Rules for managing waste and cleaning contaminated soil

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The law sets a priority order for handling waste: first prevent it, then prepare it for reuse, recycle it, use it for other purposes (including energy recovery) and, only last, dispose of it.
2. Anyone who produces or holds waste must ensure it is properly treated, either by themselves or by handing it to a registered waste manager, and must document this. Hazardous waste cannot be mixed with other waste.
3. Companies that treat waste need authorization from their Autonomous Community, valid nationwide and renewable for successive periods of up to 8 years. Those that only collect, transport or trade waste, or produce more than 1,000 tons per year, only need to file a prior communication.
4. Recycling targets are set: before 2020, at least 50% by weight of household and commercial recyclable waste, and 70% of construction and demolition waste, must be prepared for reuse, recycled or otherwise recovered.
5. Manufacturers of products that become waste (such as packaging) can be required to design them more sustainably, accept their return and finance their management, either individually or through authorized collective systems.
6. Soil declared contaminated must be cleaned and restored. Those who caused the pollution respond first and, failing that, the owners or holders of the soil, who can pass the cost on to the polluter.
7. Offenses are classified as minor, serious and very serious, with fines of up to €1,750,000 in the most serious cases, plus disqualification, closure or revocation of authorizations.
8. A single nationwide Register of waste production and management is created, and registered companies must keep a chronological file recording the origin, quantity and destination of waste for at least three years.

Who it affects

• Citizens and households: They must hand in household waste according to their municipality's ordinances; local governments collect and treat this waste as a mandatory service.
• Companies that produce waste: They must treat it or hand it to registered managers, document this, and file a prior communication if they generate hazardous waste or more than 1,000 tons per year.
• Waste managers, carriers and traders: They need authorization if they treat waste at facilities, or a prior communication if they only collect, transport or trade waste; they must keep files and, in some cases, insurance or guarantees.
• Manufacturers of products that end up as waste: They can be required to finance and organize the management of that waste and to design more reusable and recyclable products.
• Operators of potentially polluting activities and landowners: They must file periodic reports and, if the soil is declared contaminated, clean and restore it or answer subsidiarily for the cost.

Words worth knowing

Valorización (recovery)

Putting waste to a useful purpose, for example as fuel or raw material, instead of throwing it away.

Eliminación (disposal)

Getting rid of waste without using it, as in a landfill.

Responsabilidad ampliada del productor (extended producer responsibility)

The duty of a product's manufacturer to take full or partial charge of the waste that product generates when used.

Comunicación previa (prior communication)

A written notice to the administration before starting an activity, instead of applying for an authorization.

Biorresiduo (biowaste)

Biodegradable waste from gardens and food scraps from homes, restaurants or shops.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries