Guidance

Landspreading: how to comply with your permit

Updated 4 July 2023

Applies to England

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/landspreading-how-to-comply-with-your-permit/landspreading-how-to-comply-with-your-environmental-permit

This guidance is for operators with the following permits:

  • SR2010 No 4: mobile plant for landspreading (land treatment resulting in benefit to agriculture or ecological improvement)
  • SR2010 No 5: mobile plant for the reclamation, restoration or land improvement
  • SR2010 No 6: mobile plant for landspreading of sewage sludge
  • bespoke mobile plant permit for landspreading or land reclamation – bespoke permits may have different conditions

It explains how to meet the requirements of your permit. You need to read it with your permit. The numbering corresponds with those in a standard rules permit.

All waste spread to land must be a waste recovery activity and result in agricultural benefit or ecological improvement. You must operate your activities in a way which identifies and minimises risks of pollution. Rule 4.4 Interpretation in your permit gives the definition of pollution. See also the pollution section in the guidance Control and monitor emissions for your environmental permit.

To store or spread any waste to land you must apply for a deployment. You must not start any activities until the Environment Agency has agreed your application for deployment using form LPD1.

Your permit specifies the objectives you must achieve. Use this guidance to help you meet them.

A ‘must’ in this guidance means you have to do something to meet the requirements of your permit and deployment. The Environment Agency do not normally tell you how to achieve them. This gives you a degree of flexibility.

Where your permit requires you to take appropriate measures to secure a particular objective, the Environment Agency expect you to use, as a minimum, the relevant measures described in this guidance. The measures are not exhaustive and may not be appropriate for a particular circumstance. You can put equivalent measures in place that achieve the same objective. For example, you may have to:

  • take additional measures to meet the objectives
  • use other management systems and measures to achieve the same outcome of protecting environmental and human receptors

If you have appropriate measures or equivalent measures in place, including, but not limited to those specified in any approved emissions management plan, you will not normally be found to have breached the relevant permit rule. You must be able to show that you have prevented or where that is not practicable, minimised the risks.

If you think you may not be able to comply with your permit you must contact your local Environment Agency office.

Introductory note

Your permit has an introductory note. This is not part of the standard rules. It summarises the activities you can do and how and where you can do them.

You must make sure your operations comply with your permit.

If there is a site-based permit on the land where you want to store or spread, you cannot do the activities under a landspreading mobile plant permit where the site-based permit’s requirements differ. The requirements of the site-based permit take precedence. For advice on this contact your local Environment Agency office.

Meet other regulatory requirements

You must make sure that you comply with other relevant regulatory requirements such as the:

Animal By-Products Regulations

SR2010 No 4 and some bespoke permits refer to the ABPR.

The ABPR control the risks to human and animal health from handling, treating, storing and disposing of animal by-products (ABPs). You must meet the requirements of the ABPR for any wastes controlled by these regulations. The Animal and Plant Health Agency regulate the ABPR.

You can find out if your waste is controlled by the ABPR by checking it in Landspreading: benefits and risks of the waste types you can use.

If your deployment includes any waste streams that are ABPs, the ABPR controls may apply to your activity. For example, you can only feed livestock with herbage from land to which ABP or ABP derived products have been applied after the waiting period ends. This applies to grazing or feeding with cut herbage.

If you are dealing with ABPs you must follow the Guidance for the animal by-product industry, in particular:

See also:

1. Management

1.1 General management

This section explains how to follow the general management rules.

1.1.1 Operator responsibilities

The permit holder is the operator. They must be both:

An operator could be a:

  • waste producer
  • waste management business, including compost or anaerobic digestate operators
  • waste broker
  • farmer or land manager
  • land agent
  • consultant

You must have sufficient control over your landspreading operations. For example, you must:

  • have day-to-day control of the operations
  • make sure your staff and subcontractors meet the permit rules
  • decide who holds responsible staff positions
  • make sure the staff are trained and competent
  • make investment and financial decisions that affect performance or how the activity is done
  • take control in emergencies

You may subcontract parts of your landspreading operation. For example, you can:

If you subcontract, you must always be in control of your operations. You must be able to provide evidence of this to the Environment Agency.

1.1.1 (a) Produce a written management system

You must produce and follow a written management system that:

  • identifies the risks your operations may cause to the environment
  • allows you to take action to prevent or minimise those risks

You must follow the guidance Develop a management system: environmental permits.

Your written management system must describe how you will:

  • manage and train your staff, contractors and subcontractors
  • decide if a waste is suitable for landspreading, including how you will check its source and confirm it is as described
  • make sure the waste storage facilities you use are suitably designed, constructed, operated and maintained
  • handle the waste and transfer it into and out of the storage facilities
  • select the receiving land
  • select the technique for applying the waste to the land
  • calibrate and maintain your machinery to demonstrate accurate application of the waste
  • handle and manage odorous wastes

You must document how you will keep control of your activities. For example, you must make sure all management staff, operational staff and subcontractors:

  • understand the requirements of other related environmental legislation such as waste duty of care and hazardous waste rules – see 2.2 Waste acceptance

  • know that landspreading is a waste recovery activity and what this means – see the guidance under rule 2.1.3

  • understand the causes and effects of pollution and know what controls are needed

  • minimise the risk of pollution and harm to human and animal health, by using for example Protecting our water, soil and air

  • follow site safety and risk assessments

  • do routine inspections and maintenance of all mobile plant and equipment to prevent waste oils, hydraulic fluids and fuels spilling or leaking

