Corporate report

Packaging producer responsibility monitoring plan 2023

Published 6 December 2022

Applies to England

1. Our monitoring policy

The Environment Agency monitors compliance of businesses in England that have responsibilities under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007 (amended). This includes:

• producers
• approved compliance schemes
• accredited reprocessors and exporters

We monitor businesses to make sure that:

• packaging producers in England contribute to UK recycling targets
• all obligated producers register
• producer compliance schemes fulfil their legal duties on behalf of producer members
• producers and producer compliance schemes provide accurate data on packaging that is handled and recycled in the UK
• there is accurate data on registered producers
• reprocessors and exporters comply with their statutory duties, including conditions of accreditation
• waste packaging is recycled to the right standards
• waste packaging is recycled legally

Under the packaging waste regulations, we receive information and data from producers, compliance schemes, reprocessors and exporters. This includes:

• applications for accreditation and approval
• applications to register
• quarterly returns
• resubmissions
• certificates and statements of compliance

We monitor this information to assess and determine compliance.

Our monitoring activities include:

• assessing performance and behaviour of businesses to identify potential non-compliance
• assessing and determining applications for accreditation and approval
• assessing and determining registrations
• investigating producer ‘drop offs’ (previously registered producers who do not re-register)
• investigating ‘free-riders’ (unregistered obligated producers)
• validating submissions
• assessing and investigating late or missing submissions
• assessing and analysing packaging recycling notes (PRNs) and packaging export recycling notes (PERNs)
• assessing and analysing waste records and issuing PRNs and PERNs
• assessing and determining certificate and statements of compliance
• gathering intelligence and data trend analysis
• risk profiling
• monitoring businesses that pose a risk to the environment and the packaging regime

2. Funding

Most of our compliance work is funded by packaging charges. We allocate this funding, together with charge income from other producer responsibility regimes, to our national team for producer responsibility.

We also fund a specialist waste regime investigations team to support our investigations into serious and significant non-compliance.

Packaging charge income does not fund our:

• inspections of green list waste exports
• compliance with the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations
• enforcement activity under the packaging regime (for example, withdrawing approval, cancelling accreditation and prosecuting)

We pay for these activities with government funding.

3. Our monitoring activity

3.1  Producers

As a minimum, we will monitor all registered producers by:

• validating, assessing and analysing information and data submitted at registration (around 6,800 producers), and after resubmissions
• identifying, assessing and investigating late or missing submissions
• monitoring PRNs and PERNs – we will contact producers who are at risk of failing to comply to make sure they meet recycling obligations and submit a certificate of compliance
• assessing certificates of compliance
• risk profiling
• identifying and contacting packaging producers who are not registered (drop-offs and free-riders) and bring them into compliance

We may carry out additional compliance monitoring throughout the year. This may include site visits or remote auditing.

3.2 Compliance schemes

As a minimum, we will monitor all approved compliance schemes by:

• validating, assessing and analysing information and data submitted at registration, and after resubmissions
• assessing and investigating late or missing submissions
• monitoring PRNs and PERNs – we will contact compliance schemes that are at risk of failing to comply to make sure they meet recycling obligations and submit a statement of compliance
• assessing statements of compliance
• risk profiling

We may carry out additional compliance monitoring throughout the year. This may include site visits or remote auditing.

3.3 Reprocessors and exporters

As a minimum, we will monitor all accredited reprocessors and exporters by:

• assessing and determining applications for accreditation
• validating and analysing information and data submitted at application (for accreditation, following quarterly return submissions and following resubmissions)
• assessing and investigating late or missing submissions
• assessing and analysing waste recording, and issuing PRNs and PERNs
• risk profiling

We may carry out additional compliance monitoring throughout the year. This may include site visits or remote auditing.

4. Non-compliance

When we identify a business that does not comply, we may work with them to bring them into compliance. If necessary, we will use our enforcement powers under our enforcement and sanctions policy, growth duty and the regulators’ code.

Our approach will depend on the:

• severity of non-compliance
• attitude of the offender
• risk posed to the environment and the packaging regime

5. Assessing risk

We follow an intelligence led and risk based approach that focuses on businesses that we identify pose the biggest risks to the packaging regime and the environment.

We will continue to review our approach to make sure we react to and address any risks and issues. Our monitoring activities in this plan may change.