The Waste Incineration Directive (WID) does not apply to:
- certain types of waste burning plant
- plants that burn only certain types of waste.
Plants not covered by WID
Experimental plants used for research, development and testing are ‘excluded’ from WID. They are excluded because of the nature of the plant, not because of the types of waste they burn. They are excluded only if they:
- are used to improve the incineration process
- burn less than 50 tonnes of waste per year.
WID may also not cover waste burning plants that:
- burn only waste in gaseous form (pyrolysis or gasification of solid or liquid waste before combustion falls into this category)
- do not fit the definition of a ‘technical unit’
- do not fit the definition of an incineration plant or a co-incineration plant – for example, if the primary activity is cleaning or drying of equipment which also happens to combust waste, but where any burning of waste is co-incidental. Examples include:
- cleaning paint from paint jigs
- drying of swarf to make waste metal suitable for feeding into a furnace
- using afterburners in emission abatement from a plant which is not an incineration plant.
Your environmental regulator can give you guidance on whether your plant is an incineration plant or a co-incineration plant.
Contact your environmental regulator
Even if your plant or activity is excluded from WID it may still require a permit or exemption from environmental permitting or pollution prevention and control (PPC) permitting.
What types of waste are not regulated by the Waste Incineration Directive?
If your installation burns only the following types of waste, either on their own or in combination with non-waste fuel, WID does not apply:
- vegetable waste from agriculture and forestry
- vegetable waste from the food processing industry (if the heat generated is recovered)
- fibrous vegetable waste from pulp making (if this happens on the site where the waste is generated and the heat generated is recovered)
- wood waste (excluding wood waste which has been treated with wood preservatives or coatings)
- cork waste
- radioactive waste
- animal carcasses covered by the Animal By-Products Regulations.
If you burn any other waste in combination with these excluded wastes, WID will apply.
Even if the waste you burn is excluded from WID, you may still require:
- an environmental permit or exemption (England and Wales)
- a pollution prevention and control (PPC) permit (Northern Ireland and Scotland)
- a waste management licence or exemption (Northern Ireland and Scotland).
You may also be subject to other legal requirements, such as the Animal By-Products Regulations.
In this guideline:
Types of waste incineration
How do you comply with the Waste Incineration Directive?
When does the Waste Incineration Directive not apply?
Incinerating animal carcasses
Permits and licences for burning waste
Waste incineration further information
Waste incineration legislation
