Waste Testing and Classification

Disposal of waste soils to landfill can represent an abnormal development cost, driving projects to become uneconomical if not properly quantified. We have practical experience in waste soil management, from small housing developments to multi-million pound commercial projects, and provide rapid and cost-saving advice on environmental permitting, landfill licensing, waste soil classification, management and disposal, Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) testing, cost minimisation as well as innovative, sustainable alternatives to landfill.

Basic Characterisation and WAC Testing

Basic Characterisation

Waste Classification

The Environment Agency’s technical guidance ‘The Environment Agency’s technical guidance ‘Waste Classification (WM3, 2015)’ sets out the requirements for ‘Basic Characterisation’ testing to determine whether waste materials can be classified as hazardous or non-hazardous.

Waste Acceptance Criteria

(WAC) Testing

If the material is destined for disposal in a landfill for inert, stable non-reactive hazardous or hazardous wastes, WAC testing is required following basic characterisation. Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) test includes a suite of solid and leachate analysis to assess which class of landfill the waste can be accepted at once it has been classified. 

We undertake the required sampling and testing for basic characterisation and WAC, and use HazWasteOnline™, to assess and classify waste as hazardous or non-hazardous based on its chemical composition and UK legislation.

Materials Management Plan/ Qualified Person

CL:AIRE’s Definition of Waste: Development Industry Code of Practice sets out good practice in dealing with excavated materials and their re-use on site, or transfer to other sites. This can provide significant cost savings, particularly for brownfield sites, reducing the requirement for off-site disposal of soils to landfill.

A Materials Management Plan can allow for the reuse of soils, by demonstrating the material has been deposited in an appropriate manner and does not pose unacceptable risks to human health or the environment. We can provide advice and input during the development of MMPs, in collaboration with the developer and design team to provide cost effective soil management solutions. We also undertake the role of “Qualified Person”, to ensure best practice is consistently and demonstrably applied, and provide the declaration required by regulators.