Duty of Care
The duty of care is a law which says that you mast take all reasonable steps to keep waste safe. If you give waste to someone else, you must be sure they are authorised to take it and can transport, recycle or dispose of it safely.
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For more information see the DEFRA Duty of Care leaflet or visit the DEFRA website.
HOUSEHOLDERS MUST TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR WASTE OR RISK FINES
New changes to waste regulations will help
reduce the thousands of tonnes of household waste being fly-tipped
each year.
Last year, there were 500,000 fly-tips of household rubbish;
much of which was dumped by operators posing as legitimate waste
carriers.
As of November 21 2006, all householders in
England will have a responsibility, under the waste 'Duty of Care',
to ensure their rubbish is passed on to authorised carriers
only. And those householders not taking reasonable
measures to do so, could face fines of up to
£5,000.
Registered waste carriers, other than the local council, can
now be found online thanks to a new 'waste carrier register', set
up by the Environment Agency.
Announcing the changes to the Duty of Care regulations for
waste, Local Environment Minister, Ben Bradshaw, encouraged anyone
using a private waste carrier to look at the register, or call
their local Environment Agency office.
"Fly-tippers rely on people not asking questions, and not
checking for registration but now all householders have a
responsibility to ask those questions, and check for that
registration.
"Waste cowboys can make huge sums of money by charging to take
household rubbish away illegally, before dumping it over the
nearest hedge. If that rubbish is traced back to the household it
came from, the householder could now be fined."
However, Mr Bradshaw highlighted that the changes were not in
place to 'scare people', but to provide another check in the fight
to prevent fly-tipping.
"Using their new powers under the Clean Neighbourhoods and
Environment Act, both local authorities and the Environment Agency
are working hard to catch fly-tippers, but they need help.
"If everyone takes responsibility for their own waste, we can
cut the supply to the fly-tippers and drive them out of business in
turn saving council taxpayers millions of pounds."
Last year, councils spent almost £1m a week clearing up
fly-tips, over half of which were household rubbish; rubbish that
could have been disposed of at the nearest tip free of
charge.
Councillor David Sparks, Chair of the Local Government
Association's Environment Board said:
"The new regulations are an extra weapon in the armoury to
eliminate fly-tippers and fly-tipping. They are all about
householders working with their council to combat the blight of
fly-tipping and make sure rubbish is dealt with properly and
responsibly.
"The target is not responsible citizens who keep their
neighbourhoods clean, but those who are intent on dumping their
rubbish for everyone else to clean up.
"Every year councils spend millions of pounds clearing up
household rubbish that is dumped by people posing as legitimate
waste carriers. We don't want to fine people; we want to encourage
them to think carefully about who they give their waste to, and not
to simply choose the cheapest option.
"All household waste can still be disposed of at tips free of
charge. And for residents unable to take bulky waste to the tip
themselves, most councils offer a subsidised, or free, collection
service."
However, for those using waste carriers other than the council
to remove household, garden or construction waste, the Environment
Agency suggests the following check:
- Consider whether the contractor falls into one of the following categories: all building and allied trades; landscape gardeners, tree fellers and surgeons; house clearers; retail establishments; and scrap metal dealers. These are occupations that will normally need a waste carrier registration.
- Ask the contractor whether they are a registered waste carrier and ask for their waste carrier number. If they are not registered, refuse the service, and advise them that they need to speak with the Environment Agency on 08708 506506.
- If they claim to be registered, telephone the Environment Agency on 08708 506506 and request an instant Waste Carrier Validation Check or check online at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/publicregister