The Waste Framework Directive (WFD) is an integral piece of legislation reinvigorating current policies and inspiring new practices to protect the health of society and of our environment. But what is this directive and what is it about?

What is the directive?

Well, it is the newer, shinier and all better directive to replace the old version – Directive 2006/12/EC. This new directive repeals out-dated commitments and provides the foundation for localised waste minimisation strategies. In its immediacy, the WFD offers greater clarity on broad terminology, determining a consistent definition of what “waste” is; what its place is in the European Community and, finally, what future is envisioned for waste and waste management.

What is the directive about?

Put simply; the directive commits member states to work towards the objective of becoming a “recycling society” for the protection of the environment and human health. The WFD commits member-states to vigorously assess their current efforts and to grasp potential options for further progress.

This guide shall present an overview of the WFD looking at (i) the key terminology (ii) the role of the WFD in promoting the waste hierarchy within member states via Waste Plans and finally (iii) enforcement options to encourage success.

Key terminology

The WFD sets clear definitions of key waste terms (see article 3):

• Waste: “any substance or object which the holder discards or intends or is required to discard.”
• Hazardous waste: “waste which displays one or more of the hazardous properties listed in annex II”
• Waste Producer: “anyone whose activities produce waste (original waste producer) or anyone who carries out pre-processing, mixing, or other operations resulting in a change in the nature or composition of this waste.”
• Waste Management: “the collection, transport, recovery and disposal of waste, including the supervision of such operations and the after-care of disposal sites including actions taken as a dealer or broker”
• Recycling: “any recovery operation by which waste materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances whether for the original or other purposes. It includes the reprocessing of organic material but does not include energy recovery and the reprocessing into materials that are to be used as fuels or for backfilling operations.”

Waste Hierarchy

The WFD seeks to re-invigorate efforts within member-states to understand and adopt the waste hierarchy (shown below). The waste hierarchy illustrates the hierarchy of processes that should be sought before waste is ultimately disposed (via landfill or other means).

1. As shown above, the first aspiration of any producer or member-state should be to reduce waste at the source; that is to eliminate waste through careful planning and strategic selection of materials and processes. Article 9 requests member states to produce action plans on how to implement waste reduction strategies with a set deadline of 2014.
2. Beyond reduction, waste should be reused as a resource – an example in the household could be to re-use jam jars for other means. The WFD requires member states to implement strategic “instruments and policies” to allow such networks to emerge and grow – such as deterring disposal or promoting greener efforts.
3. Thirdly; if waste cannot be reduced or reused, it should then be recycled to allow value to be recaptured in the re-use of the materials. The Directive dictates that member states should initiate separate waste collection schemes to collect at least 50% of recyclable waste through the introduction of segregated waste collections for at least paper, metal, plastic and glass materials by 2020.
4. Fourthly; recovery. We aim to find energy or material value from the waste through the use of “necessary measures”. In this aspect, the directive seems vague and broad; little information is given regarding expectations, targets or limitations. However what is meant here is the treatment of waste to recover energy such as through incineration or biomass treatment facilities.
5. The final option – and least favoured – is disposal, such as land-filling. Land-filling is a final resort when no value or alternative solution is possible. When disposing of waste, member states are required to ensure the safe treatment and disposal of waste by allocating permits to authorised and competent agents (permits are highlighted at a later stage).

Waste Plans

Member states are obliged to devise Waste Plans to tackle waste throughout the entirety of their geographical boundaries. These plans analyse the current waste management policies and strategies in their jurisdictions with measurable and comparable assessments. Member states must clearly demonstrate current efforts and propose commitments to reduce, reuse and recycle waste to deliver upon WFD ambitions demonstrating what new materials or facilities are necessary to meet targets. Should new facilities be required, detailed Environmental Impact Assessments and Strategic Environmental Assessments are must be provided to the European Union Parliament.

To enhance the potential for the success of waste plans, member-states must also illustrate the organisational structure responsible for dealing with waste to illustrate where responsibilities lie. An important aspect of Waste Plans worth attention is the encouragement of initiatives to support positive action; member states are encouraged to devise economic instruments to encourage positive action and deter counterproductive behaviours or attitudes. Similarly, sufficient awareness campaigns are a core requirement to educate and encourage the public to participate in such recycling schemes (under section 31).

Enforcement

To enforce local Waste Plans to achieve the requirements of the WFD, member-states are permitted to instigate all necessary economic and legislative measures to achieve the aims of the directive (see section 36). In doing so, states are encouraged to instil effective punishment criteria – befitting crime – upon those impeding progress or posing harm to the environment or to human health. In a bid to avert such outcomes however, member states are encouraged to promote the polluter pays principle (PPP) and to instigate and disperse authoritative permits as preventative measures;

Polluter Pays Principle (PPP)

The Polluter Pays Principle seeks to encourage member states to seek damages and remediation costs from polluters (article 14). Member states are encouraged to provide adequate economic and legislative conditions that (i) recoup costs from polluters and (ii) allow producers to explore and instil environmentally conscious practices and materials into their business streams. Further information on the PPP can be found here:

http://www.energysavingwarehouse.co.uk/news/314/20/A-Quick-Guide-The-Polluter-Pays-Principle.html

Tradable Permits

Tradable permits allow member-states to disperse “licenses” to agents responsible for undertaking waste management, waste transportation or waste disposal activities. The WFD reiterates the importance that member states record comprehensive and contemporary information on permit-holders. This information must include, without exception:

• Specific types of waste permitted
• Specific quantities of waste permitted
• Safety and precautionary measures to be taken
• Methods of operations
• Monitoring and control operations as required
• Closure and after-care plans if applicable.

This guide had provided a brief overview of the Waste Framework Directive. The Directive was instigated to replace the out-dated Directive 2006/12/EC and provide clarity and detail on terminology and direction. The directive is ambitious in committing member-states to undertake comprehensive and detailed assessments of current initiatives before then committing to targeted waste plans toward ambitious objectives.

For further information, the directive can be found here:

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32008L0098:EN:NOT