53I.—(1) The Minister may, following consultation with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, make regulations —

(a) imposing the obligation specified in subsection (2); and

(b) providing that subsection 2(a) may not apply where the waste electrical and electronic equipment contains waste other than that deriving from electrical and electronic equipment.

(2) The obligation mentioned in subsection (1) is an obligation, with effect from a date to be specified in regulations, or in an order made by the Minister, on—

(a) a distributor to take back from the final user on a one-for-one basis at least free of charge waste electrical and electronic equipment from private households that is replaced by equipment of equivalent type or has fulfilled the same functions as the supplied electrical and electronic equipment, other than contaminated waste electrical and electronic equipment that presents a health and safety risk, unless such contamination is on account of a distributor’s liability under the Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act, 1980 (No. 16 of 1980);

(b) a producer to finance the environmentally sound management of—

(i) waste electrical and electronic equipment arising from private households deposited at a collection point in respect of electrical and electronic equipment which that producer originally—

(I) places on the market on or after 13 August 2005, and

(II) placed on the market prior to 13 August 2005 in proportion to that producer's respective share of the market by type of equipment when the respective costs occur,

(ii) waste electrical and electronic equipment from users other than private households in respect of electrical and electronic equipment which—

(I) that producer places on the market on or after 13 August 2005, and

(II) was placed on the market prior to 13 August 2005, and that producer replaces with new products of equivalent type or new products fulfilling the same function,

(c) a final user to finance the environmentally sound management of waste electrical and electronic equipment other than from private households, that is not being replaced with new products of equivalent type or new products fulfilling the same function.

(3) The provisions of subsection (2) shall also apply to distributors or producers, as appropriate, operating from within the European Union or from third countries supplying electrical and electronic equipment in or into the State by means of distance communication or otherwise.

(4) Regulations under this section may provide for—

(a) the making of arrangements by distributors or producers, separately or in combination, for the purpose of ensuring that the obligations of each of them under the regulations are fulfilled,

(b) the provision by distributors or producers, as appropriate, of the financial resources (the “resources”) necessary to ensure that those foregoing obligations are fulfilled,

(c) the following matters in relation to the provision of the resources—

(i) the conferral of powers on a specified person or persons for the purpose of operating a scheme to provide for the environmentally sound disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment (here and after is referred to in this section as an “approved body”) with respect to securing and recovering the resources,

(ii) requiring the submission of information by a distributor or producer, as appropriate, as may be prescribed in regulations made under this section to the approved body,

(iii) the time at which an amount of resources shall be made available by a distributor or producer, as appropriate, and the form and manner in which they shall be made available,

(iv) requiring specified records to be kept by specified persons in respect of matters connected with the making available of the resources and specifying the form of such records,

(v) enabling the making available of resources by specified distributors or producers, as appropriate, to be deferred in specified circumstances,

(vi) requiring specified records and accounts to be kept by an approved body in respect of the resources made available to it or to be made available to it,

(vii) enabling the refund of resources made available by specified distributors or producers, as appropriate, to be made to them,

(viii) enabling an approved body to enter into arrangements with a producer or, as appropriate, a distributor whereby that producer or, as appropriate, that distributor remits to the approved body amounts by way of financial resources within a specified period of time after liability in respect of the making available of those amounts arises,

(d) the exemption of a person or persons from all or any of the requirements of regulations under this section who is certified by an approved body to be either—

(i) a member or shareholder of that approved body, as the case may be, or

(ii) participating in a satisfactory manner, in a scheme for the carrying on of the relevant activities referred to in this paragraph or complying with any requirements specified by that approved body.

(e)(i) the granting by the Minister of approvals for the purpose of regulations under paragraph (d) and the conditions which he or she may attach to such approvals, including conditions relating to—

(I) the financial and administrative arrangements to be made by the approved body concerned,

(II) the relevant activities referred to in paragraph (d) to be carried out by an approved body and the manner in which they are to be carried out,

(III) targets to be achieved by the approved body concerned with respect to the carrying on of those activities by it,

(ii) enabling the Minister to vary as he or she thinks fit any condition attached to an approval aforesaid or to revoke such an approval in specified circumstances,

(iii) the means by which an approved body shall determine, for the purpose of regulations under paragraph (d), whether a person is participating, in a satisfactory manner, in a scheme referred to in that paragraph or, as the case may be, is complying with requirements referred to in that paragraph,

(iv) the grant and revocation by an approved body of a certificate for the purpose of regulations under paragraph (d) and the notifications to be given by it in respect of such grant or revocation to the person concerned and other specified persons,

(f) the exemption of a distributor or producer, as appropriate, from all or any of the requirements of regulations under this section (being a distributor or producer, as appropriate, who is not otherwise exempted by virtue of regulations under paragraph (d)) where he or she shows to the satisfaction of the Minister or another person specified for this purpose that he or she has put arrangements in place to ensure that the take back of each item of waste electrical and electronic equipment can be deposited by the final user thereof for the purpose of its being deposited at a collection point or, as appropriate, at a civic amenity facility or for the purposes of the environmentally sound management of that waste electrical and electronic equipment, as appropriate in accordance with subsection (2),

(g) the making of arrangements relating to the display of environmental management costs, for a period of time specified in regulations made under paragraph (d), by a distributor or producer, as appropriate, to the purchasers of electrical and electronic equipment,

(h) any matters consequential on, or incidental to the foregoing.

(5) Nothing in subsection 4(a) shall be construed as authorising distributors or, as appropriate, producers to —

(a) make arrangements which are prohibited by section 4(1) of the Competition Act, 2002 (No. 14 of 2002) or, as appropriate, by Article 81 of the Treaty of Rome, or, as appropriate,

(b) act in a manner prohibited by section 5(1) of the Competition Act 2002 (No. 14 of 2002) or, as appropriate, by Article 82 of the Treaty of Rome.

(6) A person who fails to comply with a provision of regulations made under this section, shall be guilty of an offence.]