1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCILDIRECTIVE
of15July1975
onwaste
(75/442/EEC)
(OJ L 194, 25.7.1975, p. 39)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Directive 91/156/EEC of 18 March 1991 L 78 32 26.3.1991
►M2Council Directive 91/692/EEC of 23 December 1991 L 377 48 31.12.1991
►M3Commission Decision 96/350/EC of 24 May 1996 L 135 32 6.6.1996
►M4Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 29 September 2003L 284 1 31.10.2003
Corrected by:
►C1Corrigendum, OJ L 146, 13.6.2003, p. 52 (91/692/EEC)
▼B
COUNCILDIRECTIVE
of15July1975
onwaste
(75/442/EEC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic
Community, and in particular Articles100 and 235 thereof;
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission;
Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament (1);
Having regard to the Opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (2);
Whereas any disparity between the provisions on waste disposal
already applicable or in preparation in the variousMember Statesmay
create unequal conditionsof competition and thusdirectly affect thefunctioning of the common market; whereas it is therefore necessaryto approximate lawsin thisfield, asprovided for in Article 100 of theTreaty;
Whereas it seems necessary for this approximation of laws to be
accompanied by Community action so that one of the aims of theCommunity in the sphere of protection of the environment andimprovement of the quality of life can be achieved by more extensive
rules; whereas certain specific provisions to this effect should therefore
be laid down; whereasArticle 235 of the Treaty s hould be invoked asthe powersrequired for thispurpos e have not been provided for by theTreaty;
Whereas the essential objective of all provisions relating to waste
disposal must be the protection of human health and the environmentagainst harmful effects caused by the collection, transport, treatment,storage and tipping of waste;
Whereas the recovery of waste and the use of recovered materials
should be encouraged in order to conserve natural resources;
Whereasthe programme of action of the European Communitieson the
environment (
3), stresses the need for Community action, including the
harmonization of legislation;
Whereas effective and consistent regulations on waste disposal which
neither obstruct intra-Community trade nor affect conditions of compe-tition should be applied to movable property which the owner disposesof or is required to dispose of under the provisions of national law inforce, with the exception of radioactive, mining and agricultural waste,
animal carcases, waste waters, gaseous effluents and waste covered by
specific Community rules;
Whereas, in order to ensure the protection of the environment, provi-
sion should be made for a system of permits for undertakings which
treat, store or tip waste on behalf of third parties, for a supervisorysystem for undertakings which dispose of their own waste and for thosewhich collect the waste of others, and for a plan embracing the essen-tial factors to be taken into consideration in respect of the variouswaste disposal operations;
Whereasthat proportion of the cos tsnot covered by the proceedsof
treating the waste must be defrayed in accordance with the ‘polluterpays’ principle,1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 2
(1) OJ No C 32, 11. 2. 1975, p. 36.
(2) OJ No C 16, 23. 1. 1975, p. 12.
(3) OJ No C 112, 20. 12. 1973, p. 3.
▼B
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
For the purposes of this Directive:
(a) ‘waste’ shall mean any substance or object in the categories set out
in Annex I which the holder discards or intends or is required to
discard.
The Commission, acting in accordance with the procedure laid
down in Article 18, will draw up, not later than 1 April 1993, alist of wastes belonging to the categories listed in Annex I. This
list will be periodically reviewed and, if necessary, revised by the
same procedure;
(b) ‘producer’ shall mean anyone whose activities produce waste
(‘original producer’) and/or anyone who carries out pre-processing,
mixing or other operationsres ulting in a change in the nature or
composition of this waste;
(c) ‘holder’ shall mean the producer of the waste or the natural or legal
person who is in possession of it;
(d) ‘management’ shall mean the collection, transport, recovery and
disposal of waste, including the supervision of such operationsand after-care of disposal sites;
(e) ‘disposal’ shall mean any of the operations provided for in Annex
II, A;
(f) ‘recovery’ shall mean any of the operations provided for in Annex
II, B;
(g) ‘collection’ shall mean the gathering, sorting and/or mixing of
waste for the purpose of transport.