  • have and follow an emergency procedure for dealing with spills or leaks

  • understand when conditions for landspreading are unsuitable or if the land is not available – landspreading wastes in unsuitable conditions may be classed as a waste disposal activity

  • have access to the deployment form and the supporting documents for each deployment – including the Environment Agency’s written agreement

  • have access to the location map to know where any sensitive receptors are and to comply with buffer zones

Plan for interruptions to field operations

You must include a plan for how you will minimise the effects on the environment from short-term disruptions such as:

  • machinery breakdown
  • delivery problems
  • staff shortages
  • accidents that may result in pollution
  • adverse weather conditions, including flooded or frozen ground

Plan for potential longer term disruptions

Consider and plan for long-term disruptions, for example from:

  • prolonged adverse weather, including likelihood of flooding
  • disease outbreaks
  • major disruptions to agriculture and food supply

During long periods of exceptional circumstances, the Environment Agency may give advice on the options available for storing and landspreading waste. These may be through:

  • advice and guidance
  • regulatory position statements

For example, see Preventing agricultural pollution in exceptional circumstances.

You need suitable contingency arrangements in place. Examples include:

  • machinery service and repair contracts to get repairs done quickly
  • access to more than one machine, or arrangements for hire
  • enough staff to cover sickness, holiday and other absence

Consider increasing your waste storage capacity. For example, at the waste producer’s site or at a suitably permitted site. You must not exceed the storage limits in your deployment form.

Use a dynamic risk assessment

Consider any changes that may affect the activities. You must always make sure that:

  • your operations will not cause harm to people, animals or the environment
  • you do not breach the requirements of your permit and deployment by spreading inappropriately or in the wrong conditions

You must continually assess the situation before you spread to land. Use a dynamic risk assessment to:

  • identify hazards and risks
  • take action to eliminate or reduce risk
  • monitor and review the situation

Your written management system must set out procedures for documenting a dynamic risk assessment.

If you are using a generic risk assessment you must use it with the dynamic risk assessment.

See the following examples of changing circumstances.

Example 1

It is dry when you begin spreading, but the rain forecasted is heavier than expected.

Action: Stop spreading to avoid the risk of run-off into land drains or nearby water courses.

Example 2

Your waste has been stockpiled for several months. When you start to open the pile you identify a potential for odour.

Action: Stop your activities and assess the likelihood and probable source of the odour. Adjust your operations as appropriate.

Keep your written management system up to date

You must keep your written management system and plans up to date and do regular reviews.

For an incident or non-compliance, you must:

  • notify the Environment Agency without delay
  • deal with it immediately
  • amend your accident prevention and management plan
  • tell the Environment Agency about any amendments you make as a result
  • explain and justify the reasons for any failures

Section 4.3 Notifications in this guide explains how you must notify the Environment Agency.

1.1.1 (b) Use sufficient competent persons and resources

As the operator you are responsible for permit compliance.

Technically competent manager

You must have a technically competent manager.

The technically competent manager can be the operator (permit holder) or the person responsible for demonstrating technical competence.

You must follow Legal operator and competence requirements.

You must join and comply with the requirements of one of these 2 government approved schemes:

  • the scheme run jointly by the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management and Waste Management Industry Training and Advisory Board (WAMITAB)
  • the Energy & Utility Sector Skills Council (EU Skills) – a scheme run jointly by EU Skills and the Environmental Services Association

You can also appoint one (or more) nominated competent person or persons as the main contact for specific deployments. They must report to the technically competent manager. In your written management system you must show how you will manage them.

You must name your technically competent manager and nominated competent person in your in your written management system and deployment form.

You will only need a nominated competent person when the technically competent manager cannot supervise all the deployments. Where deployments are some distance from the main office or countrywide, you must be able to show you have control of all day to day operations. You will do this through your written management system and any formal contracts you have in place.

Nominated competent person

Your nominated competent person may be an employee, contractor or consultant. You must have a formal written contract with them. It must state their role and responsibilities.

They must have access to the permit and understand the requirements of the permit, guidance and supporting deployment documents.

They need to show they have sufficient training in:

  • waste management legislation and associated requirements
  • environmental risk assessment
  • environmental protection measures
  • your written management system and procedures

They can achieve this through:

  • formal qualifications
  • using a documented in-house training programme

Your written management system must include evidence of their qualifications.

Your nominated competent person will need to:

  • be able to contact the technically competent manager if needed
  • get to the deployment site within 2 hours during landspreading and 4 hours at any other time
  • make sure the storage and spreading activities follow the agreed deployment
  • have the authority to give approval to start or stop the landspreading, for example due to weather conditions – they must use a dynamic risk assessment as described in rule 1.1.1 (a)
  • make sure the person delivering the waste to the site knows where and how to store the waste
  • make sure that any person spreading the waste knows of any ‘no spread’ or buffer zones and any actions they need to take to protect sensitive receptors
  • raise any issues with the technically competent manager that could cause a permit breach
  • be the first person to respond to any incidents or non-conformances including noise, dust or odour issues (if the technically competent manager is unavailable)

1.1.2 Records

You must show you have met rule 1.1.1 by keeping written records of your operations.

1.1.3 Access to permit

Your staff and subcontractors must have access to the relevant permit. They will need to follow your:

  • written management system
  • management plans for emissions, odour, noise and vibration
  • deployment form, location map, benefit statement and any site-specific risk assessment
  • requirements for record keeping

They must understand the requirements of the permit and deployment.

