Persistent organic pollutants ( POPs ) are poisonous chemical substances that break down slowly and get into food chains.
I suspect you all already know this, however you might not know what to do when you get them.
In a news piece on the LARAC website most Councils believed their biggest influx of POPs would be from bulky waste collections as well as items taken to HWRC’s. Add to that the fact that a whopping 55% didn’t think they would be complaint by the end of the year deadline and I suspect many are not 100% on what they will be doing come the end of the year.
Bulky item collections will be the most manageable stream to control as system willing, Councils will be able to start offering separate collections for POP items on different days. This is something we have discussed with our customers and can facilitate using our bulky waste booking system. Councils will most likely need to start collecting POPs separately and on different days to standard waste but most providers should be able to deal with this easily enough.
HWRC’s are potentially the area that could be the trickiest depending on how the rules are enforced.
Currently, if your authority has multiple sites, you potentially need to provide POP capability and testing at each site which is likely to be costly. Not only that, it also won’t be possible at some sites due to specific restraints like site size.
Several authorities at this stage are contemplating educating residents to take items separately to specified sites and the specific areas on that site. Unfortunately, many won’t see or comply with this guidance which could leave councils with inflated disposal bills. We have been working with our customers who use our HWRC booking systems to restrict access to designated sites if POP waste is being deposited. We have also suggested sending specific email content to those people regarding what to do on site. This will help to ensure POP waste only goes to sites that can handle it and will also help authorities take a big step towards compliance for a minimal amount of work and cost.
Hopefully the environment agency will be clearer in future regarding how the rules will be enforced, as well as what is expected of authorities and ultimately disposer of waste, but until then we will assist customers both old and new in doing everything possible to be compliant.
