Waste Legislation - What
are the Regulations?
Duty of Care
Section 34 of the Environmental
Protection Act 1990 imposes a duty of care on those concerned with waste.
This applies to those who produce, import, carry, treat or dispose of
waste. The legal definition of waste is 'any substance or object which
the producer or the person in possession of it discards or intends or
is required to discard'. Waste is therefore anything you own, or your
business produces, which you want to get rid of. It can be household,
commercial or industrial waste. Certain wastes are not included within
the definition; these are agricultural wastes, wastes from mines and quarries
and certain radioactive wastes.
Special Waste Regulations
These regulations cover
the disposal, carrying or receiving of special wastes. Guidance is available
on what constitutes a special waste but in general it covers hazardous
and toxic wastes, for example acids, industrial solvents, pharmaceutical
compounds, waste oils and wood preservatives.
Do They Apply to You?
Duty of Care provisions apply to all manufacturing and processing companies.
'Duty of Care' means that a company producing waste is responsible for
its proper and safe disposal, even after it has been passed to another
party; in other words you are responsible for your waste from Cradle to
Grave. Breach of the duty of care is an offence, with a penalty and unlimited
fine if convicted. In a recent survey of local SME's, many indicated that
they did not monitor the quantity or composition of any of their waste
streams and did not know what happened to their waste once it is removed
by the contractors. This indicates that many companies are not aware of
their responsibilities under the Duty of Care provisions and risk falling
foul of the legislation. The Environment Agency pursue offences and advise
on legal and environmentally sound management of waste. If, for example,
waste is being burnt on your premises, then you could be deemed to be
mishandling waste and causing an offence. In addition the smoke produced
could mean that you are contravening the Clean Air Act 1993.
Special Waste
If you use chemicals or
products which have hazard symbols or safety data sheets, it is very likely
that you fall within the controls of these regulations. Examples of the
hazardous properties of special waste include explosive, oxidising, flammable,
carcinogenic, toxic, infectious and corrosive.
What do you need to do?
As a waste producer, you have the responsibility to ensure that your waste
is managed properly and recovered or disposed of safely. To help do this,
the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) have
issued a code of practice. It is advisable to obtain a copy of the code
if you are in any doubt as to your obligations.
The Duty of Care requires
that:
1. It is important that you have a description of your waste. This need
only be in general terms but must be enough to allow safe handling.
2. It is vital that you handle and store your waste properly to avoid
polluting the environment.
3. When transferring waste, a transfer note is needed. This is a requirement
of the Environmental Protection (Duty of Care) Regulations 1991.
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