1.1.4 Approved competence scheme

The operator must comply with the requirements of an approved competence scheme.

You must follow Legal operator and competence requirements.

1.2 Waste hierarchy

To meet the waste hierarchy you must use appropriate measures to prevent, reuse, recycle or recover the waste your operation produces for export or disposal off site.

You need to:

  • identify all wastes that your operations may produce
  • decide how you are going to manage them

You must consider if you can:

  • avoid producing the waste
  • reduce the amount of waste you produce

Every 4 years you must review and record if any changes are needed. If your review shows you can improve how you prevent and reduce waste, you must adopt the changes.

For:

You must be able to meet the requirements for waste recovery. See Waste recovery requirements in rule 2.1.3 of this guide.

2. Operations

2.1 Permitted activities

Your permit allows the following recovery activities:

  • R13 – the temporary secure storage of waste you will spread to land
  • R10 – land treatment resulting in agricultural benefit or ecological improvement

The R prefix stands for recovery.

Your landspreading mobile plant permit and agreed deployment do not allow you to treat the waste. You need a different type of permit for this.

Also, you must not treat any waste if you hold the:

  • S3 waste exemption for storing sludge
  • standard rules permit SR2010 No 17: storage of wastes to be used in land treatment

Screening, sorting or crushing waste is classed as treatment.

2.1.1 R13 storing waste before you spread

You must refer to rule 2.1.1 in your permit to meet the requirements of the R13 activity.

Use this information to also meet rule 2.3.1 Storage.

You can only store the waste as described in your:

  • permit
  • deployment form
  • waste analysis

You must not accept waste onto your site until the Environment Agency has agreed your deployment application. See rule 2.1.4.

The waste you store for landspreading must be suitable for direct use. It must be suitably stable so that when stored it does not result in any significant biological, physical or chemical changes.

You must contact the Environment Agency if the waste needs treating before you store or spread it. You may need to have it treated at a facility with a suitable permit. Following any treatment, you must get a new waste analysis done. The Environment Agency must agree this before you can store or spread the waste.

The activities must be within the scope of mobile plant activities – the requirements are set out in in Regulatory guidance note 2 (RGN2) Understanding the meaning of regulated facility – Appendix 4 Understanding the scope of mobile plant.

Waste types you can store

The waste code and description must be listed in the mobile plant permit.

You can only accept and store the waste streams listed in your agreed deployment.

A waste stream is a single waste generated by a single site.

Place of storage

R13 refers to secure storage at the place where the waste is to be used for land treatment. This is called the ‘place of storage.’

You must make sure that the place of storage is within the spreading area covered by your deployment. For example, this can be secure storage on a field headland or concrete pad at the entrance of the field you will treat.

You must tell the Environment Agency in your LPD1 application and show on the location map the:

  • areas of land you will treat
  • place of storage – the place on that land you will securely store the waste

You must not store waste:

  • with other materials, including non-waste
  • at an intermediate site that is not the ‘place of storage’ where you will use it

If you cannot meet the waste storage requirements of your permit and deployment form you must apply for a:

Store waste securely

You must store the waste securely.

You must have approval to use any storage facility provided by a third party such as the land owner or occupier. You, as the operator, are responsible for the facility that is providing secure storage for your waste. For example, if you are using a farmer’s lagoon, you are responsible for it while your waste is being stored there.

You must:

  • keep the waste away from members of the public, for example by locating field stockpiles away from public rights of way
  • contain the waste stream within the facility – it must not escape or leak
  • be able to show the facility is always maintained
  • consider other relevant properties of the waste and any associated risk and benefits from its storage
  • if you are using third party storage, document your approach in your written management system

You can:

  • fit lockable valves and use secondary containment to prevent the waste leaking or spilling, unless you are using other relevant measures
  • help to manage odour by keeping the amount of waste you store to a minimum, for example by getting daily deliveries and using it that day

Storing mixed waste streams

You must only mix waste for ease of handling before spreading.

For a single deployment you can mix and store up to 10 waste streams together.

If you are a single operator with multiple deployments for the same area of land, you can mix and store the wastes listed in your deployments together.

Where more than one operator holds deployments at the same site, they must each store their waste separately.

You can only mix hazardous wastes if you comply with the requirements for hazardous waste. These are set out in ‘accepting hazardous waste’ under rule 2.2 Waste acceptance in this guide.

Mixing the wastes must not:

  • cause wastes to react with each other
  • pose a risk to human or animal health or the environment

These examples of treatment are not allowed:

  • neutralisation
  • changes in pH that may result in a change to metal availability
  • using one waste stream to buffer or neutralise the acidic or alkali properties of another waste stream

If you do mix waste together you must comply with the application rates for each waste stream given in your agreed deployment form.

Quantity of waste allowed

Your deployment form specifies the actual quantity of waste you can store. This may be less than the maximum quantity allowed under your permit.

Under your permit, for a single deployment, you can store up to 3,000 tonnes of waste that you will spread in a location at any one time. Of this you must not store more than 1,250 tonnes of non‐stackable waste.

If you hold, or are applying for, more than one deployment that covers the same area, you must store no more than 3,000 tonnes of waste in a single location at any one time. Of this, you can store no more than 1,250 tonnes of non-stackable waste.

The total quantity of waste you can store must be:

  • within the limits given in your permit and be no greater than that given in your deployment
  • stored in line with any other permit or exemption requirements

Definition of stackable and non-stackable waste

Stackable waste must:

  • be solid enough to stack in a free‐standing heap without slumping
  • not give rise to free drainage of liquid from within the stacked material

All other waste is classed as non-stackable and can include liquids and slurries.

