NEW Waste Management Licensing Regulations in Scotland

The Waste Management Licensing (Scotland) Regulations 2011 came into force in Scotland on 27th March 2011. The regulations consolidate The Waste Management Licensing Regulation (as amended) into one piece of legislation. The regulations mainly affect waste management businesses and businesses that handle or transport waste, although a number of the waste management licensing exemptions will be relevant to other sectors, including construction businesses and farms.

The regulations include the following provisions:

1. Planning and waste regulation authorities must perform their functions in relation to the waste hierarchy and in a manner which delivers the best overall environmental outcome.
2. There is no longer the requirement for a Certificate of Technical Competence to demonstrate that a person is suitably qualified to hold a waste management licence.
3. All businesses carrying their own waste must be registered as a waste carrier; and
4. Waste dealers and brokers are also required to be registered.

The Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2011 complement these regulations, making provisions for:

• site licences – suspension, revocation, transfer and surrender (including partial surrender, which was not previously catered for in Scotland); and
• consolidation of existing licences for one site and held by the same person, and the same for mobile plant licenses held by the same person.

In England and Wales, the equivalent waste management licensing exemptions are contained in The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010 (as amended).