South Africa’s new EPR laws force appliance makers to fund recycling, track e-waste

SOUTH AFRICA – South Africa’s Extended Producer Responsibility regulations have made producers, importers and brand owners legally accountable for their products at end-of-life, shifting the cost and responsibility for collection and recycling from consumers and municipalities to those who place appliances on the market.

The regulations, which came into effect under the National Environmental Management Waste Act, require businesses to fund and coordinate collection and recycling through registered Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs). 

Chris Bischoff, Managing Director of the Sustainability Communication Company, stated that responsibility is now shared across the value chain, with producers legally accountable for their products once they reach end-of-life, not the consumer or the municipality alone.

E-waste has been banned from landfill since 23 August 2021, though enforcement remains a challenge with an estimated 90 to 95 percent of e-waste still not reaching formal recycling channels. 

EPR Shifts Cost Equation and Drives Design for Recyclability*

For manufacturers, EPR means considering end-of-life costs much earlier in a product’s lifecycle. Bischoff noted that producers carrying collection and recycling costs now have a financial reason to consider how long appliances last and how easily they can be repaired or dismantled. 

Retailers face a different operational challenge, having to build take-back and reverse logistics into operations that were only ever set up to move stock outward. 

The regulations align with South Africa’s broader circular economy goals, with the draft National Waste Management Strategy 2026 targeting 40 to 60 percent waste diversion from landfill over the next five to fifteen years.

Collection and Traceability Remain Key Challenges

The system still depends on getting unwanted appliances into formal collection and recycling channels. Bischoff said many households do not know where to take a fridge, washing machine or other appliance once it is no longer usable. 

For businesses reporting on waste targets, traceability is essential, as companies must be able to establish who processed their e-waste and what was recovered or disposed of. Bischoff emphasised that “without documented traceability, there’s no way to prove material didn’t end up in landfill.” 

The South African Waste Information System currently has over 20,000 registered activities, but the reporting rate sits at approximately 30 percent, suggesting a need for more rigorous compliance monitoring. 

End-of-life appliances can also contain materials with resale or recovery value, with fridges, circuit boards and other electrical products containing steel, aluminium, copper and other metals that can be recovered through urban mining. 

Bischoff concluded that too many businesses still see an end-of-life appliance as a disposal cost rather than a source of value, calling this a missed opportunity.

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