seeba Fact Sheet
Land Fill Directive

Council Directive 1999/31/EC on the Landfill of Waste

 

Time Table

• Entered into force on 16.07.1999. The deadline for implementation of the legislation in the Member States was 16.07.2001.
• The Landfill (England and Wales) Regulations 2002 was passed 13 June 2002
• Updated European Waste catalogue (EWC) came into effect on 1st January 2002 and lists what is hazardous and non-hazardous
• The EWC comes into effect under UK legislation on the 16th July 2005

 

Scope:

• The objective of the Directive is to prevent or reduce as far as possible negative effects on the environment from the landfilling of waste, by introducing stringent technical requirements for waste and landfills.
• It is intended to prevent or reduce the adverse effects of the landfill of waste on the environment, in particular on surface water, groundwater, soil, air and human health.
• Landfills are divided into three classes:
  • landfills for hazardous waste
  • landfills for non-hazardous waste
  • landfills for inert waste.
    
• The list of hazardous waste is given in the European Waste Catalogue 2000/532/EC

 

Summary of Requirements:

• All wastes will need to be characterised by their EWC code.
• Most electronics products will contain components or materials clasified as hazardous under the EWC code since almost all contain hazardous substances.
• A producer of hazardous waste must register each hazardous waste production annually.
• Examples of electrical and electronic hazardous waste are:
  • fluorescent lighting tubes
  • batteries
  • computer monitors
  • television cathode ray tubes
  • other electrical and electronic equipment containing dangerous substances.
• In the UK exemptions exist for premises at which waste electrical and electronic equipment is collected up to 200kg, to the extent that the premises are used for that purpose. Examples of 200kg of waste are:
  • 10 small TVs
  • 14 lead acid batteries
  • 500 fluorescent tubes
  • 5 small domestic fridges.
• Mixing of hazardous wastes with other hazardous wastes and with non-hazardous wastes will not be permitted, except under license.
• Movement of hazardous waste across borders requires a “cross border consignment note”.

 

Waste Definitions:

• Waste:is any substance or object covered by Council Directive 75/442/EEC on waste in Article 1(4)
• Hazardous waste means any waste covered by Council Directive 91/689/EEC
• Non-hazardous waste means waste not covered above
• Inert waste means waste that does not undergo any significant physical, chemical or biological transformations.

 

Impact on EEE Producers:

• Producers will need to know what hazardous substances and objects are in their products.
• The above directives will be the basis under the WEEE directive for giving information to recyclers and treatment centres of the presence and location of hazardous substances and objects. In able to meet these requirements producers will need to know what is in their products and the location of hazardous substances/objects.
• Most producers generate waste in their production processes, including electronic waste. It will be necessary for those producers to register as they will be will be classed as a producer of hazardous waste. Within the UK annual registration will be with the Environment Agency is required.
• Rules for Notification and Record Keeping in the UK:
  • Consignment Notes will still be used but no 72 hour pre-notification to the Environment Agency will be required before hazardous waste is moved.
  • The Environment Agency has proposed that quarterly consignee returns will replace the present system of the consignee copying each Consignment Note to the Environment Agency. Electronic transfer is to be encouraged.
  • The consignee must send returns to waste producers notifying them of the receipt of their wastes.
  • Sites exempt from waste management licensing will need to send quarterly returns to the Environment Agency.
  • It will be an offence to collect hazardous waste from non-notified premises if the producer is not exempt.
• Waste producers cannot mix different categories of hazardous waste or mix hazardous waste with non-hazardous waste, except under license.
• The waste producer is responsible for ensuring that basic characterisation of the waste has taken place to establish its key characteristics as specified in the Regulations. In particular, details of the chemical composition and leaching behaviour of the waste are required.

 

Landfill Decision Tree: From the UK Environment Agency

Text of the Land Fill Directive 1999/31/EC   By Graham Adams seeba co-ordinator 25th May 2005   Fact Sheet on Producer Responsibility Fact Sheet on Land Fill Directive Fact Sheet on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Fact Sheet on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive Fact Sheet on the Restriction on the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in EEE Directive Fact Sheet on End-of-life Vehicles Fact Sheet on End-of-life Vehicles Directive Fact Sheet on Packaging Arsenic Bismuth Cadmium Chromium 6 Copper Lead Mercury Zinc

 

 

 

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