On 27 April 2023, the President signed the Act amending the Act on duties of entrepreneurs concerning the management of certain types of waste and the product fee. The amendment implements into the Polish legal order the provisions of the Directive 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) of 5 June 2019 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment.

The purpose of the amendment is to introduce system solutions aimed at reducing the impact of waste from single-use plastic products, products made of oxo-degradable plastics and fishing gear containing plastics. These solutions will impose a number of obligations on some entrepreneurs, among others:

• those placing single-use plastic products on the market or their authorised representatives,
• those placing fishing gear containing plastics on the market,
• retailers, wholesalers or catering businesses which offer single-use plastic products, which pack and offer – by means of a vending machine, including those placed in locations other than a retail unit, wholesale unit or catering unit – beverages or food in single-use plastic products,
• entrepreneurs operating waste collection facilities in ports or entrepreneurs operating other equivalent collection systems.

Among the obligations imposed on the above-mentioned entrepreneurs, it is important to highlight a few, the effects of which will be experienced by us, i.e.:

• a prohibition to place on the market single-use plastic products and products made of oxo-degradable plastics such as cotton buds, cutlery, plates, straws, drink stirrers, balloon sticks and their cups, food containers and beverage containers and cups made of expanded polystyrene will be introduced. The prohibition is effective from 24 May 2023, while products that were placed on the market before this date may be sold or given free of charge to buyers in the national territory or used for own use until the stocks of these products are depleted;
• from 1 January 2024, entrepreneurs will be required to charge a fee for offering buyers disposable plastic products, such as beverage cups and food containers;
• from 1 July 2024, entrepreneurs will also be obliged to ensure the availability of alternative packaging made of either biodegradable or reusable material;
• an obligation will be introduced to label disposable plastic products, such as sanitary towels, tampons, tampon applicators, wet wipes, tobacco products with filters and filters sold for use with tobacco products as well as beverage cups, with a visible, legible and non-removable marking (on the product packaging or on the product itself) informing about inappropriate disposal methods and the harmful environmental impact of these products. This solution is effective from 24 May 2023, while products that were placed on the market before this date may be sold or given free of charge to buyers in the national territory or used for own use until the stocks of these products are depleted;