Managing controlled waste - code of practice: duty of care - equalities impact assessment

Key Findings

28. No significant impacts, positive or negative were identified with regards to protected characteristics groups from the proposed requirements for collection of plastic film for recycling from the non- household municipal sector.

29. Businesses producing waste are already obligated to take all reasonable steps to ensure the separately collection of dry recyclable waste, including plastics, by the duty of care in the Environmental Protection Act 1990; this update to the Code makes clear that plastics include plastic films. It is not anticipated that separate collection requirements for businesses producing waste will create new impacts on those with protected characteristics.

30. Waste management businesses, including material recovery facilities (MRFs), will have additional requirements to collect and manage plastic films as a result of the updated code. Implementation of the relevant processes to accept and handle plastic films will be an operational and commercial matter for individual businesses, but is not anticipated to create any new impacts on those with protected characteristics.