Waste storage and transport for road transport businesses
What you must do
You are responsible for storing and transporting your waste safely and legally. You must ensure that your waste does not harm the environment.
You must comply with the requirements of your duty of care.
If you transport other businesses’ wastes, see our guidance for waste and sewage businesses.
Storing waste
If you store your own waste you must get it removed regularly from your site.
If you store your own waste for long periods, or store waste produced by other people, you must have an environmental permit (England and Wales) or a waste management licence (Scotland or Northern Ireland).
Environmental permits
Waste management licences
Check that your environmental permit or licence allows you to store your type of waste.
Make sure waste materials cannot blow away or escape. Tie your waste down, cover and protect it from wind and rain.
Prevent run-off from your waste storage area entering surface waters or drains by storing it under cover on an impermeable surface with a bund. A bund is a secondary containment area that holds liquids if the main containers leak or break.
Make sure your site is secure. Check locks, gates and perimeter fences regularly. You can still be prosecuted even if vandals cause pollution on your site.
You must not:
- bury waste materials
- burn waste materials unless licensed to do so
- store and transport materials near fire sources, eg high temperature machinery or machinery producing sparks, such as angle grinders
- mix hazardous/special waste with any other materials.
Waste storage exemptions
You can apply for exemptions to store certain types of waste for certain purposes. This means you can register with your environmental regulator and avoid having to apply for a full environmental permit or waste management licence. The amount you can store depends on the exemption. The purposes include:
- composting
- recycling and reuse of waste materials
- using the waste as a construction material
- using the waste material as a fuel.
In most cases you must register any exempt waste activity or operation you carry out. You must always comply with the conditions of the exemption. There may be a charge for registering your exemptions.
In England and Wales you will not have to register an exemption if the operation is covered by a Non-Waste Framework Directive (NWFD) exemption, for example storing waste temporarily for collection on the site it was produced for 12 months or less.
For further information on NWFD exemptions, see our guidance on who needs to register an exemption.
Environment Agency: Waste exemptions
Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA): Activities exempt from waste management licensing
SEPA: Activities exempt from waste management licensing
For further information contact your environmental regulator.
Storing hazardous/special waste
You must check if the waste you store is hazardous/special waste before you store it.
You do not need an environmental permit or waste management licence if you store hazardous/special waste on the site where it was produced for up to 12 months while you wait for it to be collected.
In England and Wales there is no limit to the amount of hazardous waste you can store, as long as it is stored in a secure place.
In Northern Ireland and Scotland, the maximum amount of hazardous/special waste you can store is:
- 80 cubic metres of hazardous/special waste in secure containers
- 50 cubic metres of hazardous/special waste in a secure place
- 23,000 litres of liquid hazardous/special waste at any one time.
All hazardous/special waste must be stored safely and securely to prevent pollution.
Reducing and storing hazardous waste
Reducing and storing special waste
If you store any hazardous waste for longer than 12 months you will need an environmental permit in England and Wales, or a waste management licence in Northern Ireland and Scotland.
You must store hazardous/special waste separately from all other waste materials. You must use containers that are:
- sealed
- labelled
- covered
- waterproof.
Hazardous/special waste containment areas must be:
- in separate designated areas
- secure
- clearly signed
- on impermeable surfaces
- bunded.
Transporting waste
You can transport most waste produced by your own business directly to an authorised waste management site or recycling facility.
You must register with your environmental regulator as a waste carrier if you transport:
- construction and demolition waste produced by your own business
- any waste produced by another business.
Waste carriers, brokers and dealers
Check that you hold the correct registration for the type of waste you transport.
Waste transfer notes
You must complete a waste transfer note (WTN) for every load of waste you pass on or accept. You must keep copies of all your WTNs for at least two years.
You may be able to use a ‘season ticket’ if you have regular collections of the same type of waste by the same waste carrier. This is one transfer note covering a series of transfers over a year, for example weekly collections of waste from shops or commercial premises or multiple lorry trips to remove a large heap of waste.
Records for transferring waste: waste transfer notes
Waste carrier exemptions
Certain businesses and types of waste are exempt from waste carriers registration. You do not need to register as a waste carrier if you or the waste you transport is exempt.
Waste carrier exemptions
You must still inform your environmental regulator that you are transporting waste. You will not be charged and do not need to renew this.
Transporting hazardous waste
You must check if waste is hazardous/special waste before you transport it.
You must complete a consignment note whenever you or anyone else moves or transfers hazardous/special waste. Copies of consignment notes must be kept for at least three years.
You can carry your own hazardous/special waste without registering as a carrier of hazardous/special waste. You must still complete a consignment note.
If you carry your own hazardous/special demolition and construction waste, you must be registered as a waste carrier.
If you carry hazardous/special waste produced by other businesses you must either be registered as a waste carrier or register an exemption for the waste you carry.
If you transport hazardous/special waste you must:
- keep it separate from other wastes
- use sealed and clearly labelled containers
- check that it is transferred to a facility that is authorised to receive it.
Check vehicle locks regularly and only drop off materials when you are sure the location is secure.
Moving and transporting hazardous waste
Moving and transporting special waste
In England and Wales, if you produce 500 kilograms or more of hazardous waste in a year you must register your premises with the Environment Agency.
Environment Agency: Register or renew as a hazardous waste producer
Storing and transporting waste oil
For information on storing and transporting waste oil see our oil storage guidance.
Preventing pollution when transporting and storing waste
You must:
- store and transport waste in suitable, covered containers such as drums, skips or cages
- label containers correctly with the type of materials stored in them
- separate different materials into different containers
- ensure materials cannot leak into the ground, watercourses (streams, rivers or groundwater) or surface drains.
Only store and transfer waste materials on waterproof, contained surfaces where spills cannot escape.
Bund containment areas. This involves building a secondary barrier around the main containment area to hold liquid waste if the main containers, for example drums, leak or break.
Pollution prevention guideline (PPG) 2 contains guidance on bunding and storage.
PPG 2 Above ground oil storage tanks (Adobe PDF - 505KB)
Dealing with spills
Ensure accidental spills can be contained. Put spill kits and spill response procedures in place.
Do not use water to wash away spills. It will spread the spill and could pollute the ground, watercourses (streams, rivers or groundwater) or surface drains.
PPG 21 Incident response planning (Adobe PDF - 320KB)
Keep portable spill kits in vehicles used to transport waste materials.
A basic spill kit should contain:
- gloves
- goggles
- re-sealable plastic bags
- sealing or containment materials, such as sealing putties and drain sealing mats
- absorbent materials to soak up spills, such as plenty of rags, sand or earth.
You may need to recycle or dispose of absorbent materials used to contain spills as hazardous/special waste. Check before you recycle or dispose of them.
Further information on storing and transporting waste
Defra: Duty of care summary and code of practice
Environment Agency: Exemptions - carriers and brokers
NIEA: Waste
SEPA: Waste carriers - Who needs to register?
SEPA: Consigning Special Waste
