Consultation on the implementation of amendments to the environmental permitting guidance on waste incineration

Overview

On 16 July 2015 the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Environment and Rural Affairs Rory Stewart announced that as part of the commitment to cleaner air the Government would amend the current Environmental Permitting Guidance – the Waste Incineration Directive document to state clearly that all waste incineration plants and waste co-incineration plants burning waste oils in England and Wales fall under the scope of Chapter IV of the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED). This change affects small, basic appliances such as Small Waste Oil Burner (SWOBs).

The amendment will reduce the emission of air pollutants from the use of waste oil as a fuel as it will require all operators of SWOBs burning waste oils to meet the requirements of Chapter IV of the Industrial Emission Directive or, alternatively, to choose to use other non-waste fuels such as gas or fuel oils.

In reaching this decision the Government has taken account of various views and perspectives. Government also recognises that there is now an established waste oil recycling industry which offers an opportunity to further reduce air emissions, with potential benefits to human health and the environment. This consultation is being conducted jointly with the Welsh Government.

Please use the Online Survey link in the blue box below to answer our questions and contribute your views.

If you are unable to use the Survey, responses can be sent to us by post or email:    

Industrial Pollution Team, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Area 2C, Nobel House, 17 Smith Square, London, SW1P 3JR or Control.Pollution@defra.gsi.gov.uk

There is a link to the relevant documents and consultation letter below. Alternatively, if you would like to receive hard copies of these documents, you can contact us at the postal or email address above and they will be sent to you.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Why your views matter

We are seeking your views on whether the effect of the amended guidance is clear that the use of waste oil in a SWOB will be subject to the requirements of the IED.  We are also seeking any evidence you can provide to support the impact assessment which has been undertaken on this change. We are not consulting on whether or not to make the changes to the guidance.

What happens next

A summary of the responses to this consultation will be published and placed on the Government websites at www.gov.uk/defra and www.wales.gov.uk.

This summary will include a list of names and organisations that responded but not personal names, addresses or other contact details.

If you do not want your response - including your name, contact details and any other personal information - to be publicly available, please say so clearly in writing when you send your response to the consultation. Please note, if your computer automatically includes a confidentiality disclaimer, that won’t count as a confidentiality request.

Please explain why you need to keep details confidential. We will take your reasons into account if someone asks for this information under freedom of information legislation. But, because of the law, we cannot promise that we will always be able to keep those details confidential.

We plan to publish the amended guidance in December 2015 with the amendments taking effect from April 2016.