Hazardous business waste
Over five million tonnes of hazardous waste is produced each year in England and Wales, half of which is disposed of in landfill sites.
What is hazardous waste?
Hazardous waste contains dangerous properties that could make it harmful to human health or the environment. These include being:
- highly flammable
- toxic
- corrosive
- irritant
- cancer causing.
How we manage hazardous waste
In July 2004 environmental standards changed and it is now no longer possible to dispose of hazardous waste with non-hazardous waste. This means that only 10–15 landfill sites will be able to accept commercial hazardous waste, compared to more than 240 in 2001.
This:
- reduces our capacity to dispose of it by roughly half, and
- increases the possibility of illegal dumping.
As a result we must change how we manage our hazardous waste. The Environment Agency (EA) are working with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the waste disposal industry to come up with practical ways to help businesses cope with these changes. The EA will also be cracking down on illegal dumping of hazardous waste.
Advice for businesses
The Environment Agency is urging businesses to follow a five-point plan to minimise the risk of illegal waste management:
- Check the classification of waste as hazardous using Environment Agency guidance
- Make sure that you are clear about what is happening to your hazardous waste
- Explore ways to reduce the amount of hazardous waste you produce
- Budget for rising costs for hazardous waste management
- Keep up to date with further changes to hazardous waste legislation.
Contact us
For more information, please contact our Waste Management Group:
Tel: 01273 482153
Email: waste.disposal@eastsussex.gov.uk
