Recycling fee on apparatus phased out

The recycling charge paid by everyone who buys new electric apparatus is to be phased out, caretaker environment minister Tineke Huizinga announced on Tuesday.

The fee on small pieces of equipment will disappear next year and the fee for larger machines will go in 2013.
Fees currently range from €1 for the safe disposal of a coffee machine to €17 for a fridge. The scheme was introduced in 1999.
Reserves
Shopkeepers called for the fee to be abolished last weekend. The recycling fee scheme has generated reserves of some €200m – enough to pay for machinery disposal for the next 10 years.
During the debate, left-wing MPs called for the introduction of cash deposits on small plastic drinks bottles.
This autumn, officials will announce whether the Netherlands has reached its own recycling targets. If not, the minister said she would be prepared to consider a deposit scheme.