Environment Protection (Waste Services) Regulation, 2021 |04 December 2021
The press conference: (l to r) Mr Germain, Ms Laure, Ms Gerry and Mr Mangroo (Photo: Louis Toussaint)
New regulations to promote better waste management
In its effort to boost the country’s waste management, the Landscape and Waste Management Agency has come up with a series of new regulations which came into effect mid-November, with stricter enforcement as of January.
Under the regulations, a person shall not engage in commercial waste service without a registration certificate issued by the Landscape and Waste Management Agency (LWMA) under regulation 4 and a licence issued under the Licences Act (Cap 113).
In a press conference at the Unity House, senior legal officer for the agency, Sharon Gerry explained that where an application is approved, it shall enter the name of the applicant in the register of waste contractor and issue a registration certificate to the applicant.
Also present were LWMA deputy chief executive Rahul Mangroo, director general for waste enforcement and permit Nanette Laure and LWMA operation manager for inner islands Estephan Germain.
The new regulation specify that a waste contractor shall comply with the conditions specified in their licence in relation to the types of waste, collecting the waste specified in the registration certificate, the collection of the classes of waste in the manner prescribed for that class of waste and using the appropriate transportation for classes of waste for which registration certificate is issued.
Where applicable, the keeping of records of all transactions concerning waste management andthe frequency of collection of waste as specified for thetype of establishment as set forth in the Third Schedule.
A waste contractor's licence may be revoked if the contractorprovides waste services contrary to the condition specified in the registration certificate and commits an offence.
As for waste disposal, a contractor shall dispose of all waste class collected at the approved waste disposal site for that waste class and shall not dispose waste in any public bin, public place or any other place not approved by the agency and shall pay the landfill fees as specified in the Fourth Schedule.
In relation to outdoor events, an establishment or a person organising the event shall have a valid waste service contract with a registered waste contractor for the management and disposal of the waste it generates.
The agency may, with or without notice, conduct site visits at an establishment or during an outdoor event and may request information or the production of document relating to waste management.
Where the agency makes a request under sub-regulation (1) the establishment or person organising the outdoor event shall furnish the required information or documents to the agency.
Where the agency finds that a waste contractor is engaging in a waste service contrary to the condition specified in the registration certificate or is engaging in a waste service that is contrary to the waste class specified in the registration certificate, the agency may suspend or revoke the registration certificate.
In the case where a suspension or revocation of registration certificate ismade, the agency shall communicate in writing the details of the suspension or revocation to the waste contractor and the reasons therefore.
Where the registration certificate of a waste contractor has beensuspended or revoked, the waste contractor shall cease to engage in any waste services.
A person who continues to engage in waste services after thesuspension or revocation under sub-regulation (1) commits an offence.
A waste contractor, an establishment or a person organising an outdoor event shall keep proper records of the waste collected and disposed and records of all payments made for waste collection and tipping fees.
The records required to be kept under regulation (1), shall be kept by the waste contractor, establishment or a person for a period of one year, while the receipt for payment of waste collection and the tipping feesunder sub-regulation (1) shall serve as a rebuttable presumption that the waste has been properly disposed.