You must meet the requirements of rule 2.3.1.

You will need to consider the benefits and risks from different types of storage and explain these in the relevant sections your benefit statement. For examples see section 4 of Landspreading: produce a benefit statement

How long you can store the waste

You can store the waste for 12 months. The start date is the date the Environment Agency give their written agreement to the deployment. The end date is 12 months later.

You must spread all the waste and have no stored waste left at the site once your deployment has expired.

If you have any concerns that you will have waste leftover you must contact your local Environment Agency office for advice.

You may not always get the timing and conditions right for landspreading. You may temporarily store the waste when for example, adverse weather conditions have not allowed you to spread it. See changes you can make in the Landspreading: form LPD1 guidance.

The Environment Agency will consider your place of storage as a permanent facility if:

  • it is in constant use
  • it stores a succession of temporary waste
  • you regularly need to store waste after the deployment expires

You may need to apply for a site-based permit such as SR2010 No 17: storage of wastes to be used in land treatment. This allows you to store up to 75,000 tonnes of waste for up to 3 years.

To store mixed waste streams, you must operate in line with rule ‘2.1.1 R13 storing waste’ as set out in this guide before you spread.

2.1.1 R10 land treatment resulting in benefit to agriculture or ecological improvement

Your mobile plant permit must be suitable for the:

  • type of land you propose to treat – agricultural or non-agricultural
  • waste types you intend to spread
  • quantity of waste you intend to spread

Use the definitions in section B3.2 in the Landspreading: form LPD1 guidance for agricultural and non-agricultural land.

Your land treatment activities must meet the limits of the R10 activity. They must be within the scope of mobile plant activities – the requirements are set out in Appendix 4 Understanding the scope of mobile plant of RGN2.

R10 activities

You must comply with the R10 activities in table 2.1 in your permit.

You must:

  • only spread waste within a 12-month period
  • be able to show that your spreading is for agricultural benefit or ecological improvement
  • not exceed the quantities of waste in your agreed deployment form
  • only spread the waste types listed in your permit

To check the waste types associated with sewage sludge see Waste codes for sewage sludge materials: RPS 231.

SR2010 No 4: mobile plant for landspreading

Under SR2010 No 4 you can spread the wastes listed in:

  • table 2.2A List A lower risk wastes
  • table 2.2B List B higher risk wastes

Your permit has different limits in Table 2.1 Activities for low risk and high risk wastes.

This permit allows you to spread waste to agricultural or non-agricultural land.

You must not use SR2010 No 4 for land restoration – use SR2010 No 5.

SR2010 No 5: mobile plant for reclamation, restoration or land improvement

SR2010 No 5 lists the wastes you can use in tables 2.2 and 2.3.

To operate under this permit you must confirm the intended land use of the site. For example, an agricultural or non-agricultural end use. You must not use the wastes in table 2.3 to treat land that you intend to return to agricultural use.

Growing crops or grassland which are or could directly or indirectly link to the food chain is an agricultural activity. For example:

  • conservation grassland grazed by sheep
  • energy crops for anaerobic digestion where the digestate will be used for agricultural benefit on land
  • energy crops or other non-food crops that can fit onto an agricultural rotation

If you grow energy crops over a significant amount of time, the Environment Agency may class this as non-agricultural land. For example, short rotation coppice grown as a fuel for 15 years or more.

For SR2010 No 5 your deployment must be to restore, reclaim or improve the land. Once the land has been fully restored, if you want to deploy again for agricultural benefit or ecological improvement you must do this under SR2010 No 4, SR2010 No 6 or a bespoke permit.

SR2010 No 6: mobile plant for landspreading of sewage sludge

You can use SR2010 No 6 for spreading treated sludges from the treatment of urban waste water (waste code 19 08 05) on:

  • non-agricultural land
  • agricultural land used to produce non-food crops that are not grown in short-term rotation with food crops

You do not need an environmental permit to landspread waste code 19 08 05 to agricultural land. You can do this under the Sludge (Use in Agriculture) Regulations. See the Sewage sludge in agriculture: code of practice.

The Sludge (Use in Agriculture) Regulations define agricultural land as ‘the growing of all types of commercial food crops, including for stock-rearing purposes’.

2.1.2 to 2.1.6

Rules 2.1.2 to 2.1.6 relate to deployment.

2.1.2 (a) 10 waste streams

Each deployment form covers no more than 10 waste streams. If you want to spread more than 10 waste streams on the same area of land you must submit another deployment application including the supporting documents and another payment.

If the new deployment claims a nutrient benefit, the crop and soil must need that nutrient.

2.1.2 (b) Extent of land

For SR2010 No 4 and No 6, a ‘single continuously managed area of land’ means a single waste stream for a single crop on a single continuous parcel of land (a field) of up to 100 hectares. A single land occupier, such as the landowner or tenant must control this land.

LPD1 refers to an ‘area of land’. This means the same as a ‘parcel of land’ (a field).

2.1.3 Provide a benefit statement

For your deployment application you must provide a benefit statement. It must contain evidence that your deployment is a waste recovery activity. An appropriate technical expert must produce it.

Your landspreading permit only allows waste recovery activities that result in agricultural benefit or ecological improvement. You must describe how your deployment will achieve this in your benefit statement.

