Consent is not required by the waste producer but Duty of Care (See Performance Standards tab) makes it the waste producer’s responsibility to ensure that waste is only transferred to an appropriately licensed carrier who should have a Waste Carrier Registration. If in any doubt, contact the EA or SEPA (as appropriate).

Transfer of Controlled Waste requires a Transfer Note (see below) to be completed. This requirement includes waste landed from offshore that is then being transported onwards.

Waste carriers (onshore) must have an appropriate Waste Carrier Registration. Vessels carrying waste from offshore facilities to shore do not need to be registered (see “Authorised Transport Purposes” below).

It is the responsibility of the waste producer to ensure that the waste carrier is licensed. The Code of Practice on the Duty of Care suggests that every vehicle used by a waste carrier should carry a numbered copy of the registration certificate which will facilitate checking of registration details.

Application in writing using a form provided by SEPA or EA. Applications take 2 months to process.

Note: Carriage of waste within a site does not require registration.

You can transfer waste to someone for “authorised transport purposes” without them requiring to be registered. This includes:

• The transfer of controlled waste between different places within the same premises
• The transport of controlled waste into Great Britain from outside Great Britain
• The transport by air or sea of controlled waste from a place in Great Britain to a place outside Great Britain.

In terms of shipping waste from offshore facilities, the vessel does not require to be registered. However the waste producer (or importer, e.g. supply vessel) should have completed a Transfer Note (see below), for this to be handed on to the Registered Waste Carrier once the waste reaches shore.

All waste transfers (including from offshore) require completion of a Transfer Note (or Consignment Note if Special/Hazardous Waste – see Transfer of Hazardous and Special Waste).

Records should be kept detailing the quantity, nature, origin, and where relevant, destination, frequency of collection, mode of transport and treatment method of any waste disposed of or recovered. Transfer Notes must be generated by the waste producer (or importer if shipping from offshore).

A Transfer Note should be completed whenever waste is handed over to an authorised person and should be signed by all parties. The transfer note details from whom and to whom the waste has been transferred, the category of authorised person to whom the waste has been consigned, relevant licence numbers, time, place and date of transfer as well as information on the quantity of waste, how it is packed and a description of the waste.

The transfer note, to be completed and signed by both persons involved in the transfer, must include:

• What the waste is and how much there is.
• What sort of containers it is in.
• The time and date of transfer.
• Where the transfer took place.
• The names and addresses of both persons involved in the transfer.
• Whether the person transferring the waste is the importer or the producer of the waste.
• Details of which category of authorised person each one is. If the waste is passed to someone for authorised transport purposes, you must say which of those purposes applies.
• If either or both persons is a registered waste carrier, the certificate number and the name of the EA or SEPA office which issued it.
• If either or both persons has a waste management licence, the licence number and the name of the EA or SEPA office which issued it.
• The reasons for any exemption from the requirement to register or have a licence, and where appropriate the name and address of any broker involved in the transfer.

The written description must provide as much information as someone else might need to handle the waste safely. It must describe the waste by reference to the appropriate 6 digit code(s) in the European Waste Catalogue (EWC). The EWC provides a more precise method of identify the type of waste by listing waste types according to the process or industries from which they arise.

In the case of repeated transfers and where such transfers involve consignment of the same type of waste to the same authorised person, a transfer note need not be completed on every transfer. In such circumstances, a transfer note should be completed at least annually and systems should be in place to ensure that no authorised or accidental deviation from the original consignment details take place.