Changes to the legislative regime on ‘bin fines’

In its Waste Policy Review published on 14 June 2011, the government emphasised a shift away from criminal sanctions and towards civil sanctions for the offence of disposing of household waste incorrectly. Consultation on the proposals will close in March 2012.

Section 46 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 currently provides that householders risk criminal sanctions for incorrectly presenting their waste. Disposing of household waste incorrectly (for example, presenting the wrong bin on the wrong day) is currently a criminal offence for which councils are entitled to issue fixed penalty notices of up to £100 and can even push for criminal prosecution and fines of up to £1,000.

The plans under review propose to amend section 46 and two options have been proposed. Under both options, councils will be able to continue notifying householders that they have incorrectly presented their waste, but the fixed monetary penalty will be reduced (to between £60 and £80). Moreover, a test of ‘harm to local amenity’ will be considered before fixed monetary penalties can be imposed.

One of the options proposed suggests retaining the criminal offence of breaching section 46 so that severe offenders can still be prosecuted by local authorities. The second option proposes removing the criminal sanction completely and retaining only a civil sanction. Pending the amendment of section 46, the government intends for the current fixed penalty regime to be relaxed, with the maximum level of penalties from local authorities to be reduced to £40 from spring 2012.

Welsh Government consultation: construction and demolition waste reduction plan

In November 2011, the Welsh Government published the Construction and Demolition Sector Plan, a consultation document outlining measures to prevent and reduce waste and increase recycling in construction, civil engineering and demolition projects. This new initiative forms part of “Towards Zero Waste”, the overarching waste strategy for Wales.

The plan gives priority to waste prevention, proposing to achieve an annual reduction target of -1.4 per cent through concerted action by the private and public sectors. This is expected to be achieved in part by designing building and other construction products with material optimisation in mind (efficiency in terms of quantity and type of materials used, extending product life, etc), and in part through a training process to alter the behaviour of manufacturers, distributors and other businesses involved in the industry.

The plan also emphasises the need to ensure reuse of materials by proposing that demolition plans allow for resources (bricks, blocks, windows, etc) to be saved and reused as much as possible.

Improved segregation of waste and the increased use of recycled material are addressed, notably in view of achieving the waste recycling targets set in EU directives.

Finally, more sustainable treatment and disposal of residual construction and demolition waste is to be promoted, for example through the development of a network of sustainable waste management facilities and by delivering carbon reduction outcomes from residual waste treatment plants.

The consultation closed on 31 January 2012 and the response from the Welsh Government is awaited.

Recycling targets for WEEE increased across the European Union

On 19 January the European Parliament voted in favour of introducing higher targets for collection of WEEE (waste electrical and electronic equipment). The changes will create staged targets to recycle WEEE equivalent to 45 per cent of the weight that has been placed on the market by 2016; this will rise to 65 per cent in 2019. EU member states will have 18 months to update their national legislation to comply with the changes.

The decision has been widely welcomed by the government and various non-governmental bodies here. Industry consultants are reported to have called it a ‘positive’ change with targets that are achievable in the UK. However, it has been suggested that the increased targets may be of some concern to bigger producers.

Europe has also confirmed there will be a retailer take-back scheme, whereby consumers can take small WEEE items to an electrical retailer free of charge, without having to purchase a new product. This scheme will apply to retailers of electrical goods with a shop space of 400 square metres or larger.

There has been some criticism of what is seen by some as low revised targets for reusing WEEE items, which according to some industry experts could jeopardise future investment and job opportunities.