Your activities must not cause harm to human health, animal health or the environment. Your benefit statement must describe any potential negative impacts the activity may have and how you will manage these, during and after the activity.

Your permit does not allow waste disposal activities. The Environment Agency use the following waste recovery requirements to assess if your activity is waste recovery.

If the Environment Agency does not accept your waste recovery evidence, they will refuse your deployment application. You must keep to the requirements of your permit and agreed deployment. If you do not, the Environment Agency will determine your deployment as waste disposal and may take enforcement action.

Waste recovery requirements

To meet the requirements, the waste you use must replace a non-waste material to achieve a beneficial use.

Your deployment application must satisfy the Environment Agency that the waste you plan to spread will result in agricultural benefit or ecological improvement. It is where you use a waste material instead of a non-waste material you would otherwise have to use.

It is important that you are able to demonstrate that the waste is a substitute for a non-waste material and that the waste is being used in the same way.

For example, you are using the waste to replace or supplement a manufactured fertiliser. This means applying it at a time when the crop can use it and in amounts that the crop can take it up.

It is likely that spreading waste streams at inappropriate times, in unsuitable conditions or at excessive rates is a disposal activity, not a waste recovery activity.

You must not spread:

  • solid wastes that smother crops
  • liquid wastes that cause scorch
  • oily wastes that coat the crop or soil particles – see manage oil and fat trap wastes in Landspreading: how to manage soil health

The Environment Agency class these activities as disposal, not recovery.

Show how your activity will result in benefit to agriculture or ecological improvement

You must comply with the R10 activity in your permit.

Clear benefit

There must be a clear benefit from the waste you intend to spread.

Use of the waste where the benefit is too small to measure is likely to be a waste disposal activity.

Purpose of the deployment

You must show that the waste you propose to landspread is needed.

The Environment Agency will consider how the purpose of your deployment will result in agricultural benefit or ecological improvement.

Suitable for direct use

The waste stream must be suitable for direct use. You must not treat any waste under your landspreading permit.

Quantity of waste used for intended benefit

The application rate or the quantity of waste used must be no more than is needed to give the intended benefit or improvement. For example, to meet crop requirements.

Industrial and waste management processes may use landspreading as an outlet for their waste streams. However, these processes do not always produce waste at the appropriate time to landspread it. You must:

  • only store waste at the place where the waste will be used
  • meet the limits of your permit for the R13: waste storage before you spread activity

You can also:

  • store the waste at the site where it is produced, pending its collection
  • identify other suitable permitted waste facilities to store the waste until the time is right to spread it

Use appropriate expertise

Follow the guidance in Qualifications and technical expertise in section 1 of Landspreading: produce a benefit statement.

2.1.4 Starting activities

You must not start any activities until you have received written agreement from the Environment Agency. This includes accepting waste to the site. Your agreed deployment starts from the date of the written agreement. It ends 12 months later. The deployment is part of your permit.

Where a deployment has expired and you intend to apply for a new deployment, you must not accept any waste to the site until the new deployment has been agreed.

2.1.5 Comply with your agreed deployment

Your activities must meet the requirements of your agreed LPD1.

You must not make any changes to your deployment without agreement with your contact at the Environment Agency. See changes you can make in Landspreading: form LPD1 guidance.

2.1.6 Records

You must keep up-to-date records to show you have complied with rules 2.1.3, 2.1.4 and 2.1.5.

2.1.7 Surface water and groundwater restrictions

You must not store or spread waste within:

  • 10m of any water course
  • a groundwater source protection zone 1
  • 50m of any well, spring or borehole used to supply water for human consumption including from a private water supply

You must meet the requirements for storing stackable waste given under Operating techniques in this guide.

To find out more on groundwater source protection zone 1 see the guidance Groundwater source protection zones which includes instructions on how to find them.

To find out if there is a private water supply within 50m of your activity you may have to contact:

  • the local authority
  • people living near to where you want to store or spread the waste

To find information on the risk to private water supplies see sensitive groundwater locations in the guidance Protect groundwater and prevent groundwater pollution.

2.1.8 High readily available nitrogen waste

All landspreading activities must comply with the requirements set out in the:

To prevent or minimise the loss of ammonia, you must comply with rule 3.2.4 Storage of highly readily available nitrogen waste in this guide.

High readily available nitrogen waste in groundwater safeguard zones

You must only store or spread high readily available nitrogen wastes within a groundwater safeguard zone for nitrate:

  • in periods outside of the nitrate vulnerable zone closed periods for spreading organic manure with high readily available nitrogen

  • at application rates of equal to or less than 50m3/ha, with a minimum 3 week gap between applications

  • to a maximum application rate of 250kg total nitrogen for any given hectare

2.2 Waste acceptance

The waste you receive must be suitable for direct use. A standard rules landspreading permit does not allow waste treatment.

If the waste is not suitable, you need to speak to your waste producer. They may need to control potential emissions from the waste. For example, by treating it at the site where it is produced to reduce odour potential.

Waste duty of care

You must follow the waste duty of care.

Accepting waste

Your permit lists the waste code and description for each waste type you are allowed to use.

The waste producer, as part of their duty of care, must code and describe the waste correctly. They can use:

You must not:

  • amend the LoW code after the waste is transferred from the site where it is produced
  • rely on the 6-digit waste code only – you must also have the written description

Some of the waste descriptions in your permit are different to those in WM3. They are more prescriptive. You must make sure the waste matches the description given in your permit.

For example, the waste producer uses the appropriate WM3 LoW codes and descriptions:

  • 01 01 02 Wastes from mineral non-metalliferous excavation
  • 01 04 08 Waste gravel and crushed rocks other than those mentioned in 01 04 07

In some cases, the waste description in your permit has been narrowed so that it only describes these 2 waste types:

  • 01 01 02 Chalk only
  • 01 04 08 Chalk only

The LoW code remains the same but the description is more precise. The producers waste description must confirm the waste is limited to these waste types.

See Landspreading: benefits and risks of the waste types you can use for further details of wastes you can accept and what descriptions you must use for your activity.

You must only accept the waste if it has:

  • been classified and assessed
  • a LoW code that is listed in your permit

You must:

  • have waste acceptance procedures detailed in your written management system
  • keep records that demonstrate you comply with your waste acceptance procedures

See more information in Waste acceptance procedures for deposit for recovery.

You must apply for a bespoke permit if you want to spread a waste type not listed in that permit.

Accepting hazardous waste

If you accept hazardous waste you must comply with the Hazardous Waste (England and Wales) Regulations.

To find out what the controls are see the hazardous waste guidance.

There are 2 hazardous wastes you can use if you hold a standard rules landspreading permit. These are:

For all other hazardous wastes you must apply for a bespoke landspreading permit.

If a waste stream has a LoW code that is a ‘mirror hazardous’ or ‘mirror non-hazardous’ the waste producer must provide evidence that the waste:

  • does not display any hazardous properties
  • is coded correctly

To do this, they may need to do additional sampling, analysis and assessment of the waste.

Find information on waste classification and how to determine if a waste is hazardous:

You can only mix hazardous wastes if you comply with the requirements for hazardous waste.

You can mix waste streams for ease of handling. You must follow the guidance on mixed waste streams in section 4 of Landspreading: produce a benefit statement.

2.3 Operating techniques

You must operate in line with your written management system.

2.3.1 Operating techniques for storage

Your storage activities must not exceed the limits set out in table 2.1 in your permit.

You need to demonstrate in your benefit statement that you will use an appropriate method of storage and continually maintain it.

Storing stackable waste

Options for storing stackable waste include a: 

  • field heap 
  • on-field concrete pad or hard standing 
  • farm building, yard area, or silage clamp 

A field heap must:

  • occupy as small a surface area as is practically required to support the heap and prevent it from collapsing
  • not be located within 30m of surface water if the land is steeply sloping

Steeply sloping means land sloping 12 degrees (1 in 5 or 20%) or greater.

If your stackable waste is open to the weather, consider: 

  • locating temporary field heaps in areas of low permeability, if practical 
  • grading temporary field heaps to promote rainwater run-off rather than infiltration into and through the waste 
  • managing run-off or leachate which may be produced by the waste 
  • that the field heaps may slump 
  • the location of any residential property or workplace in relation to the field heap that might be affected by loss of amenity or dust and odour 

Consider also not storing: 

  • odorous waste within 250m of a residential property or workplace 
  • on land that is likely to become waterlogged, frozen or snow covered 
  • on land likely to flood 
  • on steeply sloping ground where there is a risk of run-off 
  • in any single position, on bare soil, for more than 12 months in a row 
  • over land drains or land drained in the last 12 months 

Storing non-stackable waste

You must store all non-stackable waste in a secure container such as a mobile tanker, lagoon or permanent tank. These can include permanent engineered structures and former slurry stores. You must not store non-stackable waste within 0.3m of the top of an open storage container or within 0.75m of the top of a lagoon. 

The lagoon or container must have enough: 

  • storage capacity so that the waste will not overflow 
  • extra capacity to allow for any rainfall or run-off 

Storing liquid waste

You must store all liquid waste in a secure container (this could be a lagoon), with secondary containment. See more information in rule 3.2.3 Secondary containment for liquid waste.

The interpretation of liquid waste is given in sections 4.14 and 4.15 in the Environmental permitting guidance: the Landfill Directive.

Benefits and risks of storing waste

You can find further practical information on storage in:

2.3.2 Operating techniques for landspreading

You must not spread wastes on land that:

  • has been frozen for 12 hours or more in the preceding 24 hours
  • is waterlogged, frozen or covered in snow

For definitions of ‘waterlogged’ and ‘frozen’ you must use those in section 4.4 Interpretation in your permit.

When you spread the waste consider doing it: 

  • at a time when the soil or crop need it 
  • to provide optimal benefit to the soil or crop 
  • when the weather and ground conditions are suitable so that the waste can be incorporated into the soil and the crop can use it 
  • as accurately as possible to achieve the deployment application rate 

Use your dynamic risk assessment to plan for any disruption to your spreading operations. 

The machinery you use to spread wastes must be appropriate for the physical state of the waste and the receiving land. For example, to allow for slope, soil type and land use. 

You should not spread liquid and odorous wastes: 

  • using high trajectory splash plate equipment – adjust this to a low trajectory spread no more than 4m from ground level 
  • on steep slopes where there is a high risk of run-off 

If you use liquid waste on bare soil or stubble and do not inject it into the soil, you should work it into the soil as soon as reasonably practicable and at the latest within 24 hours. 

You can find further information on spreading in Protecting our water, soil and air. 

If you plan to use waste containing ABPs you must follow the general measures set out in 02 02 wastes from the preparation and processing of meat, fish and other foods of animal origin in Landspreading: benefits and risks of the waste types you can use. 

See the benefits and risks of using some common spreading techniques in Section 4 Landspreading: produce a benefit statement.

