Recital 22

(22)Exemptions from the extended producer responsibility obligations should nevertheless be possible. This should be the case where the total amount of substances contained in products placed on the Union market by a producer amount to small quantities, i.e. less than 1 tonne per year, since the additional administrative burden for the producer would in such cases be disproportionate compared to the environmental benefits. Exemptions should also be possible for the part of the products for which the producer can demonstrate that no micropollutants are generated at the end of life of the product or where it can be proven that the residues from a product are rapidly biodegradable in wastewater and the environment or do not reach the urban wastewater treatment plants. The Commission should establish detailed criteria to identify the products placed on the Union market that do not generate micropollutants in urban wastewater at the end of their life, taking into account their hazardousness and their biodegradability. When developing those criteria, the Commission should take into account criteria already set in Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council ¹¹ , but also scientific or other available technical information, including relevant international standards. Those criteria should be established before the extended producer responsibility obligations provided for in this Directive enter into force.