The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) is to encourage the listing of repairability scores for electronic products starting with smartphones and laptops in a bid to promote consumers’ right to repair, it said on Thursday.
Technology companies engage in planned obsolescence as a business strategy, which spurs consumers to buy new products to replace devices that could be repaired, resulting in waste, EPA Recycling Fund Management Board Executive Director Wang Yueh-bin (王嶽斌) said.
The right-to-repair movement — which is gaining traction in the EU — has resulted in labeling rule changes that would require manufacturers to list the repairability score of their electronic products, Wang said.
Photo: Chen Chia-yi, Taipei Times
France unveiled a mandate in 2021 requiring electronics manufacturers or importers to list the repairability of their products, he said, adding that such rules help consumers make sustainable choices.
The EPA believes that Taiwan should adopt similar rules and measures should be introduced to ease manufacturers into the new regulatory environment ahead of time, he said.
The repairability score is to be based on the ease of disassembly, the availability and price of spare parts, and the availability of information on the product’s service life and instructions about repairs, Wang said.
Manufacturers, importers and retailers would be urged to clearly label the repairability score of devices for consumers to make informed decisions about their purchases, he added.
A conference with 30 smartphone and laptop makers was to take place yesterday, where instructions for manufacturers were to be unveiled, Wang said.
The EPA would not mandate the listing of repairability scores for electronic devices immediately, but regulations in that vein are likely to be introduced eventually, he said.
EVA Airways was ranked the eighth-best airline in the world for this year, the only Taiwanese carrier to make it into the top 25 Airline Excellence Awards this year, aviation reviews Web site AirlineRatings.com said on Wednesday. AirlineRatings.com has a seven-star rating system to evaluate more than 360 airlines around the world every year, EVA Airways said in a statement on Thursday. “We are delighted that efforts by the entire EVA staff have been recognized by Airline Ratings,” EVA Airways president Clay Sun (孫嘉明) said in the release. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company identified and adopted services and procedures that enhance and
Exiled Chinese democracy advocate Wang Dan (王丹) yesterday denied an accusation by former Taiwanese political worker Lee Yuan-chun (李援軍) that Wang had sexually harassed him in a hotel room in New York nine years ago. There was a huge gap between Lee’s accusation and his own understanding and memory, Wang wrote on Facebook, adding it was hard for him to respond further regarding a “unilateral description” made by someone else. Wang made the remarks after his initial response on Facebook was met with criticism, with people saying he did not directly address the allegation. Lee on Friday wrote on Facebook that he
MORE WARNINGS: If the US company does not clarify and solve issues with its frozen berries, the FDA might extend an import suspension implemented last month, it said The Kaohsiung Department of Health yesterday said it fined Costco NT$4.5 million (US$146,265) over contaminated frozen strawberries, while the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that although the US company had filed an improvement plan, an import suspension on frozen berries could remain. Three types of frozen berry products imported and sold by Costco have tested positive for the hepatitis A virus since April. The Kaohsiung health department previously fined Costco NT$300,000 for not providing the sales list of a contaminated batch of Kirkland Signature Three Berry Blend imported from Chile, in contravention of the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法). It later
‘NEGLIGENCE’: After reporting the incident, her superior allegedly asked her why she did not scream, which was an inappropriate attempt to ignore the allegations, critics said An accusation of sexual harassment led to the resignation of a top Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) official, while President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has called for a thorough investigation into the incident involving a contractor. Vice President and DPP Chairman William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said he approved the resignation of DPP deputy secretary-general Hsu Chia-tien (許嘉恬), who headed the party’s Women’s Development Department when the alleged incident happened in September last year. “Gender equality is among our party’s core values, that we have strived for and advanced along with Taiwanese society,” Lai said. “The DPP did not handle it appropriately at the time,
RSS