Waste Transfer Notes

Section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 Act imposes a duty of care on persons concerned with controlled waste. The duty applies to any person who produces, imports, carries, keeps, treats or disposes of controlled waste, or as a broker has control of such waste. Breach of the duty of care is an offence, with a penalty of an unlimited fine if convicted on indictment. Controlled waste is governed by the Controlled Waste Regulations, 1992.

The duty of care applies to anyone who is the holder of controlled waste. The only exception to this is for the occupiers of domestic property for the household waste which comes from their home. Anyone subject to the duty of care who has some "controlled waste" must identify and describe the kind of waste it is.

What is waste?
From the Environmental Protection Act 1990 waste includes any substance which constitutes a scrap material, an effluent or other unwanted surplus arising from the application of any process or any substance or article which requires to be disposed of which has been broken, worn out, contaminated or otherwise spoiled; this is supplemented with anything which is discarded otherwise dealt with as if it were waste shall be presumed to be waste unless the contrary is proved. This definition was amended by the Waste Management Licensing Regulations 1994 defining waste as 'any substance or object which the producer or the person in possession of it, discards or intends or is required to discard but with exception of anything excluded from the scope of the Waste Directive.'

What is controlled waste?
Controlled waste is waste from households, commerce, industry, agricultural premises (non natural wastes), mines and quarries. Some controlled wastes are further classified and subject to further regulation because of the nature of the waste and the need to handle them differently. Clinical waste comes from hospitals, nursing homes, dentists, surgeries etc. and can include wastes from the household. Similarly, hazardous/special wastes are hazardous for a variety of reasons including toxicity, explosiveness, etc. They also must be handled and dealt with differently to other wastes.

A Waste Transfer Note is a document which must be completed and accompany any transfer of waste between different parties. A Waste Transfer Note must be created for each load of waste that leaves your factory/office/yard/shop/warehouse/etc. According to the Environmental Protection Act 1990 waste includes any substance which constitutes a scrap material, an effluent or other unwanted surplus arising from the application of any process or any substance or article which requires to be disposed of which has been broken, worn out, contaminated or otherwise spoiled; this is supplemented with anything which is discarded otherwise dealt with as if it were waste shall be presumed to be waste unless the contrary is proved. This definition was amended by the Waste Management Licensing Regulations 1994 defining waste as 'any substance or object which the producer or the person in possession of it, discards or intends or is required to discard but with exception of anything excluded from the scope of the Waste Directive.'

Waste carriers or waste management contractors should never describe the waste on the Waste Transfer Note, the producer/current holder of the waste should do this as they are in the best position to accurately describe the waste.

Ensure that description of the waste on documentation is accurate and describes the waste by reference to the appropriate 6 digit code/s in the European Waste Catalogue (EWC). The EWC provides a more precise method of identifying the type of waste by listing waste types according to the process or industries from which they arise. The requirement to refer to the code is contained in the Landfill Regulations 2002 and also the Landfill (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2005. Non-specific terms such as 'general waste' or 'inert waste' are not acceptable. The purpose of the description is to allow other people who handle the waste to know what they are dealing with so that they can manage it safely and properly.

The Waste Transfer Note should include details of how the waste is contained - i.e. loose or packaged and, if packaged, then in what type of containers.

Both parties to the transfer must sign the transfer note e.g. the current holder and the receiver must sign the Waste Transfer Note before the waste is transported. If the current holder transports their own waste, they and the operator of the waste management site to whom they hand over your waste must sign the transfer note. If a waste broker is used, you must ensure that they are registered with your Environmental Regulator. The Waste Transfer Note is a record of the nature and quantity of waste transferred, how it was packaged, when it was transferred, where it went and who it was transferred to - all requirements of the Duty of Care.

You must keep copies of all Waste Transfer Note's for at least two years.

Whatever the destination of your business wastes and whichever organisations are handling them, it will help you to prove that you have properly discharged your Duty of Care if you undertake periodic audits. This will help you to ensure that your wastes are being handled correctly from the moment they leave your premises to the final point of disposal or recovery.

This is only an introduction to the duty of care. It cannot be relied on as legal advice.
Practical guidance is in “Waste Management, The Duty of Care, A Code of Practice”, ISBN 0-11-753210-X, published by the Stationery Office and available from their bookshops or by telephoning 0870 600 5522.