Putting the ‘Right Waste’ in the ‘Right Place’

It is unfortunate and disappointing that, according to statistics collected by Suez, 56% of SME waste producers are not currently complying with their waste Duty of Care. Causes of non compliance range from not giving consideration to the waste hierarchy or separate collection requirements under the Waste Regulations, to storing waste materials incorrectly, to mixing hazardous and or hygiene wastes in with general waste.

Of course, Suez’s customers are at least meeting their obligation to pass their waste to a properly registered waste carrier, but some businesses do not. The Duty of Care is potentially a powerful tool in the armoury to fight waste crime. If Duty of Care was complied with, if businesses asked the right questions and made the right checks about what happened to their waste, then they would effectively be cutting off the supply to waste criminals and would make a big dent in the current £50 million cost of fly-tipping to local authorities and the £568 million cost of waste crime to the UK’s economy as a whole.

However, the good news is that the Suez survey also found that 90% of non-compliant businesses, when informed about their obligations under Duty of Care, expressed the aspiration to comply. Meanwhile, a relatively small percentage (17%) thought that the costs of compliance were an issue for them. So it is reasonable to assume that non-compliance stems more from a lack of awareness and understanding rather than a deliberate intention to break the law or cut corners.

Campaign trail

So, whilst there is undoubtedly a role for strong enforcement of the Duty of Care, especially after Defra published its revised Code of Practice, an information-driven approach looks as though it could be more cost-effective. It is for these reasons that ESA launched the ‘right Waste, right Place’ campaign and website on 12 April. Primarily (but not exclusively) aimed at SMEs, it aims to raise awareness of the Duty of Care legislation and provide practical information to help businesses from a broad range of sectors to comply.

The campaign launch highlighted that understanding and complying with ‘Duty of Care’ legislation can not only help prevent waste crime but can also save businesses significant amounts of money. Those who do comply could well find that they are more efficient and successful, as a result of thinking about the waste they produce in a more organised way.

Venn do we want it? The right Waste, right Place campaign logo.

The key to achieving these benefits is ensuring that businesses are aware of what their obligations are and what they have to do to meet them. That’s where the campaign website comes in. It is designed to be easy to use, convenient and pragmatic and to contain all the essential information to help establishments and businesses comply. It helps to supplement the Defra Code of Practice, which due to Red Tape challenge constraints, doesn’t contain any real practical examples or case studies. For example, the team has developed:

• a ‘Simple Guide’ to Duty of Care;
• a range of case studies showing the pitfalls to avoid and examples of best practice; and
• some ‘need to know cards’, which are handy guides on what businesses and enterprises should do with different types of waste.

The website also acts as a simple portal to a wide range of other information and services for those with more sector specific enquiries.

Social services

The campaign will continue to use a wide range of initiatives to help increase awareness, many of which will utilise social media to reflect the way a lot of smaller businesses now source information and become involved. We have a Twitter account @RWRP2016, a Facebook page and a YouTube channel where SMEs can learn from Bob about putting the right Waste in the right Place.

Key to getting the campaign and website successfully developed and launched has been support from a number of organisations. That support has included sponsorship  from the Environment Agency, CIWM and ESAET, but also the active participation and resources provided by a number of other companies and organistions including Suez, Veolia, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), Build UK, The National Farmers Union (NFU), Travis Perkins, URoC, and the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC).

Since it was launched on 12^th April 2016, the campaign has received some very positive feedback. Councils, businesses and other organisations have been in touch asking to join the campaign and to use some of the material for training or other purposes. Everyone who believes their organisation could benefit from joining the right Waste, right Place campaign is encouraged to get in touch and especially to become a campaign ambassador.

The campaign will also be promoted in the trade and sector media, and at relevant exhibitions, seminars and industry events. If you would like to get involved in any way, don’t hesitate to contact a member of the team by calling 0808 123 0014 or emailing info@rightwasterightplace.co.uk.

Like other Isonomia authors, Sam writes in a personal capacity. The views above do not necessarily reflect those of the Environmental Services Association.