KEEPING THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE LAW
With the Environment Agency cracking down on illegal waste sites, it is timely to off er a reminder about com- petence requirements. If you carry out an activity that involves the recovery or disposal of waste (including waste activities carried out by certain installations) in England or Wales, it is government policy that you must be a member of a government approved scheme.
Key requirements are:
• Appropriately qualifi ed managers for the specifi c waste activity
• Records of operating hours • Technically competent manager on site for a specifi ed amount of time a week
T e legal operator must have: •
• Day-to-day control of the facility or activity, including the manner and rate of operation;
• Make sure that permit conditions are complied with;
• Decide who holds important staff positions and have incompetent staff removed, if required;
• Make investment and fi nancial decisions that aff ect the facility’s performance or how the activity is carried out;
• Make sure the activities are controlled in an emergency.
Records of operating hours should cover the times you are carrying out any activity covered by your permit and when your manager arrives and leaves. Your technically compe- tent manager must be on site for the required time each week (‘attendance requirement’) and if they take time off , you must arrange cover for them.
T e attendance requirement in the fi rst 6 months of an operation depends on what permit is in place, for example, a ‘Tier 2’ standard rules permit requires attendance on site for at least 20% of the operating time. At the end of the fi rst 6 months the manager’s attendance should be agreed with the regulator.
Whereas if your permit has an Operator Risk Appraisal (“OPRA”) based charge the attendance requirement de- pends on the environmental risk posed by your activities, calculated on a points system. T is approach is currently
under review by the Agency with a view to move to a system that is based less on non-compliance and more on performance.
Note that a manager does not need to attend a site for more than 48 hours per week, regardless of how long the facility is operational or what the OPRA score is.
When reviewing competence, the following factors will be taken into consideration:
• How an operator responds to any accidents • Any previous convictions for environmental or related off ences
• Compliance with permit conditions •
Financial competence including checks for bankruptcy or insolvency
In the case of a landfi ll, Category A or hazardous waste facility, it is mandatory to have funds available to carry out any actions needed in the event of an operation ceasing before a surrender application is submitted
For waste operations with environmental permits and certain installations, it is necessary to join and comply with the requirements of one of the two government approved schemes
1. T e CIWM/WAMITAB scheme; or
2. T e EU Skills/Environmental Services Association (ESA) scheme.
For the CIWM/WAMITAB scheme, managers will need to work towards gaining technically competent qualifi cations and will need to pass a continuing competency assessment every two years.
If applying for a new permit for a waste site that is not a landfi ll facility, there is a 12-month grace period to achieve either of the scheme requirements.
Tackling waste crime is a top priority for regulators, with a focus on supporting legitimate businesses by disrupting the criminal element and taking tough enforcement action on those who do not comply. Remember ignorance of the law is not a defence against a possible prosecution!
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