Is it waste?

The main regulatory bodies in the UK for waste management are the Environment Agency (EA) for England and Wales and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) for Scotland.

Usually the first place to start is determining if the item is a waste. Now this is not as simple as it sounds because what may be considered a product by one person can and often is considered to be controlled waste by the Regulating Authorities. The general rule is if the item has been discarded by the owner or can no longer be used for its original pourpose (i.e broken) it will be considered a waste. The other guide is if there is doubt over whether it is a waste then it most likely is.

LEGISLATION AND INTERPRETAION

The definiton of waste used in the UK comes from the European Waste Frame Work Directive and guidance on its interpretation is found in Government Circular 11/94 Annex II, however this is not soley relied on by the Authorites as there have been several case laws since this interpretation that now have to be taken into account.

The first place to contact if there is a doubt is one of the Agencies, you can use the links for contact details.

It is waste, what now?

There are 3 options:

Use an authorised company or individual

Become authorised

Act illegally

1. Use an authorised company or individual

To avoid having to obtain the appropriate authorisation you can use a company who holds them already. The are hundreds of companies involved in all aspects and areas of waste management. To find one its as simple as looking in your telephone directory, searching on the internet or asking your trade associations.

Of course you need to way up the costs of using a company to the costs and work involved in setting up your own company.

As the market is competitive, depending on the waste, you can usually shop around for prices and terms. Be aware that there are rogue operators, who have no or incorrect authorisation, the "to good to be true price" may be an indication.

To use an unauthorised operator is illegal as a waste producer or holder you have a legal duty of care to ensure they are authorised. The simplest way is to contact the EA or SEPA to check their details and ask if that permits then to take your waste.

2. Become authorised

To move waste you need to be a registered waste carrier, this is done by registering with the EA or SEPA. The registration fee is under £150 and last for a year there after you have to pay an annual fee.

To do anything other than transporting requires a further authorisation, these are listed below in a hierarchy of complexity:

Waste management licensing exemption
Low risk activity
Waste Management Licence
PPC Permit

The appropriate one is totally dependent on the waste type, its quantity and what you intend to do with it. More information on these can be found on the EA and SEPA web sites, as they are the authorising bodies.

3. Act illegally

Well I hope people were responsible enough to care about the environment and control of waste, obviously this is not the case. As new legislation is produced classifying wastes as hazardous the costs of disposal increase, therefore the money to be gained from acting illegally increases.

To help deter this penalties have increased for waste management offences, fines of up to £50,000 in a Magistrates Court or an unlimited fine or up to 5 years imprisonment if prosecuted in a Crown Court.