Article 2
1. The following shall be excluded from the scope of this Directive:
(a) gaseous effluents emitted into the atmosphere;
(b) where they are already covered by other legislation:
(i) radioactive waste;
(ii) waste resulting from prospecting, extraction, treatment and
storage of mineral resources and the working of quarries;
(iii) animal carcases and the following agricultural waste: faecal
matter and other natural, non-dangerous substances used infarming;
(iv) waste waters, with the exception of waste in liquid form;
(v) decommissioned explosives.
2. Specific rules for particular instances or supplementing those of
thisDirective on the management of particular categoriesof was temay be laid down by meansof individual Directives .
Article 3
1. Member States shall take appropriate measures to encourage:
(a) firstly, the prevention or reduction of waste production and its
harmfulness, in particular by:
— the development of clean technologies more sparing in their use
of natural resources,
— the technical development and marketing of productsdes igned
so as to make no contribution or to make the smallest possible
contribution, by the nature of their manufacture, use or finaldisposal, to increasing the amount or harmfulness of waste andpollution hazards,
— the development of appropriate techniques for the final disposal
of dangerous substances contained in waste destined forrecovery;1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 3
▼M1
▼M1
(b) secondly:
(i) the recovery of waste by means of recycling, re-use or reclama-
tion or any other process with a view to extracting secondaryraw materials, or
(ii) the use of waste as a source of energy.
2. Except where Council Directive 83/189/EEC of 28 March 1983
laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field
of technical standards and regulations (
1) applies, Member States shall
inform the Commission of any measures they intend to take to achievethe aims set out in paragraph 1. The Commission shall inform the otherMember Statesand the committee referred to in Article 18 of s uchmeasures.
Article 4
Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that waste
is recovered or disposed of without endangering human health and
without using processes or methods which could harm the environment,
and in particular:
— without risk to water, air, soil and plants and animals,
— without causing a nuisance through noise or odours,— without adversely affecting the countryside or places of special
interest.
Member States shall also take the necessary measures to prohibit the
abandonment, dumping or uncontrolled disposal of waste.
Article 5
1. Member States shall take appropriate measures, in cooperation
with other Member States where this is necessary or advisable, toestablish an integrated and adequate network of disposal installations,taking account of the best available technology not involving excessive
costs. The network must enable the Community as a whole to become
self-sufficient in waste disposal and the Member States to movetowardsthat aim individually, taking into account geographical circum-stances or the need for specialized installations for certain types ofwaste.
2. The network must also enable waste to be disposed of in one of
the nearest appropriate installations, by means of the most appropriatemethodsand technologiesin order to ens ure a high level of protectionfor the environment and public health.
Article 6
Member States shall establish or designate the competent authority or
authorities to be responsible for the implementation of this Directive.
Article 7
1. In order to attain the objectivesreferred to in Article 3, 4 and 5,
the competent authority or authoritiesreferred to in Article 6 s hall be
required to draw up as soon as possible one or more waste managementplans. Such plans shall relate in particular to:
— the type, quantity and origin of waste to be recovered or disposed
of,
— general technical requirements,
— any special arrangements for particular wastes,
— suitable disposal sites or installations.
Such plansmay, for example, cover:
— the natural or legal persons empowered to carry out the managment
of waste,1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 4
(1) OJ No L 109, 26. 4. 1983, p. 8.
▼M1
— the estimated costs of the recovery and disposal operations,
— appropriate measures to encourage rationalization of the collection,
sorting and treatment of waste.
2. Member Statess hall collaborate asappropriate with the other
Member States concerned and the Commission to draw up such plans.They shall notify the Commission thereof.
3. Member States may take the measures necessary to prevent
movements of waste which are not in accordance ance with their waste
management plans. They shall inform the Commission and the MemberStates of any such measures.
Article 8
Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that any
holder of waste:
— hasit handled by a private or public was te collector or by an under-
taking which carriesout the operationslis ted in Annex II A or B, or
— recovers or disposes of it himself in accordance with the provisions
of thisDirective.
Article 9
1. For the purposes of implementing Articles 4, 5 and 7, any estab-
lishment or undertaking which carries out the operations specified inAnnex II A must obtain a permit from the competent authority referred
to in Article 6.
Such permit shall cover:
— the typesand quantitiesof was te,
— the technical requirements,
— the security precautions to be taken,
— the disposal site,— the treatment method.
