ABSTRACT
Extended producer responsibility (EPR) can be regarded as one of the concepts that underpin many of the policy instruments that facilitate the shift towards sustainable production and consumption. The concept has been introduced with the aim of encouraging manufacturers of products to reduce environmental impacts across their entire life-cycle. The extension of manufacturers' responsibility, as found in EPR programmes implemented to date, means shifting part, or all, of the responsibility for the end-of-life management of products from taxpayers, waste management authorities and conventional waste dealers to manufacturers. EPR can be achieved through the implementation of various administrative, economic and informative instruments. An EPR programme typically consists of more than one EPR-based policy instrument. Policies incorporating the concept of EPR tend to take a goal-oriented, non-prescriptive approach. Another important development in the understanding of the concept is the positioning of EPR on the ladder of governmental policy-making.
