China issues standard for information disclosure assessment on EPR of electric and electronic producers 
On January 4, 2021, the China Standardization administration released a collective standard “Specification for information disclosure for extended producer responsibility of electric and electronic producers”. The standard will take effect on January 4, 2021.The standard was established to promote the EPR system in China and to facilitate the product life cycle. The following is a summary of the standard.
Collective standard: A standard established by a relevant social organization (non-profit organization), which is adopted by its members based on their agreement or announced to the public and voluntarily adopted in accordance with the organization’s rules.
Scope of application
- It specifies the evaluation targets, indicators, methods, and results of information disclosure under extended producer responsibility for electrical and electronic equipment.
- It is applicable to the assessment and improvement of a company’s fulfillment of its responsibilities under extended producer responsibility based on publicly available information on electrical and electronic equipment. It is also applied to assessments conducted by companies on their own or by third parties.
- It applies to electrical and electronic equipment enterprises (manufacturers) that produce and sell their own brands, as well as to electrical and electronic equipment enterprises that sell under their own brands and are produced by other suppliers (operators with brand usage rights).
Evaluation target
Information that companies make publicly available, such as their annual reports, sustainable development reports, corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports, and social and governance reports.
Evaluation index system (partly only)
| 1st-level index | 2nd-level index | maximum points | Description. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Eco-friendly design | 1.5 Management of Hazardous Substances | 3 | Hazardous substances meet the limit value requirements of GB/T 26572 and are labeled on market input products in accordance with SJ/T 11364. |
| 2 Procurement | 2.2 Supplier Grade Management System | 3 | Conducts grade evaluation and management of suppliers. |
| 3 Production and manufacturing | 3.2 Management of Hazardous Wastes | 3 | If the company cannot handle it themselves, they can outsource it to a company that is qualified to handle hazardous waste. |
| 4 Transportation and sales | 4.3 Green Product Labeling | 3 | Electrical and electronic equipment, etc. that have obtained state-sponsored voluntary certification (China RoHS certification) or have submitted a declaration of conformity. |
| 5 Use and maintenance | 5.1 Provision of Product Upgrade Services | 3 | Provision of product upgrade services. Extension of the after-sales service period. |
| 6 Recycling | 6.1 Provision of waste product collection services | 3 | Establish a collection system for waste electrical and electronic equipment or outsource the collection service to a third-party organization. |
| 7 Other | 7.1 Product LCA Reporting | 3 | Prepare and present LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) reports for products. |
Evaluation method
Based on the reports and other information published by the companies, each indicator is scored (out of 96 points). Based on the score for each indicator and the total score, the company is evaluated and the improvement areas are identified.
The original text of the above standards can be viewed at the following URL (in simplified Chinese).