2. Permitsmay be granted for a s pecified period, they may be
renewable, they may be subject to conditions and obligations, or,notably, if the intended method of disposal is unacceptable from thepoint of view of envrionmental protection, they may be refused.
Article 10
For the purposes of implementing Article 4, any establishment or
undertaking which carriesout the operationsreferred to in Annex II B
must obtain a permit.
Article 11
1. Without prejudice to Council Directive 78/319/EEC of 20 March
1978 on toxic and dangerouswas te (
1), aslas t amended by the Act of
Accession of Spain and Portugal, the following may be exempted fromthe permit requirement imposed in Article 9 or Article 10:
(a) establishments or undertakings carrying out their own waste
disposal at the place of production;
and
(b) establishments or undertakings that carry out waste recovery.
Thisexemption may apply only:
— if the competent authoritieshave adopted general rulesfor each
type of activity laying down the typesand quantitiesof was te andthe conditionsunder which the activity in ques tion may be
exempted from the permit requirements,
and1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 5
(1) OJ No L 84, 31. 3. 1978, p. 43.
▼M1
— if the types or quantities of waste and methods of disposal or
recovery are such that the conditions imposed in Article 4 arecomplied with.
2. The establishments or undertakings referred to in paragraph 1
shall be registered with the competent authorities.
3. Member States shall inform the Commission of the general rules
adopted pursuant to paragraph 1.
Article 12
Establishments or undertakings which collect or transport waste on a
professional basis or which arrange for the disposal or recovery of
waste on behalf of others (dealers or brokers), where not subject toauthorization, shall be registered with the competent authorities.
Article 13
Establishments or undertakings which carry out the operations referred
to in Articles 9 to 12 shall be subject to appropriate periodic inspec-tionsby the competent authorities .
Article 14
All establishments or undertakings referred to in Articles 9 and 10
shall:
— keep a record of the quantity, nature, origin, and, where relevant,
the destination, frequency of collection, mode of transport and treat-ment method in respect of the waste referred to in Annex I and theoperationsreferred to in Annex II A or B,
— make thisinformation available, on reques t, to the competent autho-
ritiesreferred to in Article 6.
Member Statesmay als o require producersto comply with the provi-
sions of this Article.
Article 15
In accordance with the ‘polluter pays’ principle, the cost of disposing
of waste must be borne by:
— the holder who has waste handled by a waste collector or by an
undertaking asreferred to in Article 9,
and/or
— the previousholdersor the producer of the product from which the
waste came.
Article 16
At intervals of three years Member States shall send information to the
Commission on the implementation of this Directive, in the form of asectoral report which shall also cover other pertinent CommunityDirectives. The report shall be drawn up on the basis other of a ques-tionnaire or outline drafted by the Commission in accordance with theprocedure laid down in Article 6 of Directive 91/692/EEC (
1). The
questionnaire or outline shall be sent to the Member States six months
before the start of the period covered by the report. The report shall bemade to the Commission within nine months of the end of the three-year period covered by it.
The first report shall cover the period 1995 to 1997 inclusive.
The Commission shall publish a Community report on the implementa-
tion of the Directive within nine monthsof receiving the reportsfromthe Member States.1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 6
(1) OJ No L 377, 31. 12. 1991, p. 48.▼M2
▼C1
▼M1
Article 17
The amendments necessary for adapting the Annexes to this Directive
to scientific and technical progress shall be adopted in accordance with
the procedure laid down in Article 18.
Article 18
1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee.2. Where reference ismade to thisArticle, Articles5 and 7 of Deci-
sion 1999/468/EC (
1) shall apply, having regard to the provisions of
Article 8 thereof.
The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be
set at three months.
3. The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.
Article►M119◄
Member States shall bring into force the measures needed in order to
comply with thisDirective within 24 monthsof itsnotification and
shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
Article►M120◄
Member States shall communicate to the Commission the texts of the
main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered
by thisDirective.
Article►M121◄
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 7
(1) Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures
for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission (OJ
L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23).▼M4
▼B
▼M1
ANNEX I
CATEGORIESOFWASTE
Q1 Production or consumption residues not otherwise specified below
Q2 Off-specification productsQ3 Products whose date for appropriate use has expired
Q4 Materials spilled, lost or having undergone other mishap, including any
materials, equipment, etc., contaminated as a result of the mishap
Q5 Materials contaminated or soiled as a result of planned actions (e.g. resi-
dues from cleaning operations, packing materials, containers, etc.)