3. Emissions and monitoring

You must be able to comply with permit rules 3.1 to 3.4 to make sure your activities do not cause pollution or nuisance.

3.1 Point source emissions to air, water or land

Your permit and deployment only allow point source emissions to land providing the source is listed on your agreed deployment form. You must meet the agreed limits. These include the waste types and quantities and the application rates to the receiving land.

Your permit does not allow point source emissions to air or water courses.

3.2 Emissions of substances not controlled by emission limits

Emissions not controlled by emission limits can occur before, during and after landspreading the waste. For example, when your waste streams are delivered or stored. These emissions must not:

  • pollute land, air, surface water or groundwater
  • harm sensitive receptors
  • cause a nuisance

Landspreading activities can:

  • create dust
  • result in mud and litter
  • attract pests and scavengers such as small animals, birds and flies
  • result in leaks from containers, machinery and equipment

Do not include odour as an emission not controlled by emission limits. See rule 3.3.

The waste producer must control potential emissions from the waste by using appropriate measures on the site where the waste is produced.

You should address all potential emissions from a deployment site in your written management system, and any risk assessment. You must consider the sources, pathways and receptors from each site, for example, land drains leading to water courses.

To comply with rule 3.2.1, the Environment Agency expects you to use appropriate measures or equivalent measures that meet the same objectives. Use these to prevent or where this is not practicable to minimise the risks. You will need to have appropriate measures in place to:

  • reduce dust
  • control pests and scavengers

If you can show in any approved emissions management plan that you have prevented or minimised the risks, the Environment Agency will not consider this as breaching rule 3.2.1.

To avoid pollution and nuisance you must follow Control and monitor emissions for your environmental permit.

Appropriate measures for reducing dust

If you have identified dust as a potential risk, the Environment Agency expects you to use these appropriate measures or equivalent measures that meet the same objectives.

When storing dusty wastes, it is expected that you:

  • keep stockpiles of waste as small as possible
  • locate stockpiles in sheltered areas if possible and consider covering them

When spreading or handling dusty wastes you should:

  • unload and load the waste in a way that reduces how much dust is generated
  • spread within suitable weather windows where possible, to reduce the potential for dust generation
  • spread on stubbles or established grass, not on land being cultivated with a broken surface
  • minimise traffic speeds to reduce the generation of dust
  • put in place speed limits for machinery haul routes

Avoid spreading near:

  • headlands close to sensitive receptors when running on stubble or bare land
  • residential properties where dust may cause a nuisance
  • sensitive habitats where dust may be deposited

For further suggested appropriate measures see dust, mud and litter in the guidance Control and monitor emissions for your environmental permit.

Appropriate measures for controlling pests and scavengers

Identify if your waste stream is likely to attract scavengers, vermin or flies, for example, food wastes and wastes containing ABPs.

To control pests and scavengers the Environment Agency expects you to use these appropriate measures or equivalent measures that meet the same objectives. To prevent nuisance from pests and scavengers it is expected that you:

  • minimise the amount of waste you store and how long you store it by getting a daily delivery of waste and clearing your stockpiles each day

  • store the waste in a sealed container

  • load and unload waste and store it, such as stockpiles and nurse tanks, as far from human and environmental receptors as practicable

  • use appropriate controls to manage flies in stockpiled wastes

  • keep your machinery and equipment clean

When spreading, it is expected that you:

  • incorporate wastes into the soil within 24 hours of spreading where you are cultivating the land
  • use injection spreading techniques when applying wastes to grassland or established crops
  • complete your operations as quickly as possible

For more details see pest management plan in the guidance Control and monitor emissions for your environmental permit.

3.2.3 Secondary containment for liquid waste

To comply with rule 3.2.3 all liquids in containers including lagoons must have secondary containment or other appropriate measures in place. This is to prevent, or where this is not practicable, to minimise any leaks or spills from the primary container.

The Environment Agency consider the appropriate measures for storing liquid wastes in fixed facilities to be those detailed in the Water Resources (Control of Pollution) (Silage, Slurry and Agricultural Fuel Oil) (England) Regulations (as amended) (SSAFO).

Details of suitable designs and standards are set out in:

You must also comply with rule 2.3.1 storage.

3.2.4: Storage of high readily available nitrogen wastes

To comply with rule 3.2.4, you must prevent or limit the loss of ammonia from high readily available nitrogen waste. You must cover the waste if you are going to store it within 200m of a European site, Ramsar site or Site of special scientific interest.

You can use the Natural England designated sites system to find out if you are near or within these receptors.

The cover must be of sufficient standard to prevent ammonia loss.

3.3 Odour

You must make sure your activities do not cause odour pollution outside the deployment area. The Environment Agency will use their professional judgement to confirm if the odour is at a level likely to cause pollution.

For more details see the odour guidance in Control and monitor emissions for your environmental permit.

All operators must:

  • prepare, maintain and implement a written odour management plan
  • make this available for inspection on request
  • use appropriate measures to prevent odour pollution and to reduce aerosol spray drift
  • include any other actions you will take to prevent odour pollution
  • identify the sensitive receptors and the risk to those receptors

Where the wastes you are using are likely to be odorous, you must have a site specific odour management plan that applies to the deployment.

You can use the guidance H4 odour management to help you decide what to include in your plan. Where it is not possible to prevent odour pollution outside of the deployment area, you must be able to show how you have tried to minimise the odour.

