LAWR

WASTE CRIME ANALYSIS "This analysis seems to assume local authorities are just letting this happen, which is wrong. With the current financial crisis affecting the public sector, authorities are looking hard at their trade waste services to ensure they are financially sound and the service is not being subsidised by the genuine taxpayer. "There are some good examples of effective communications with businesses making them aware of their legal responsibilities provided by a number of LARAC's members." It seems that most councils in the UK have preventative measures in place to deal with this problem. Basildon Council Street Scene & Technical Services manager Stuart Noyce says that if any of its staff are suspected of accepting material through incorrect channels, the council will carry out the appropriate disciplinary investigations. He says: "We have a robust counter-fraud and corruption policy in accordance with the Fraud Act 2006, which staff are trained on. "We have audited our trade waste collection service to ensure that customers only have the containers that they are paying for. "Supervisors also carry out spot checks of trade waste premises to make sure there is no side waste and there is a corporate gifts and hospitality procedure which is communicated to all staff. All businesses could also be subject to a random inspection requiring evidence of their waste transfers through a duty of care note. "As a further counter fraud measure staff are issued with a handbook which explains what to do if offered financial incentives or 'tips' as well as each driver being asked to complete a monthly governance statement. This is subject to regular inspection which highlights the possibility of being offered an incentive." During a Twitter conversation on the topic, JarnoLondon says that the problem is not endemic but it "certainly happens". JarnoLondon says that it's also prevalent among private collectors doing a few jobs on the side and collecting household waste as C&I. A Belfast City Council (BCC) spokesman echoed Noyce's views. He explains: "Belfast City Council undertakes rigorous proactive supervision of our staff during the course of the execution of their duties, to ensure these are completed properly and beyond reproach, and any allegations of alleged improper conduct are thoroughly investigated. "In Northern Ireland, duty-of-care powers are available to the relevant statutory authorities, not local authorities. It is the view of BCC that proper and full exercising of these powers has the potential to virtually eradicate this type of waste crime. BCC has been campaigning to have these powers devolved, to allow us to undertake this enforcement role, but, unfortunately without success to date." A Carmarthenshire County Council spokeswoman says the Council is not aware of any malpractice in Carmarthenshire: "However, we are currently installing 360-degree cameras in all our refuse vehicles. Although this is primarily for health and safety reasons, the cameras would also help to identify any potential wrongdoing." Waste trade bodies say that waste crime has no place in the industry. An ESA spokeswoman says: "Any business that creates waste has a duty of care to ensure that it is disposed of correctly and legally. Any form of avoidance of paying the correct price, or tax, to dispose of waste is a crime. In the tough financial climate businesses are trying to cut costs where possible, but failing to dispose of waste correctly has an impact on the environment and the economy as a whole, and is not something ESA or it members encourage people to do." CIWM chief executive Steve Lee concludes: "The report reveals a small but irksome underbelly of waste and resources management that's too fat by half. "Far from commonplace, 'bin man bribery' is a culture of 'stuff- thy-neighbours'-bins or the victory of white van men over compliant businesses and unfair additional burdens on hard-pushed council tax payers. "How many of the 1% duckers and divers are first to moan about the cost of local council services? "CIWM wants sharp practice to be cut out of business waste management. Every single business, big or small, has a legal duty to ensure its waste is managed properly. Every waste management business has a duty to carry out that legal management and all professional waste managers in CIWM have a code of conduct to live by. Bribes and fly-tipping have no place in the 21st Century waste and resource management industry. "Interestingly, all good waste managers will give waste producers valuable information back – what they waste, where and when, and what happened to it." " Unfortunately a small number of businesses and people will always try to avoid having to correctly dispose of their waste in an attempt to save costs " 20 Local Authority Waste & Recycling March 2014 • Scared of being caught and fined - 60% • Had already budgeted for waste management – 15% • Had negotiated a good deal for waste management - 13% • Committed to legal recycling - 6% The main reasons businesses who did not resort to illegal means to get rid of their waste were: LANDFILL MANAGEMENT Understanding leachate Vinod Ramachandran, technical development manager for Ondeo Industrial Solutions, part of Degremont Industry, looks at the issues surrounding leachate and explains how plant operators should go about specifying a safe and efficient solution for leachate management and treatment. eachate is highly variable in terms of flow and quality. It often contains a toxic mix of organic and inorganic compounds, which can fluctuate seasonally. This can make effective and environmentally compliant leachate treatment a tough challenge, especially as there is a wide variety of treatment options available to landfill site operators. Leachate is a liquid emission from waste landfill, created by rainwater. When rain falls on the landfill site it becomes contaminated as it percolates down through the waste. The contaminated rainwater that flows out of the landfill is termed leachate. Contamination varies according to a series of factors, from the age and type of waste to the seasons of the year; in summer the leachate is lower in volume but contains a higher concentration of contaminant, while the reverse occurs in the winter during periods of heavy rainfall. Also, leachate is highly variable in content, with common contaminants including ammonia, phenols and heavy metals that would have a detrimental effect on the environment if discharged. The variability of data caused by issues such as those described above makes the specification of leachate solutions a complex task. Landfill operators are experts when it comes to operating landfill sites however due to the complexities involved in leachate management and treatment specialist support is required to help make the right decisions. No doubt the operator will have some limited data in terms of designing a plant, or even treating it onsite or offsite, but the first thing to do before specifying a solution is to gather data and get an understanding of all the issues surrounding leachate, including what the parameters of the variables can be. Appropriate knowledge and experience of leachate formation, hydrology and composition, and further leachate characterisation and monitoring is essential. There are many different ways of treating leachate, depending on the condition, and objectives, of a particular site. Objectives that decide the requirement for treatment, like leachate contamination levels, are not always the same. It could be, for example, that the customer is sending out a number tankers a day costing thousands of pounds and that cutting costs is a powerful financial driver. It could be that a change in legislation is to be made regarding landfill discharge to sewer and so the level of ammonia must be reduced. The drivers are different and the solutions differ depending on those drivers - that's why all solutions are not the same. Various processes may be applied to landfill leachate treatment. Biological treatment is the most commonly used process through anaerobic and/ or aerobic treatment. These processes use micro-organisms to digest the waste contaminates, resulting in a less harmful effluent with lower levels of BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand), COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand), suspended solids and ammonia. There are many other solutions available in the marketplace and these should be evaluated in line with the sites leachate criteria before any treatment is implemented. The key to achieving the right results is to appoint a wastewater treatment solutions provider that takes careful steps towards a solution that suits your specific needs. A typical series of steps would be as follows: Step 1: Appraise: A high level evaluation of the technical feasibility and commercial viability of the project, including identifying the variability limits of the leachate quality. Step 2: Select: An analysis of the various leachate treatment options in relation to your site specifications and the selection of the preferred option. Step 3: Define: Definition of the development plan with full capital costs, considering areas such as civil work, discharge options and consent regulations. Step 4: Execute: Execution of the development plan with timescales, commissioning details and project management. Step 5: Operate: Operations and maintenance of the plant to ensure your assets are protected and the plant continues to run at its optimum. The secret of a successful leachate solution is to compose the right data analysis at the beginning to understand your leachate and then select the technology based on the analysis. A supplier with a breadth of expertise will use its technical and practical knowledge to rapidly identify and then deliver the right solution from the outset that meets the needs of your plant. L March 2014 Local Authority Waste & Recycling 21

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