Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD, 2013)
has supported the transboundary movements of wastes destined for recovery oper-
ations between member countries of the OECD since March 1992. Transboundary
movement of waste is supervised and controlled under a specific intra-OECD Con-
trol System established by the Council Decision C (2001), aiming at facilitating trade
of recyclables in an environmentally sound and economically efficient manner by
using a simplified procedure as well as a risk-based approach to assess the neces-
sary level of control for materials (The OECD Control System, 2013; Transboundary
movements, 2008).
The OECD Control System is based on two types of control procedures:
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Green Control Procedure: This control procedure is for wastes that present low
risk for human health and the environment and, therefore, they are not subject to
any other control than those normally applied in commercial transactions;
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Amber Control Procedure: This control procedure is for wastes presenting
sufficient risk to justify their control.
In addition, an Interactive database (OECD Database, 2013) is operational on
the OECD website to help anyone involved in a transboundary movement of waste
destined for recovery within the OECD area.
The procedures for determining whether a waste is hazardous are often complex
and difficult to follow. The Hazardous Waste Directive of 1991 and the associated EU
Decisions have led to the implementation of the European waste catalogue (EWC) and
the hazardous waste list (HWL) (EWC and HWL, 2002)
Today, EWC and the HWL serve as basis for the classification of wastes and
their consequent practical handling in Europe. The EWC is a hierarchical list of waste
descriptions established by Commission Decision 2000/532/EC (EWC List, 2000). It
has 20 main chapters with a two-digit code between 01 and 20, related generally to
industries but some are based on materials and processes. Individual wastes within
each chapter are assigned a six-digit code. The codes within the EWC determine the
duties of care of the waste. The guidance on classification of waste according to Euro-
pean Waste Statistics categories is given by the manual for the implementation of
the regulation on Waste Statistics (Waste Statistic Manual, 2010; Manual for Waste
Statistics, 2013).
In the US, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) provides the
general guidelines for the waste management program envisioned by Congress. The
hazardous waste program, under RCRA Subtitle C, establishes a system for controlling
hazardous waste from the time it is generated until its ultimate disposal—in effect, from
“cradle to grave'' (HWR, 2013).
3 WASTE CLASSIFICATION AND CONSEQUENT DUTIES
The classification of waste is based on the prioritization of their characteristics. These
characteristics mirror many different aspects regarding the origin, the waste generating
technology, the volume or the location of the waste, the number and quality of the
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