London Wider Waste Strategy - London - Greater London Authority

categories of materials which were not previously considered as hazardous (e.g.
computers, fluorescent tubes, batteries and televisions). The introduction of the new
regulations is expected to significantly increase the total quantity of hazardous waste
(and the number of hazardous waste producers) in the UK.
6.7. Due to changes in the EWC and related legislation, and an aim to bring the UK
definition of hazardous waste into line with the EU definitions, DEFRA plans to replace
the Special Waste Regulations (1996) with the Hazardous Waste Regulations. The
introduction of the new hazardous waste regulations was proposed for mid 2004,
however it now appears that the introduction of the new legislation will be delayed until
1 st August 2005, in order to ensure compatibility with the WEEE Directive, Landfill
Directive and the Waste Acceptance Criteria (refer paragraph 6.8). The new
implementation date will coincide with the introduction of several other regulations, and
it is anticipated will lead to a significant increase both in the quantities of hazardous
waste arisings in the UK and the number of producers of hazardous waste. In addition,
the new regulations will require organisations producing hazardous waste to register
with the Environment Agency.
6.8. The EC Landfill Directive requires landfill operators to check that all waste entering the
landfill meets the Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC). The WAC set limits for a number of
contaminants to meet the EC Landfill Directive with the aim of introducing testing
procedures for describing the characterisation of the waste and checking its compliance
with the acceptance criteria and to allow on-site verification. The Directive must be
transposed into UK legislation by 16 th July 2004 and must be in force by 16 th July
2005 35 .
6.9. The EC Landfill Directive will involve several changes to the management of hazardous
waste that will apply from the 16 th July 2004. Firstly, operators must classify their
landfill sites as either hazardous, non-hazardous, or inert and the co-disposal of
hazardous and non-hazardous wastes is prohibited. These requirements will greatly
reduce the number of landfill sites available for the disposal of hazardous waste. In
addition, wastes must be treated prior to disposal to reduce volume and hazardous
content; if the treatment process renders the waste ‘non-hazardous’ then it may go to a
separate cell in a non-hazardous landfill, whereas wastes still classified as hazardous
after the treatment process will be required to be sent for disposal at a designated
hazardous landfill.
Approach
6.10. In preparation of the new legislation, the Government established the Hazardous Waste
Forum in December 2002. The role of the Hazardous Waste Forum was to bring
together the key stakeholders to advise on the appropriate way forward in the light of
the new legislation for hazardous waste. The Hazardous Waste Forum has highlighted
the key issues of concern within the hazardous waste industry, as well as commissioning
work on waste arisings and treatment capacities. A summary of the work by the
Hazardous Waste Forum is presented in a report titled ‘Hazardous Waste – an action
plan for its reduction and environmentally sound management’ which was published in
2003 and is available on the internet 36 .
6.11. A variety of studies have previously been carried out on hazardous waste arisings. For
London in particular, the GLA commissioned Enviros Consulting Ltd to produce a
35 Defra Consultation outcome on Landfill Directive Waste Accpetance Criteria, March 2004.
36 http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/hazforum/actionplan/hwf-actionplan.pdf
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