, in other words, separation of various materials that can be led to other kinds of management (i.e., recycling) is currently optional in our country.
The public may choose to participate in the various recycling programmes for since no legislation mandates it. If we want however to increase the public’s participation, sorting at the source and participation in the recycling programmes must become mandatory.
The implementation of “Pay As You Throw” programmes is a strong incentive for an individual to participate in recycling programmes. The implementation of “Pay As You Throw” programmes fairly distributes the management costs of rubbish as those who throw away less rubbish, pay less.
The easiest way for someone to reduce their rubbish and consequently their personal cost for their management is to send some of it to be recycled.
Local Authorities today have no obligation towards the State to try to reduce waste which they collect for management. Some local Authorities try to reduce them since they have understood that with their reduction, they also reduce their own costs while others remain mere spectators.
The role that local Authorities have is quite substantial. Why should they not also have targets towards the State, why not reward those who really try and put sanctions against those who remain apathetic?
Our State has several laws concerning the management of our waste. However, which of these laws are implemented? Is the State in a position to check those who do not implement these legislations?
Unfortunately, the answer is no. If we do not manage to implement existing legislations, if we cannot manage to check those who break the law, what would be the use of enacting new laws?
The State should therefore find ways to enforce existing legislation and if need be, enact more laws because only in this way will it manage to have the desired results.