Archived press release

Date Published: 08/11/07

Aylesbury Vale District Council is urging local businesses to ensure that their rubbish is properly treated, or they could be fined under new environmental laws. The new regulations require all businesses in England and Wales to treat their non-h...

Aylesbury Vale District Council is urging local businesses to ensure that their rubbish is properly treated, or they could be fined under new environmental laws.

The new regulations require all businesses in England and Wales to treat their non-hazardous waste, such as paper, plastic and glass, before sending it to landfill.

This means that waste has to be separated in some form and sorted into different waste streams so as much as possible goes to be recycled.

The rules, designed to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill sites, state that businesses must reduce the volume or hazardous nature of the waste they produce. In short, they dictate that liquid waste will be banned from landfill, while other waste must be treated before it is disposed of.

Small shops and offices can comply with the new laws by separating ink cartridges and waste paper into different recycling streams, rather than just throwing them all in the same bin. However, if these businesses produce non-hazardous liquids, such as effluent from food processing, it is now illegal to send it to landfill.

Under the new legislation, it also becomes illegal for any businesses to take their waste home to be recycled through household facilities.

The latest rules are in addition to a general duty of care for waste and those rules under the Landfill Directive that are already in force. This means businesses must continue to separate hazardous and non-hazardous waste, as these are not allowed to be disposed of together, and meeting the strict disposal conditions that apply to hazardous waste.

Councillor Sir Beville Stanier, Cabinet Member for Environment and Health at AVDC, said: "Businesses can put all their waste together if someone, such as a waste contractor, is going to treat it on their behalf before it’s disposed of. If not, however, then they’re going to have to treat it themselves. We would urge businesses to ensure they are aware of the new rules and to contact their waste contractor to make arrangements.”

AVDC is currently reviewing its waste collection operations to see if there is a way of developing a trade recycling service for commercial waste. The businesses would need to produce types of waste similar to those created by householders in the district for the service to be practical and cost-effective.

There are firms and organisations in Buckinghamshire which will collect and recycle materials that are no longer needed by businesses. A list of companies to contact is available in local directories.

The Environment Agency has produced a factsheet on how to treat non-hazardous wastes for landfill, which can be downloaded from its website at www.environment-agency.gov.uk