Waste (Materials Facilities) (Scotland) Direction 2025: ministerial direction
Direction issued by Scottish Ministers to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) requiring that existing and new waste management licences and PPC permits contain a condition requiring compliance with the Materials Facilities Code.
Created: 19 March 2025
Coming into force: 20 March 2025
The Scottish Ministers give the following Direction to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (“SEPA”) in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 35(7) and 37(3) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (the “1990 Act”)([a]) and regulation 60 of the Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2012 (the “2012 Regulations”)([b]).
Citation and commencement
1. This Direction may be cited as the Waste (Materials Facilities) (Scotland) Direction 2025 and comes into force on 20 March 2025.
Interpretation
2. In this Direction:
“dry recyclable waste” means separately collected waste, that is -
(a) glass
(b) metals
(c) plastics
(d) paper
(e) card (including cardboard)
(f) fibre based composite material
“dry waste stream” means a quantity of dry recyclable waste of the same type (such as glass),
“fibre-based composite material” means packaging material which is made of paperboard or paper fibres, with a layer of plastic, and which may also have layers of other materials, to form a single unit that cannot be separated by hand,
“Materials Facilities Code” means the Code of Practice on Sampling and Reporting at Materials Facilities issued by the Scottish Ministers on 24 June 2024,
“materials facility” means -
(a) a materials recovery facility, being a facility where dry recyclable waste is treated in order to separate that waste into a dry waste stream or streams,
(b) a facility where dry recyclable waste from more that one supplier is consolidated into bulk quantities -
(i) as a first point of consolidation, or
(ii) following the first consolidation of bulk quantities, transferred from other suppliers, for the purpose of selling or transferring the dry recyclable waste to other facilities or persons to enable that waste to be prepared for re-use or recycling([c]),
“PPC permit” means a permit granted by SEPA under regulation 13 of the 2012 Regulations,
“supplier” means -
(a) where dry recyclable waste is collected pursuant to arrangements made under section 45(1)(a) or (b) of the 1990 Act by a waste collection authority within the meaning of section 30(3)(c) of that Act, the waste collection authority, except in a case falling within sub-paragraph (b),
(b) where dry recyclable waste has been transferred from another materials facility, the operator of the materials facility from which that waste was transferred,
(c) in a case not falling within sub-paragraph (a) or (b), the person who collected the dry recyclable waste, or if that person is not known, the person responsible for delivering it to the materials facility,
“waste management licence” means a waste management licence granted by SEPA under section 35(1) of the 1990 Act.
Variation of existing waste management licences and PPC permits
3. - (1) SEPA must exercise its powers under section 37(1)(a) of the 1990 Act to modify all waste management licences granted prior to 20 March 2025 which authorise either or both of the activities described in sub-paragraph (2) to include a condition requiring compliance with the Materials Facilities Code (as it may be revised from time to time) from 1 April 2025.
(2) The activities referred to in sub-paragraph (1) are -
(a) the treatment of dry recyclable waste in order to separate that waste into a dry waste stream or streams,
(b) the consolidation of dry recyclable waste into bulk quantities -
(i) as a first point of consideration, or
(ii) following the first consolidation of bulk quantities, transferred from other suppliers, for the purpose of selling it, or transferring it to other facilities or persons to enable preparation of that waste for re-use or recycling.
(3) SEPA must exercise its powers under regulation 46(2) of the 2012 Regulations to vary all PPC permits granted prior to 20 March 2025 which authorise the operation of a materials facility to include a condition requiring compliance with the Materials Facilities Code (as it may be revised from time to time) from 1 April 2025.
New waste management licences and PPC permits
4. - (1) SEPA must ensure that a waste management licence granted on or after 20 March 2025 which authorises either or both of the activities described in sub-paragraph (2) includes a condition requiring compliance with the Materials Facilities Code (as it may be revised from time to time) from 1 April 2025.
(2) The activities referred to in sub-paragraph (1) are -
(a) the treatment of dry recyclable waste in order to separate that waste into a dry waste stream or streams,
(b) the consolidation of dry recyclable waste into bulk quantities -
(i) as a first point of consolidation, or
(ii) following the first consolidation of bulk quantities, transferred from other suppliers for the purpose of selling it, or transferring it to other facilities or persons to enable preparation of that waste for reuse or recycling.
(3) SEPA must ensure that a PPC permit granted on or after 20 March 2025 which authorises the operation of a materials facility includes a condition requiring compliance with the Materials Facilities Code (as it may be revised from time to time) from 1 April 2025.
Revocation
5. The Waste (Recyclate Quality) (Scotland) Direction 2015 is revoked.([d])
David McPhee
A member of the staff of the Scottish Ministers
Victoria Quay,
Edinburgh
19 March 2025
([a]) C. 43.
([b]) S.S.I. 2012/360.
([c]) In this Direction a reference to a materials facility does not include a bring site as defined by section 45C(7) of the 1990 Act.
([d]) This Direction was signed on 7 May 2015 and came into force on 8 May 2015.
