What are RoHS, WEEE, and ELV?

The RoHS Directive was amended in 2011 to RoHS2, which restricts or prohibits the use of additional cadmium, lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PBB (polybrominated biphenyls), PBDE (polybrominated diphenyl ethers), and four phthalate esters (DEHP, BBP, DBP, DIBP).
Each of these 10 substances in total has a maximum allowable concentration, and products containing amounts exceeding the maximum allowable concentration cannot be manufactured or sold in the EU.
These “directives” are EU directives, and since any product distributed within the EU is subject to regulation, many Japanese companies that manufacture export products are also affected. Furthermore, even if they do not export their products directly into the EU, they are required to provide retroactive warranties if products incorporating their products are exported.”

The WEEE and RoHS Directives were simultaneously published in 2003 as EU Directives on the recycling of electrical and electronic equipment and hazardous substances.
The WEEE Directive (Waste electrical and electronic equipment) encourages and requires recycling with the aim of reducing the final disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment.
The RoHS Directive (Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in the electrical and electronic equipment) regulates the substances contained in electrical and electronic equipment with the aim of preventing products containing more than a certain percentage of hazardous substances from being placed on the market.

The ELV Directive (End-of Life Vehicle) is is an EU directive issued in 2000 that has two requirements for motor vehicles: recycling requirements and content restrictions on certain hazardous substances.
The ELV Directive prohibits the inclusion of lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium in materials and parts of automobiles sold in the market in concentrations higher than the permissible levels, with the exception of certain items.