The agency hopes that the consultation will enable the UK to meet the Landfill Directive's requirements when it comes into force next year. The agency's draft proposals will be used to help landfill operators understand the requirements of the directive and develop a mechanism for formally submitting conditioning plans. The deadline for comments on the proposals is November 23.
Guidelines are needed as conditioning plans must be submitted by next July and failure to do so could see landfill sites having to close. And there has been a general feeling that the UK may fall behind on implementing the directive because the government has been slow in publishing guidance and regulations and the Environmental Services Association said in July that a set of guidelines was urgently needed.
The agency said that conditioning plans should only be submitted after the Landfill Regulations are finalised. After which, it will review them and use them as a basis to decide whether a landfill should close, or if a permit application needs to be made. The conditioning plan must identify any measures that the operator believes are necessary to comply with the directive.
When the consultation is completed, the conditioning plan will form part of an operators’ regulatory pack. This will include a leaflet for landfill operators preparing conditioning plans as well as regulatory guidance note which defines the three classes of landfills that will exist, indicates when classification will occur and outlines how the agency interprets the implications of classification.
The pack will also provide guidance on the technical requirements that landfills will be required to meet under the PPC permit. Habitats regulations information will also be included as the agency is required to review the impacts of existing landfills on certain vulnerable habitats.
David Baxter, landfill directive project manager for the Environment Agency, said: “The proposed template has been developed to take account of the period of time available to operators and the Agency to prepare and analyse these plans. We are aiming to balance the needs of environmental protection, legal compliance and proportionate regulatory impact.
He added: “The Agency is working closely with the waste industry on the implementation of the Landfill Directive: the proposals we release today have been simplified from early drafts, largely as a result of industry feedback. I am now keen to hear the views of all waste operators on the Environment Agency’s proposals for conditioning plans.”
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