BAA seeks reduction in burden imposed by MWD
THE British Aggregates Association (BAA) has written to Defra Secretary of State Hilary Benn to express its increasing frustration and concern at the handling of the transposition of the EU Mining Waste Directive (MWD) into UK national law by Defra and the Environment Agency.
The Association believes the industry is being unnecessarily and disproportionately burdened by the over-bureaucratic and gold-plating approach to transposition in England and Wales, particularly for aggregates quarries where the only materials other than primary sales are overburden and topsoil. These inert and non-hazardous cover materials, which are often used in bunding as part of the legal obligations for final restoration of a site, should not constitute a waste material that requires a management plan under Article 5 of the MWD, says the BAA.
The use of the Environment Agency, rather than mineral planning authorities, to administer the process of the Directive remains another fundamental flaw, according to the Association, as is the use of the Environmental Permitting process which, it says, appears to be creating additional bureaucratic load, allowing a widening of the scope of the EU Directive and imposing further unnecessary, expensive and burdensome intrusion by the State.
The MWD was brought about a direct result of a series of large-scale metal mining tailings dam failures in Spain and Romania, and essentially addresses the stability and safety of dams and tips. However, the BAA says these issues are already competently and comprehensively covered by existing UK legislation, much of which was developed following the Aberfan disaster.
‘There has been a disproportionate emphasis by Defra and the Environment Agency on
environment polluting aspects which are already covered by other UK legislation, said BAA secretary Peter Huxtable. ‘This is coupled with a serious misconception and understanding in government about what is involved in quarrying operations in the UK. There is little or no recognition that current UK legislation, statutory HSE requirements and planning permissions, are more than adequate to meet the requirements of the new Directive.
‘Overall, we believe that the current government proposals are disproportionate to the
requirements of the Directive and are not in line with UK and EU policy to lighten the
bureaucratic and regulatory burden on business, not least during the current and continuing
recession which has affected our industry rather more than many sectors.
‘A simple no-charge signed self-certification should be the most that any of these companies
should have imposed on them, as the requirements are already covered in their planning permissions. This would reduce the workload, cost and time for both the industry and the regulator,’ said Mr Huxtable.
The Association believes the industry is being unnecessarily and disproportionately burdened by the over-bureaucratic and gold-plating approach to transposition in England and Wales, particularly for aggregates quarries where the only materials other than primary sales are overburden and topsoil. These inert and non-hazardous cover materials, which are often used in bunding as part of the legal obligations for final restoration of a site, should not constitute a waste material that requires a management plan under Article 5 of the MWD, says the BAA.
The use of the Environment Agency, rather than mineral planning authorities, to administer the process of the Directive remains another fundamental flaw, according to the Association, as is the use of the Environmental Permitting process which, it says, appears to be creating additional bureaucratic load, allowing a widening of the scope of the EU Directive and imposing further unnecessary, expensive and burdensome intrusion by the State.
The MWD was brought about a direct result of a series of large-scale metal mining tailings dam failures in Spain and Romania, and essentially addresses the stability and safety of dams and tips. However, the BAA says these issues are already competently and comprehensively covered by existing UK legislation, much of which was developed following the Aberfan disaster.
‘There has been a disproportionate emphasis by Defra and the Environment Agency on
environment polluting aspects which are already covered by other UK legislation, said BAA secretary Peter Huxtable. ‘This is coupled with a serious misconception and understanding in government about what is involved in quarrying operations in the UK. There is little or no recognition that current UK legislation, statutory HSE requirements and planning permissions, are more than adequate to meet the requirements of the new Directive.
‘Overall, we believe that the current government proposals are disproportionate to the
requirements of the Directive and are not in line with UK and EU policy to lighten the
bureaucratic and regulatory burden on business, not least during the current and continuing
recession which has affected our industry rather more than many sectors.
‘A simple no-charge signed self-certification should be the most that any of these companies
should have imposed on them, as the requirements are already covered in their planning permissions. This would reduce the workload, cost and time for both the industry and the regulator,’ said Mr Huxtable.
