Hazardous Waste Forum
Terms of Reference
Note: The Forum agreed to revise its Terms of Reference at the beginning of 2006 following a discussion on the future of the Forum.
1.0 Background
1.1 As a country1 we produce approximately five million tonnes of hazardous waste2 each year. Against a background of significant change in legislation governing the management of hazardous waste, the Government aims to reduce both the quantity and the hazardousness of waste which is produced. Where it is produced, hazardous waste should be managed safely. Action involves a range of sectors: central and local government, regulators, and industry.
1.2 The House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee considered these issues, and accepted that a separate hazardous waste strategy was not necessary3. The Committee supported the suggestion that Government set up a Hazardous Waste Forum to consider the demands on industry of existing and forthcoming legislation, to consider targets for hazardous waste reduction and recovery and to provide a means for bringing all relevant sectors together to work towards the goals of reducing hazardous waste and managing it safely. The Government supported that suggestion, and proposed the following terms of reference for the Forum:
2.0 Revised Terms of Reference and addition of a mission statement
Mission Statement
The Forum aims to identify opportunities and possible solutions to achieve improvements in hazardous waste reduction and environmentally sound management of waste ie. prevention, reduction, reuse, recovery and recycling.
Revised terms of reference
A) In the light of recent policy and legislative initiatives, to monitor the delivery of the UK’s hazardous waste management infrastructure to meet regional and national recovery, recycling and disposal needs. To anticipate potential capacity shortfalls and future problematic waste types, and to advise UK Government on appropriate actions to be taken to maintain environmentally sound waste management.
B) To identify opportunities to limit growth in hazardous waste arisings, promote waste minimization and reduce the hazardousness of waste. To monitor and assess the availability and quality of data that would be needed to set targets for hazardous waste reduction, and to advise on the development and introduction of such targets.
C) To consider the impacts of existing and forthcoming legislation on hazardous waste, and advise on the content and dissemination of Government and/or Environment Agency advice and guidance to waste producers (including households) and waste managers (including local authorities) about that legislation, reflecting on the need to minimize regulatory burdens.
D) To consider available data on hazardous waste production and management and make recommendations on how data collection, analysis and availability could be improved to provide a better basis for forward planning.
E) To consider how the Forum can be more active in terms of raising awareness, sharing of best practices, information exchange, etc, and develop a Communications Strategy to inform this activity.
F) To provide information as a Forum to members on current and relevant hazardous waste issues. Organisations represented on the Forum to provide information topics for presentation at the Forum meetings via representatives on the Forum.
H) To annually take stock, review and amend as necessary the Action Plan* to align with future policy and legislative initiatives and the on -going evolution of the hazardous waste management sector.
* Hazardous Waste – an action plan for its reduction and environmentally sound management, November 2003
3.0 Membership and meetings
It was agreed that the Forum should meet every three to four months
3.1 The following organisations are full members of the Forum:
3.2 The Forum will invite other organisations/individuals to attend when appropriate.
3.3 In addition it is proposed that the following are corresponding members of the Forum, and receive all papers:
3.4 It is proposed that the Forum should meet every two months during the initial period of 6 months, and thereafter at quarterly intervals, and that its agenda, papers and minutes will be publicly available on the Defra website.
1. England and Wales
2. Formally special waste in the UK
3. Hazardous Waste report printed 17 July 2002, HC 919
Page last modified: 4 June 2007
Page published: 5 February 2003