Waste classification

End of waste

The European Waste Framework directive includes the End-of-waste (EoW) concept. This means that a specific waste fraction can cease to be a waste under certain criteria given in the regulation. If the criteria are fulfilled, the material will no longer be classified as a waste and it will instead become a product to subject to free trade and use (although for specific purposes).

One of the criteria to be fulfilled relates to the use of the waste derived material will not lead to overall adverse environmental or human health impacts. For waste derived materials in contact with soil or water, this means that the release of harmful substances in the use scenarios needs to be modelled and concentrations need to fulfil criteria given for a point of compliance. Calculations are based on data from leaching tests.

A few European countries have developed EoW criteria for waste derived materials including requirement on quality control on input material. As a test method, a batch  leaching test (EN 12457-2 or 3) or percolation test (EN 14005) is used for comparison of EoW limit values.

References:

  1. Saveyn, H. et al. 2014. Study on methodological aspects regarding limit values for pollutants in aggregates in the context of the development of end-of-waste criteria under the EU Waste Framework Directive.
  2. Hjelmar,, O,. Wahlström, M. & Wik, O. End-of-Waste Criteria for Construction and Demolition Waste. 2016. Nordic Council of Ministers. TemaNord 2016:524.
  3. Velzeboer I, van Zomeren A (2017) EoW criteria for inert aggregates in MS, study in commission of the Dutch ministry of Infrastructure and Environment, ECN: Petten

 

Hazardous waste

Leaching concentration for waste hazard classification

 

The total concentration of substances are used for hazard classification of waste, as for products. The laboratory analyses will provide (individual or pooled) organic substances concentration, but element concentration (and not substances containing the elements). Elements must be speciated into substances for classification purposes. The leaching fraction of the elements is essential to choose among the different possible substances that may contain the elements, the ones that are the most probable in the waste, and particularly substances with high water solubility, that are more hazardous than substances with low water solubility. This is particularly true for human toxicity (hazard property HP 4 to HP 13), and for ecotoxicity (HP 14).

References:

  1. Arm, M. ,Wik, O., Engelsen, C.J., Erlandsson, M., Sundqvist, J.-O. , Oberender, A., Hjelmar, O., Wahlström, M. 2014. Environmental Consequences of the EC Recovery Target for Construction and Demolition Waste. Nordic Working Papers. Published by the Nordic Council of Ministers, NA 2014:916. ISSN 2311 – 0562 http://dx.doi.org/10.6027/NA2014-916
  2. Sorvari, J., & Wahlström, M. 2014. Industrial by-products. Published in Handbook of Recycling. State-of-the-art for practitioners, analysts and scientist (ed. Ernst Worrell and Markus A. Reuter). Elsevier, USA.
  3. Wahlström, M., Laine-Ylijoki, J., Järnström, H., Kaartinen, T., Erlandsson,M.,  Palm Cousins, A., Wik, O., Suer, P., Oberender, A., Hjelmar, O., Birgisdottir, H., Butera, S., Fruergaard Astrup, T.  & Andreas Jørgensen. (2014). Environmentally Sustainable Construction Products and Materials – Assessment of release and emissions. NORDIC INNOVATION REPORT 2014:03 // MARCH 2014. http://www.nordicinnovation.org/Global/_Publications/Reports/2014/Environmentally%20Sustainable%20Construction%20Products%20and%20Materials_Final_report.pdf
  4. Ole Hjelmar, Hans A. van der Sloot, Rob N. J. Comans, Margareta Wahlström, EoW Criteria for Waste-Derived Aggregates. Waste Biomass Valor (2013) 4:809–81
  5. Wahlström, M., Laine-Ylijoki , J., Kaartinen, T., Rautiainen, L., Hjelmar, O., Oberender, A., Bendz, D., Wik, O., Gustafsson, H., Engelsen, C.J.& Birgisdottir, H. 2010. Handbook: Environmental assessment of construction products – an introduction to test methods and other procedures related to CE -marking. Nordtest Technical report 618, Nordic Innovation Centre. Oslo. Norway. Nordtest.info/wp/2009/04/25/handbook-environmental-assessment-of-construction-products-an-introduction-to-test-methods-and-other-procedures-related-to-ce-marking-nt-tr-618/
  6. Hjelmar, Wahlström, Comans, Kalbe, Grathwohl, Méhu, Schiopu, Hyks, Laine-Ylijoki, van Zomeren, Krüger, Schoknecht, Wendel & Abdelghafour. Robustness validation of methods developed by CEN/TC351/WG1 to assess release from construction products to soil, surface- and groundwater https://www.nen.nl/media/Overig/WG_1_Robustness_Validation_Report_-_TS-2_and_TS-3_-_Leaching_methods.pdf
  7. Hjelmar, O., Wahlström, M., 2009 & Laine-Ylijoki, J.. Treatment methods for waste to be landfilled. TemaNord: 583. Nordic Council of Ministers.
  8. Margareta Wahlström, Jutta Laine-Ylijoki, Tommi Kaartinen, Ole Hjelmar och David Bendz Guidance on the evaluation of acid neutralization capacity of waste – specification of requirement stated in landfill regulations. 2009. TemaNord: 580. Nordic Council of Ministers. Role: project manager. http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:702816/FULLTEXT01.pdf
  9. Wahlström, M., Laine-Ylijoki, J.,& Hjelmar, O. 2009.. Rsk assessment framework for management of the factor 3-rule in the Council Decision 2003/33/EC on waste acceptance criteria”. TemaNord: 559. https://www.norden.org/en/publication/risk-assessment-framework-management-factor-3-rule-council-decision-200333ec-waste

 

More information on environmental assessment:

Regulatory approaches
Uncertainty
Treatment evaluation
Laboratory – Field comparison
Waste classification

Return to Homepage