The Haz Guide

The Landfill Directive sets out to reduce hazardous waste being disposed to landfill. Certain wastes are banned such as hazardous liquids, flammable, corrosive and explosive wastes. The co-disposal of hazardous waste with non-hazardous waste at the same landfill site is also prohibited. The basic characterisation of waste at an early stage is therefore essential.
Waste producers are required to ensure that their waste meets the Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC). Wastes being sent to landfill must also satisfy the waste acceptance criteria.

The landfill regulations are now replaced by the Environmental Permitting Regulations (England and Wales) 2007. Further details regarding environmental permitting are available here.

Hazardous waste may only be disposed to landfill if the site is authorised to accept that particular type of waste (an authorised site may not be able to accept all types of hazardous waste). Therefore, the Environment Agency determines that different types of hazardous waste may only be accepted at a hazardous waste landfill if:

Hazardous waste must be treated before it can be sent to landfill to meet the limits set by a landfill site's WAC. Treatment means physical, thermal, chemical or biological processes, including sorting, that change the characteristics of the waste in order to:

The Environment Agency has published detailed guidance on landfill acceptance requirements and problematic waste streams:

Pre-treatment of non-hazardous waste
It has been a requirement since 30 October 2007 that non-hazardous waste must be treated before it can be landfilled. As this refers to non-hazardous wastes, segregation of HH type waste is not sufficient.

Waste producers therefore need to consider whether to pre-treat non hazardous waste themselves or to hand over the responsibility to a waste management contractor. Businesses should take the opportunity to decide whether they need to produce the waste at all.
The Environment Agency defines treatment as

“physical, thermal, chemical or biological processes (including sorting) that change the characteristics of waste in order to reduce its volume or hazardous nature, facilitate its handling or enhance recovery.”

Any source segregation of waste and subsequent recycling will be a treatment method that satisfies the regulations. The waste producer should hold a written declaration or a transfer note detailing the amount of waste sorted for recovery or treatment and the type of treatment.
Guidance produced by the Environment Agency is available here.

Banning of liquid wastes

Since 30 October 2007 all liquid wastes are banned from landfill in England, Northern Ireland and Wales. The Environment Agency has produced guidance on diverting non-hazardous liquid wastes from landfill in England and Wales. This guidance includes interpretation of the term ‘liquid waste’. In Scotland liquid wastes are usually banned from landfill under a site’s Pollution Prevention and Control (PPC) permit.