Definition of Waste and End of Waste
Landmark Court of Appeal ruling on meaning of waste and end of waste
Pioneered the most significant development in more than a decade in this field in English law, acting for OSS Group, the UK’s then largest waste oils recycler in the landmark ruling of the Court of Appeal on the criteria for End of Waste. Drafted the original legal submissions and led the legal team in the High Court and the Court of Appeal in London that overturned a previous High Court ruling, and Environment Agency decisions, on the interpretation of EU law on the definition of waste and end of waste product, providing the legal basis for all regulatory and legal decision-making in this area since 2007 and which still today stands as the central ruling and statement of legal authority on end of waste under English law, with proven application in other regions of the UK and in Europe
Industry-wide analysis of application of legal definition of waste to full range of used transportation and industrial fuel oils
Provided legal advice and guidance to the Oil Recycling Association, the UK trade body for the waste oils industry, in respect of the full wide range of used transportation and industrial fuel oils, and the variable potential legal permutations and applications for reusable raw materials and products under EU and UK legislation and case law, focused on the specific decisions of the European Court on the meanings of ‘waste’ and the central concept of ‘discarding’.
Legal submissions for High Court and Court of Appeal on link between Waste Hierarchy and End of Waste and general scheme of Waste Framework Directive
Advised Protreat, a West Midlands-based consultancy and leading member of the UK Oil Recycling Association, in respect of EU law applicable to a proposed challenge of Environment Agency decisions connected with the regulator’s Definition of Waste procedures and in respect of proposals for the regeneration of waste oils in the UK into base oils or lubricants, recovered distillate fuel products and raw materials for highways construction. Framed detailed submissions on EU law in support of Counsel in judicial review taken by client to the High Court, and case law aspects of appeal grounds for Court of Appeal.
Specialist contract drafting for end of waste products technology transfer
Led negotiations and technical contractual drafting in technology transfer between German IP owners and clients, OSS Group, UK industrial waste oils processor, to secure necessary trade know-how to develop a successful ‘end of waste’ result for a new generation of substitute industrial heating fuels derived from hazardous waste oils and solvents
International advice on trans-frontier End of Waste
Advised Netherlands Government Environment Ministry on comparative applications in different member states of EU law on waste and product definition, and trans-frontier aspects affecting Dutch operators, with specific focus on the trans-frontier trade in waste oils, processed oils and related ‘wastes/products’.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: used tyres
Advised British Tyre Manufacturers’ Association, through UK-based waste consultancy, Re-Mine, in respect of application of EU and UK law on End of Waste, framing detailed legal submissions for ongoing regulatory application for End of Waste product status for used tyre casings or ‘carcasses’ as non-waste raw materials in the manufacture of re-treaded tyres on an industry-wide basis. Creating a new form of template submission to comply with revised Environment Agency guidance issued June 2018.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: road sweeping and gully wastes to fertilisers and soil conditioning products
Advised Northern Ireland-based waste management and soils manufacturing firm, Re-Con Waste Management, through UK-based waste consultancy, Re-Mine, in respect of application of EU and UK/NI law on End of Waste, framing detailed legal submissions for successful regulatory application for End of Waste product status for difficult and ubiquitous waste stream – local authority road sweepings and Gully wastes processed into non-waste fertilisers and soil conditioning products.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: recycled industrial process waters
Advised UK-based waste consultancy, Re-Mine, in respect of application of EU and UK law on End of Waste, framing detailed legal submissions for regulatory application for End of Waste product status for a range of industrial process waters into recycled process water with non-waste status.
Strategic advice on EU and UK law as applied to oil recycling and exports
Advised Humberside-based leading oil recycling operator, Re-Group Refining, over a number of years on developments on EU End of Waste law as applied to its business and raw material streams, with particular focus on export markets and the cross-border application in other EU legal jurisdictions.
By-products regulatory submissions and case construction: cement industry wastes to commercial fertilisers
Advised Leeds-based organics recycler, 4R Recycling Group, in respect of application of EU and UK law on by-products, and framing detailed legal submissions for re-classification of wastes and residues from cement manufacturing industry as commercial fertilisers products, adopting position based around Article 5 of the Waste Framework Directive and relevant CJEU case law.
Trans-frontier End of Waste in recovered fuel oils – foreign EU governmental negotiations
Conducted negotiations with and made formal and ultimately successful legal submissions to the Republic of Ireland Environment Protection Agency on behalf of UK-based oil industry client, OSS Group, to support its export strategy – in respect of the establishment of a legal basis in Ireland under EU Technical Standards Directive for the manufacture of ‘end of waste’ fuel oil meeting oil refinery standards but manufactured from hazardous waste oils, solvents and similar wastes.
End of Waste advice for contaminated wood
Advised Midlands-based waste wood recycling operator, Arden Wood Recycling, in respect of legal strategies for conversion of treated contaminated wood waste into commercialised product
Strategic legal advice: regeneration of waste tyres into oil and gas products
Advised AVC Tyre Recycling on legal strategy for proposed project to re-generate waste tyres into oil and gas products, including detailed analysis and application of EU and UK case law.
Strategic legal advice: regeneration of various waste oils streams
Advised national hazardous and oils waste management group, Cleansing Services Group, on EU and UK law applicable to several aspects of a major new industrial project and recycled product lines in the waste oils and hazardous waste sector.
