Waste disposal rules for businesses |
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| Introduction |
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The Landfill (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2005 aim to improve the way we manage waste. This includes diverting waste away from landfill –that is, making sure it is recycled or disposed of more sustainably wherever possible. The new rules mean it is illegal for a landfill operator to accept untreated or liquid waste:
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- Liquid wastes are now banned from landfill;
- Waste must be treated before it can be land filled.
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Will it affect me?
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- If your business waste does not go to a landfill, then you do not need to take any action;
- If your waste does go to a landfill, find out if it is treated first; and if not you need to look at pre-treating your waste in order to comply with the regulations. Your waste collector, or the disposal site you take your waste to may ask you to do things like separate recyclables. You must only pass your waste on to someone who is registered with us as an authorised waste carrier. You must dispose of your hazardous waste legally;
- If you are a business that collects, treats, recycles waste or manages a landfill site you are likely to be affected. Farmers too are high on the list of those likely to have to make the largest changes.
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The situation for liquid waste is more complicated; if you have no choice but to produce it, you may need to will have to treat it yourself or pay for a waste contractor or utility company to treat it. The process of treatment will vary depending on the type of liquid.
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Why?
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Simply because too much waste is going to waste – going no-where. Instead, with simply sorting techniques, it can be re-used.
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The aim is to get businesses to:
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- Think about what happens to their waste;
- Consider the different treatment and disposal options;
- And boost the recovery and recycling of waste.
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Penalties for non compliance
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People who dump waste and do not stick to the new rules could face a fine of up to £50,000. The environment agency will prosecute anyone who gives their waste to a person who is not registered with them as a waste carrier.
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What to do now
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- You speak to your waste collector about the options available to you;
- If you dispose of large amounts of liquid waste and think you could get rid of them to the foul sewer, you should speak to you local water company about sewer discharges;
- You storeanddispose of all your waste responsibly;
- Your waste is only handled or dealt with by people or businesses that are authorised to do so;
- You keep records of all waste that you transfer or receive for at least two years.
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You have a responsibility to:
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- Stop anyone storing, disposing of or recovering your waste unless they have a wastemanagement licence or an exemption from the need for a license. Check their license or exemption to make sure that they are within its conditions;
- Package all waste materials appropriately and robustly to stop them escaping from your, or anyone else’s, control;
- Ensure that your waste is only transferred to a person or business authorised to deal with your particular type of waste;
- Ensure that the waste being transferred is accompanied by a writtendescription that will enable anyone receiving it to dispose of it or handle it safely and appropriately.
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