Combatting waste crime

Lastly, the quantity of biodegradable municipal waste allowed to go to landfill has been reduced to a percentage of the 1995 quantity: 75% from 2006, 50% from 2009 and 35% from 2016, with a possibility to defer the attainment of such targets by no more than four years (Article 5(2)).

Controlling landfill
The operator of a landfill is required to obtain a permit prior to starting operations. Such a permit is only issued after compliance with relevant rules has been verified as well as the technical skills of the management and the consistency of the landfill, and that its operation complies with the applicable waste management plan. The Landfill Directive lays down rigorous requirements for the location of the landfill, the control of waters and the treatment of leachate, the protection of soil and water, including biological barriers (Annex I), which requirements may be reinforced for certain types of waste accepted in a landfill, such as mercury.

The operation of an unauthorised or otherwise unlawful landfill breaches several provisions of the Waste Framework Directive, including those requiring the Member States to take necessary measures to ensure that waste is recovered or disposed of without adverse impact on human health or the environment, to prohibit the abandonment, dumping or uncontrolled disposal of waste, and to ensure that any holder of waste has it handled by an appropriate waste collector or undertaking (see above). The CJEU rules that, as a consequence, a Member State is required to determine whether it is necessary to clean up old illegal sites and, if so, to clean them up, and that it cannot limit itself to take administrative measures to close down and make secure these sites, nor even to effectively ensure that they are indeed closed and secured (Case C-196/13 European Commission v. Italian Republic, §53-63; see, also, Case C-378/13 Commission v. Hellenic Republic, §49).

Prior to acceptance of waste in a landfill, the documentation attesting that such waste can be accepted must be verified, and a visual inspection of the waste conducted. Under certain circumstances, samples are taken and analysed. The operator is required to maintain a detailed register of waste accepted (Article 1), and to notify the competent authorities in relation to any refusal of acceptance of waste (Article 12).

Closure of a landfill is likewise subject to prior clearance and review of available reports. The operator remains responsible for the landfill’s maintenance, monitoring and control in the after-care phase as long as may be required by the competent authority (Article 13).

At the time of the application for a permit, the would-be operator will in any event have provided the authorities with evidence of financial security or equivalent ensuring that its obligations, including after-care procedures arising under the permit will be discharged, and the closure procedures followed (Article 7(i) and Article 8(a)(iv)).