WEEE Treatment Facilities

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) legislation will affect businesses in the waste management industry that operate WEEE treatment facilities.

The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Waste Management Licensing) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 came into force on 5 January 2007 and deal with the site licensing and WEEE treatment requirements of the WEEE Directive.

The regulations include three additional exemptions from waste management licensing. These cover:

1. Storage of WEEE
2. Repair/refurbishment of WEEE
3. Lamp crushing prior to recovery

These exemptions need to be registered with us (NIEA) and are subject to certain restrictions.

View Guidance on Best Available Treatment Recovery and Recycling Techniques (BATRRT) and Treatment of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) (.doc 168Kb).

A prospective operator must send our Waste Management Licensing Team a Waste Management Licence (.PDF 258Kb) or Exemption from Waste Management Licensing (.PDF 119Kb). An operator will also need to ensure that the site has appropriate planning permission.

In order to treat WEEE, they will need to put in place the necessary equipment and processes that allow the WEEE to be treated to the required standard and in a way that does not cause harm to the environment, workers or people living nearby. A site that is appropriately licensed to treat WEEE is known as an Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF) for WEEE.

An operator of a treatment facility that has the necessary ATF licence can apply to be approved. Approved Authorised Treatment Facilities (AATFs) are able to issue evidence of WEEE treatment and recovery. This evidence is required by Producer Compliance Schemes to show that they have met their obligations under the WEEE Regulations. There will be a similar approval process for exporters of WEEE for treatment or recovery.

Exporting any waste for disposal is prohibited. The export of WEEE for recovery is permitted but is controlled by the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations (2007). These controls depend on the classification of the waste and the destination country. Many waste types require formal notification before the waste is allowed to leave the UK.

Hazardous WEEE cannot be exported for recovery to countries outside the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Televisions and monitors with cathode ray tubes are examples of WEEE classified as hazardous waste. Some of the components and materials derived from treating hazardous WEEE will themselves be classified as hazardous waste. Most permitted exports to non-OECD countries are subject to notification under the Waste Shipments Regulations.

Application forms and associated guidance notes to be an Approved ATF or an Approved Exporter of WEEE are available below.

• Approved ATF application form (WMP5) (.PDF 271Kb)
• Approved Exporter application form (WMP6) (.PDF 253Kb)
• Guidance Notes (WMP7) (.PDF 241Kb)
• Public Register of Approved ATFs and Approved Exporters of WEEE 2009

Quarterly Returns

Quarterly returns are required to be submitted by both AATFs and AEs. Please use the templates below to submit your quarterly reports to us.

• AATF Quarterly returns template (.xls 451Kb)
• Approved Exporter Quarterly returns template (.xls 254Kb)

Guidance is also available below to assist you in completing the quarterly reports:

• AATF Quarterly returns guidance (.PDF 129Kb)
• Approved exporter Quarterly returns guidance (.PDF 113Kb)
• WEEE evidence must be issued through the settlement centre which can be found at www.weee-sc.org.uk.
• Guidance for issuing WEEE evidence notes.