By-product status for animal bedding from treated and untreated wood waste
Advised Edgar Shepherd Group, leading national supplier of equestrian and other animal bedding products, in campaign to have top of range animal bedding products derived from recycled wood certified under EU and UK law as by-products, successfully challenging Environment Agency on point of law and pleading application of Article 5 Waste Framework Directive and relative ECJ case law.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: re-classification of processed offshore drilling muds as fuel products and drilling fluids
Pioneered what is thought to be a UK (and possibly European) ‘first’ in successful petition of UK regulators, on behalf of European division of global oilfield services company, Scomi Oilfield Services Group, to secure the de-classification of processed offshore drilling wastes as products which can be re-used in the industry as non-waste fuels and non-waste drilling fluid products, opening up new profitable revenue streams from transformation of drilling wastes from hazardous waste into commercialised commodity.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: re-classification of used cooking oils and catering wastes for ‘green’ fuels
Represented international East Midlands-based energy and waste management company, REG BioPower, in pioneering another UK ‘first’ in persuading the Environment Agency to de-classify (as a non-waste fuel product) a problematic waste stream (used cooking oils and catering wastes) enabling them to be used as a fuel in the generation of renewable energy
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: re-classification of treated sewage sludges as soils conditioners
Provided specialist legal advice to Yorkshire Water in another UK ‘first’ in successfully securing ‘waste to product’ status and commercialisation of treated sewage sludges from the waste water and sewage treatment process for use as soils conditioners
Strategic advice: end of waste for bio-ethanol
Provided EU law advice and practical regulatory strategy to the refinery company, Ineos, in connection with commercialisation of recycled bio-ethanol product manufactured from the treatment of wastes, plus related specialist advice on the EU Waste Incineration Directive in relation to biogas production.
Strategic advice: end of waste for multiple organic waste streams for horticulture and soil engineering applications
Advised major utility, Anglian Water, in respect of application of EU law on the transformation of waste into commercial products to the blending of disparate waste streams from the water, sewerage, municipal, agricultural, food and animal by-products sectors into horticultural and soil engineering commercial applications
Legal adviser to international project in EU sewage industry
Provided the legal advice on a pioneering project at European-wide level, lead by United Utilities plc, aimed at breaking down legal and technical barriers to the commercialisation of ‘product’ derivatives from the treatment of sewage sludge. Acted as legal adviser to a multi-disciplinary project team across several EU Member States, under the auspices of the European Commission, including the presentation of various practical papers and speeches on the correct application of EU law to achieve End 0f Waste for several potential applications of treated sewage sludge.
International offshore drilling wastes: strategic advice for commercialisation as End of Waste products of solid, non-oil, residues
Having previously secured in UK End of Waste status for the recovered oil fractions of processed offshore drilling mud wastes, advised North Sea oil industry drilling wastes operator, TWMA Group, in respect of the legal position under EU law in both the UK and Norway in respect of the more difficult solid residues fraction produced from the onshore thermal treatment of offshore drilling mud wastes, establishing a sound legal basis for the commercialisation of such residues as secondary aggregates and fill material, and applying EU law in non-Member State Norway via the application of the treaties on the European Economic Area.
Strategic advice on EU and UK End of Waste and pollution laws as applied to contaminated sludges from polluted mine-workings
Advised the Coal Authority in respect of ‘ochre’ residues from historic mining operations in context of polluted minewater treatment plants, and devised strategy for commercialisation of ochre sludges into various industrial uses, as commercially beneficial alternative to landfill disposal.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: multiple hazardous wastes from aluminium recycling
Advised Midlands-based metals and aluminium recycling company, JBMI Group, on the application of EU and UK law on by-products, end of waste and definition of waste, as part of their strategic diversification into hazardous waste recycling and the production of a range of new products for the cement, aggregates and mine stabilisation industries, framing what was probably the first multiple-product end of waste application to the Environment Agency across several different industrial applications.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: sludges from drinking water treatment into End of Waste horticultural applications
Represented leading UK horticultural company, Rolawn, in framing End of Waste submissions and legal representations to Environment Agency and UK Government in relation to innovative horticultural product manufactured from sludges arising from the treatment of raw water at water industry drinking water plants.
Strategic advice to several UK water companies on organic waste recycling projects
Worked with, and supplied bespoke legal advice and support to, Leeds-based specialist consultancy and contractor, SRS, on a number of organic waste recycling projects for leading water companies, including Severn Trent, Thames Water and Kelda Group, providing in each case strategic advice on the application of EU and UK law on waste definition, end of waste, and by-products to the various projects and their outputs.
End of Waste regulatory submissions and case construction: novel project for RDF/SRF conversion to End of Waste fuels
Advised Lancashire-based ‘waste to energy’ and ‘energy solutions’ supplier, Orchid Environmental, in respect of the application of EU and UK law on End of Waste to municipal wastes, specifically the RDF/SRF residues universally treated by UK regulators as ‘waste’, framing detailed legal submissions and negotiations with Environment Agency
Strategic advice: end of waste for recycled river bank engineering materials from recycled aggregates washing plant
Advising Yorkshire-based construction company, Clifford Watts Construction, on end of waste aggregates and derivative raw materials from the washing of recycled aggregates.
Strategic advice: end of waste for regenerated waste oils and transformer oils
Advising oil company and waste oils processor, Hydrodec Re-refining, on EU and UK law in relation to regeneration of waste oils to base oils and other derivative materials and electrical transformer oils.
Strategic advice: end of waste for base oils, distillate fuel oils and other material products from waste oils re-refining
Advising UK Oil Recycling Association in respect of EU and UK law in this area with a view to establishing with the UK Government and possibly also via the European Commission an industry-wide standard for end of waste status for the base oils, fuel oils and other material products from proposed waste oils re-refining plants, including factoring in of developing law via revised 2018 Waste Framework Directive and upcoming UK withdrawal from EU.
Strategic advice: application of English standards for end of waste in fuels produced from waste oils into Scottish jurisdiction
Advising leading processing company [identity confidential] in respect of cross-border elements of end of waste as between England and Scotland, including negotiations with Scottish Environment Protection Agency, and factoring in potential Brexit effect.