Legislation Information
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Waste disposal costs money and harms the environment (that's where ScrapShop comes in, to reduce this cost of disposal whilst avoiding throwing the materials into landfill).
Waste minimisation is about the reduction of all forms of waste, including energy, water, materials, effort and process and production waste so as to minimise usage of resources.
The issue of waste is addressed in various pieces of legislation, which ScrapShop users should be aware of. Principle regulation and guidelines are summarised below.
DUTY OF CARE
The Environmental Protection Regulations (Duty of Care) 1991 (SI 1991 No. 2839) (as amended SI 2003 No. 63)
All businesses have a duty to ensure that all waste generated as part of a business activity is handled safely and legally. The Duty of Care does not alter the need to comply with other waste regulations.
Businesses are responsible for ensuring the safe and proper disposal or recovery of their waste, even after they have passed it on to another party (e.g. a waste contractor, scrap metal merchant, recycler, council or skip hire company). This responsibility has no time limit, and extends until the waste has either been finally and properly disposed of or fully recovered. It also requires that a record is kept of all waste received or transferred through a system of signed Waste Transfer Notes (WTNs). Users of ScrapShop should bear this in mind when arranging an exchange.
HAZARDOUS WASTE
The Hazardous Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2005 (SI 2005 No. 894)
On 16 July 2005, new controls on Hazardous Waste came into force. Sites that produce Hazardous Waste must register their premises with the Environment Agency each year. This removes the need to pre-notify the Environment Agency of Special Waste movements.
Hazardous Waste is so called because it has hazardous properties that may make it harmful to human health or to the environment. Examples of wastes classed as hazardous include: asbestos; lead-acid batteries; electrical equipment containing hazardous components such as cathode ray tubes (televisions); oily sludges; solvents; fluorescent light tubes; chemical wastes; and pesticides. Most businesses are likely to produce some Hazardous Waste. They will need to ensure that their waste is dealt with appropriately.
CONTROLLED WASTE
The Controlled Waste Regulations 1992 (SI 1992 No. 588)
Commercial, industrial, household wastes and Special Wastes are classified and treated as Controlled Waste. Controlled Waste must be stored properly, collected by a registered waste carrier and disposed of at an authorised disposal facility, in line with the producer’s Duty of Care.
WASTE MANAGEMENT LICENSING
The Waste Management Licensing Regulations 1994 (SI 1994 No. 1056) (as amended 2005 No.1728)
This piece of legislation is unlikely to apply to organisations that only store waste which they produce and regularly remove it from their site.
It applies to companies that deposit, keep (store waste that they did not produce), treat (including recycling and using mobile plant) or dispose of Controlled Waste in or on any land or by means of a mobile plant, or if they knowingly permit any of these activities. These require a Waste Management Licence or an official exemption, depending upon the duration of storage, types and quantities of wastes being handled and the activity carried out on the site.
REGISTRATION OF CARRIERS
The Controlled Waste (Registration of Carriers and Seizure of Vehicles) Regulations 1991 (SI 1991 No. 1624), (as amended SI 1998 No. 605)
A Waste Carrier is someone whose business or part of their business involves the transportation of waste. They must register with the Environment Agency and undertake various other duties. Generally, companies are exempt if they are a waste producer carrying their own waste.
A notable exception to this is building or demolition waste. If a company transports its own building or demolition waste, it must register as a Waste Carrier with the Environment Agency. Construction companies should note that unused raw materials, which were new when purchased and can be used later in their original form, are not waste. General demolition materials, scrap and hardcore amongst other unwanted items are, however, waste and subject to these regulations.
PACKAGING REGULATIONS
The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 (SI 2005 No. 3468)
Companies (or groups of companies) with a turnover exceeding £2 million and handling more than 50 tonnes of packaging per year are obliged to recover and recycle a proportion of the packaging waste materials that they supply with their products. Obligated companies must register with the Environment Agency and then demonstrate the achievement of their recovery and recycling targets or join an approved compliance scheme.
Broadly, this affects companies involved in the manufacture of raw materials used to produce packaging materials, conversion of packaging materials to packaging, the filling of packaging with product or the selling of packaged product to an end user. It also applies to companies that import packaging or packaged goods.