If the Environment Agency get complaints of odour from outside of the deployment area, they may ask you to provide a revised odour management plan. They will need to approve it and you must comply with the revised requirements.

Appropriate measures to prevent odour pollution outside the deployment area

The Environment Agency expects you to use these appropriate measures or equivalent measures that meet the same objectives, to prevent odour pollution outside the deployment area.

It is expected that you:

  • take wind direction into account when spreading

  • check if any sensitive receptors such as residential properties, workplaces, or public rights of way are downwind of where you will spread

  • locate your stockpiles where the prevailing wind direction has the least effect on sensitive receptors

  • consider when you spread the waste – for example, avoid bank holidays and weekends when odour may cause nuisance to more people

  • cover your stockpiles or use covered or enclosed storage facilities

  • minimise the amount you store – for example, receive daily deliveries during the days you are spreading to ensure the tank is empty at the end of each working day

  • incorporate the waste into the soil within 24 hours of spreading

  • do olfactory monitoring for odour throughout the working day

Other actions to prevent odour pollution

Where you know a particular waste stream has the potential to cause odour, consider pre-treatment before field delivery. Note that you cannot do this treatment under your mobile plant permit.

When you spread odorous wastes you can also:

  • consider fitting spreading activities around wind and weather conditions
  • avoid using high trajectory spreading techniques
  • inject liquid wastes – this can also be beneficial as it increases nutrient availability and uptake

For standing crops, apply to the bottom of the rows with a dribble bar or other suitable landspreading machinery.

Appropriate measures to control odour from aerosol spray drift

Aerosols of fine droplets can cause odour nuisance, especially when you are spreading liquid wastes. Where you cannot control this odour, describe the actions you will take to prevent nuisance to sensitive receptors in your odour management plan.

The Environment Agency expects you to use these appropriate measures or equivalent measures that meet the same objectives, to control odour from aerosol spray drift.

To reduce the potential for odour from aerosol spray drift it is expected that you:

  • operate in suitable weather

  • minimise aerosols from your spreading machinery, such as reducing discharge pressures when operating splash plate spreading machines

  • avoid spreading wastes close to residential properties – consider for example, wind direction, time of day, using low emission spreading equipment

  • avoid spreading wastes near other sensitive habitats to reduce nutrient deposits or pollution

See more guidance on spreading odorous wastes in:

3.4 Noise and vibration

Your activities must not cause noise or vibration pollution outside the deployment area. Noise or vibration should not be above that of normal agricultural activities. You will need to consider the risk of noise and vibration in your deployment application and further consider it in your written management system.

If the Environment Agency gets a complaint of noise or vibration from outside of the deployment area, they may investigate this further. They will use their professional judgement to confirm if the noise or vibration are at levels likely to cause pollution. They may ask you to submit a noise and vibration management plan. The Environment Agency will need to approve it and you must comply with the revised requirements.

4. Information

4.1 Records

You must keep records that demonstrate how you have complied with your:

  • permit and deployment form
  • written management system
  • any other plans or requirements

If you change any of these documents you must mark up what they are. You must use version control and not overwrite records. You must follow the guidance under changes you can make in the Landspreading: form LPD1 guidance.

The Environment Agency must be able to read your records. You must make them available on request.

Your records must include:

  • your deployment form
  • your location map, benefit statement, waste and receiving soil analyses
  • your site specific risk assessment, if applicable
  • waste duty of care records such as waste transfer notes for non-hazardous waste
  • consignment notes for hazardous waste
  • information showing how you have complied with your benefit statement
  • any incidents that occurred
  • quarterly waste returns
  • your technically competent manager and nominated competent person attendance
  • any non-compliance, discussions with the Environment Agency, and any action you took

You must keep these records for 6 years.

4.2 Reporting

Operators that hold mobile plant permits must complete quarterly waste returns. If you do not spread waste in a quarter, you must still send us a nil return.

You can submit your details online using the generic operator returns (GOR) returns online spreadsheet.

If you cannot submit your returns online, you can email it using the waste returns email spreadsheet.

How to complete a quarterly waste return for a mobile plant permit

Recording mobile plant permit information is different to that for fixed location waste activities.

Each quarter you must tell the Environment Agency the total quantity of each waste type received and where it was spread.

In the ‘waste_received worksheet’:

  • use the ‘origin’ to show the local authority area where the waste was spread – not where the waste came from
  • select the LoW code
  • include the quantity of waste received

Record the quantity of the waste you rejected and why – for example, it was not of good enough quality to spread to land.

In the ‘waste_removed worksheet’:

  • select the destination of the waste rejected – this is the local authority area to where the waste was moved to for disposal or for recovery elsewhere
  • select the LoW code
  • include the quantity of waste removed

For how to complete waste or materials facility returns and meet the requirements for submission see National operator waste returns.

4.3 Notifications

Your permit states that you must notify the Environment Agency ‘without delay’ if you are likely to breach rules 4.3.1 (a), (b) and (c).

‘Without delay’ means you must notify them as soon as is practicable, for example, contact by telephone:

To meet rule 4.3.2, within 24 hours, you must confirm in writing any:

  • actual or potential pollution incidents
  • breaches of emission limits

To meet rule 4.3.4, each time you want to begin landspreading you must tell the Environment Agency at least 48 hours (but no more than 7 days) before the date you start. If your spreading activities have to stop for more than 7 days, you must tell them again when you will restart spreading using the same timescales.

4.4 Interpretation

Your mobile plant permit lists the expressions used in your permit and gives their meanings.

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