Composting industry challenges Agency over PAS comments

The Composting Association has defended the standards role as a “quality baseline” for composted organic material.

And, composting industry figures have challenged the Agency to explain comments made by head of waste strategy, Martin Brocklehurst, who said neither he nor his colleagues could guarantee materials in PAS 100 compost were “safe” regarding possible contaminants (see letsrecycle.com story).

The Composting Association, which represents 700 composting businesses, insisted that the PAS 100 standard – devised with WRAP, the Waste and Resources Action Programme – is a “quality baseline” for composts.

Emily Nichols, the Association's technical officer, claimed it was “even more comprehensive than the quality protocol developed by WRAP for the production of aggregates from inert waste”

Ms Nichols told letsrecycle.com: “PAS 100 is more than a compost marketing tool. It is also used by local authorities in composting service procurement and can be used to demonstrate good composting practice to the regulator.”

“By requiring a quality management systems approach that results in compost fit for its intended purpose, PAS 100 fosters a customer-oriented, product manufacturing mind-set,” she explained.

Unfounded
Composters themselves have strongly objected to the Agency's comments on the PAS 100. Charlie Trousdell, who runs a composting business in East Sussex, said: “So many of us are spending a lot of time on trying to develop good quality compost in line with PAS 100. It was compiled by WRAP and experts and we would like the Agency to say exactly what's wrong with it.”

Mr Trousdell added that he and his colleagues in the industry believed the concerns about metals in PAS 100 material are unfounded and he said the Agency is being “precautionary to a very high degree”.

“The levels within the standard are set to prevent any heavy metal contamination and they are suitably rigorous. There is a theoretical risk with everything, but the overwhelming evidence is there is no real risk with the levels set within PAS 100,” he said.

Guidance
The composting industry has long campaigned for guidance on when material ceases to be a waste and technically becomes a product, to help them sell their compost. As yet, composters in England have not received a clear answer on this matter, although the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, SEPA, has said that it does not class PAS 100 material as a “waste”.

An organics protocol is now to be developed by WRAP using a 1 million funding package from Defra's BREW initiative (see letsrecycle.com story), which should help clarify this issue. The Composting Association said that it would be participating in creating this protocol at the start of next year.

Ms Nichols said that the PAS documents are normally reviewed every two years by the British Standards Institute, and that with current landfill allowance demands it was “timely” that the PAS 100 was being included in criteria reviewed by Defra in establishing the voluntary protocol.