Defra has today published guide outlining whatUK waste importers and exporters must do to prepare for changes to rules around waste shipments if the UK leaves the EU with no deal on 29 March 2019.
If the UK leaves the EU without a deal, the UK will become a third (non-EU) country from 29 March 2019.
The guide sets out to explain how the controls for importing and exporting notified waste will change in this scenario and encourages importers and exporters “need to prepare for the following changes”.
The guide states to the UK government has secured agreement that 98% of UK consents for shipments of notifiable waste that go beyond 29 March 2019 will be rolled over.
Defra says it is engaging with the Spanish government to resolve the small number of approvals that remain outstanding.
UK regulators will email UK exporters of notifiable wastes to update them on the outcome of discussions and will continue to give updates until 29 March 2019.
Waste Shipments
When the UK leaves the EU, the UK will remain a party to the Basel convention and member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the guide states.
It says the UK will be treated the same way as any other OECD country or any country party to the Basel convention that intends to export waste to an EU country. The current waste shipments procedures will still apply.
It states if you are an exporter, you will need to make yourself aware of the EU customs guidelines and the EU Waste Shipment Regulations.
The rules for shipping waste for recycling under the Green Control procedures will stay the same, it says.
EU countries will not be allowed to export waste for disposal, or export mixed municipal waste for recovery, to the UK under EU law, it states and says UK businesses that want to import waste from the EU to the UK, you should be aware of the:
- EU customs guidelines
- EU rules on exports of waste to non-EU countries in the EU Waste Shipment Regulations
For the full guide, click here.