Q6 Unusable parts (e.g. reject batteries, exhausted catalysts, etc.)Q7 Substances which no longer perform satisfactorily (e.g. contaminated
acids, contaminated solvents, exhausted tempering salts, etc.)
Q8 Residues of industrial processes (e.g. slags, still bottoms, etc.)Q9 Residues from pollution abatement processes (e.g. scrubber sludges,
baghouse dusts, spent filters, etc.)
Q10 Machining/finishing residues (e.g. lathe turnings, mill scales, etc.)
Q11 Residues from raw materials extraction and processing (e.g. mining resi-
dues, oil field slops, etc.)
Q12 Adulterated materials(e.g. oilscontaminated with PCBs , etc.)
Q13 Any materials, substances or products whose use has been banned by law
Q14 Productsfor which the holder hasno further us e (e.g. agricultural, hous e-
hold, office, commercial and shop discards, etc.)
Q15 Contaminated materials, substances or products resulting from remedial
action with respect to land
Q16 Any materials, substances or products which are not contained in the
above categories.1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 8
▼M3
ANNEX IIA
DISPOSALOPERATIONS
NB:This Annex is intended to list disposal operations such as they occur in
practice. In accordance with Article 4 waste must be disposed of without
endangering human health and without the use of processes or methods
likely to harm the environment.
D 1 Deposit into or onto land (e.g. landfill, etc.)
D 2 Land treatment (e.g. biodegradation of liquid or sludgy discards in soils,
etc.)
D 3 Deep injection (e.g. injection of pumpable discards into wells, salt
domes or naturally occurring repositories, etc.)
D 4 Surface impoundment (e.g. placement of liquid or sludgy discards into
pits, ponds or lagoons, etc.)
D 5 Specially engineered landfill (e.g. placement into lined discrete cells
which are capped and isolated from one another and the environment,
etc.)
D 6 Release into a water body except seas/oceansD 7 Release into seas/oceans including sea-bed insertion
D 8 Biological treatment not specified elsewhere in this Annex which results
in final compoundsor mixtureswhich are dis carded by meansof any of
the operationsnumbered D 1 to D 12
D 9 Physico-chemical treatment not specified elsewhere in this Annex which
results in final compounds or mixtures which are discarded by means of
any of the operationsnumbered D 1 to D 12 (e.g. evaporation, drying,
calcination, etc.)
D 10 Incineration on landD 11 Incineration at seaD 12 Permanent storage (e.g. emplacement of containers in a mine, etc.)
D 13 Blending or mixing prior to submission to any of the operations
numbered D 1 to D 12
D 14 Repackaging prior to submission to any of the operations numbered D 1
to D 13
D 15 Storage pending any of the operationsnumbered D 1 to D 14 (excluding
temporary storage, pending collection, on the site where it is produced)1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 9
▼M3
ANNEX IIB
RECOVERYOPERATIONS
NB:ThisAnnex isintended to lis t recovery operationsasthey occur in prac-
tice. In accordance with Article 4 waste must be recovered without
endangering human health and without the use of processes or methods
likely to harm the environment.
R 1 Use principally as a fuel or other means to generate energy
R 2 Solvent reclamation/regeneration
R 3 Recycling/reclamation of organic substances which are not used as
solvents (including composting and other biological transformation
processes)
R 4 Recycling/reclamation of metalsand metal compoundsR 5 Recycling/reclamation of other inorganic materials
R 6 Regeneration of acidsor bas es
R 7 Recovery of componentsus ed for pollution abatementR 8 Recovery of componentsfrom catalys ts
R 9 Oil re-refining or other reuses of oil
R 10 Land treatment resulting in benefit to agriculture or ecological improve-
ment
R 11 Use of wastes obtained from any of the operations numbered R 1 to R 10
R 12 Exchange of wastes for submission to any of the operations numbered
R 1 to R 11
R 13 Storage of wastes pending any of the operations numbered R 1 to R 12
(excluding temporary storage, pending collection, on the site where it is
produced)1975L0442 — EN — 20.11.2003 — 004.001 — 10