What the legislation says
13 (1) Manufacturing timber products, straw board, plasterboard, bricks, blocks, roadstone or aggregate from:
(a) waste which arises from demolition or construction work or tunnelling or other excavations; or
(b) waste which consists of ash, slag, clinker, rock, wood, bark, paper, straw or gypsum,
13 (2) Manufacturing soil or soil substitutes from any of the wastes listed in sub-paragraph (1) if -
(a) the manufacture is carried out at the place where either the waste is produced or the manufactured product is to be applied to land; and
(b) the total amount treated at that place on any day does not exceed 500 tonnes.
13 (3) Treatment of waste soil or rock which, when treated, is to be spread on land under paragraph 7 or 9, if -
(a) it is carried out at the place where the waste is produced or the treated product is to be spread; and
(b) the total amount treated at that place in any day does not exceed 100 tonnes.
13 (4) Storage of waste which is to be submitted to any operation falling within sub-paragraph (1) to (3) if -
(a) the waste is stored at the place where the activity is to be carried on; and
(b) the total quantity of waste stored at that place does not exceed-
(i) in the case of the manufacture of roadstone from road planings, 50,000 tonnes; and
(ii) in any other case 20,000 tonnes.
What this means
Paragraph 13 (1) (a & b) allow the wastes specified to be used in the manufacture of the listed products. Provided the waste is non-hazardous you can use:
- demolition, construction, tunnelling and excavation wastes
- waste ash
- slag
- clinker
- rock
- wood
- bark
- paper
- straw
- gypsum
in the manufacture of:
- timber products
- straw board
- plasterboard
- bricks
- blocks, or
- roadstone and aggregate.
Paragraph 13 (2) (a & b) allow up to 500 tonnes per day of the same range of wastes to be used in the manufacture of soils or soil substitutes provided that the wastes are processed at the place where:
- they originated, or
- the manufactured soil or soil substitute is applied to the land.
Paragraph 13 (1) therefore allows for fines to be:
- screened from waste in the production of aggregate, and
- exported off site.
If the fines produced under Paragraph 13 (1) are then treated with organic material to create a soil or soil substitute under Paragraph 13 (2) the soil may also be exported off site. If organic material is added to fines which were not produced at the same site, the use of the soil would be confined to the place where it was manufactured.
Paragraph 13 (3) allows up to 100 tonnes per day of waste soil or rock to be treated in order to produce materials that are fit for use under either a paragraph 7 or paragraph 9 land spreading exemptions. The waste must be processed at the place where it originated or at the place where it is spread. Paragraph 7 and 9 also needs to be registered to authorise the spreading of the waste.
Paragraph 13 (4) allows up to 20,000 tonnes of wastes which are to be used in the ways described in paragraph 13 (1 - 3), to be stored at the place where they are used. In the case of road planings which are to be used in the manufacture of roadstone, this is increased to 50,000 tonnes.
Questions and answers
The following section may cover questions you still have regarding the Paragraph 13 (1- 4) exemption.
Q. How long does the registration last? Will it require renewal at any time?
A. The registration of a Paragraph 13 exemption is not time limited but it may be de-registered by us if it is not managed properly and we may take enforcement action against you. If there is a significant change to any of the information supplied as part of the notification you must re-notify us.
Q. If I notify you of Paragraph 13 exemption and comply with the limits, in what circumstances could it be de-registered?
A. To be exempt the activity must comply with the conditions of the exemption and must not risk or cause pollution or harm to the environment. Failure to comply with any of these requirements would mean that the exemption no longer applies. It is therefore important that you do not assume that compliance with conditions means that you will not cause pollution. You need to consider these risks separately when notifying us of your Paragraph 13 activity and only store and treat as much waste as the exemption permits and as much as can be handled without causing pollution or harm to health or adversely affecting the countryside.
Q. Where can this activity be carried out?
A. Activities permitted under Paragraph 13 (2) and (3) must be carried out at the place where the:
- waste was generated, or
- processed waste is applied to land.
Storage of the waste which is used under the exemption must also be at the place where it will be processed.
Q. I will need to segregate wood and plastic from demolition and construction before I screen the material to produce an aggregate. Does the Paragraph 13 exemption allow me to do this?
A. No, the Paragraph 13 exemption would cover screening of this type of waste to produce an aggregate but not the pre-sorting of the imported mixed waste materials. The exception to this is where the contaminant is an accidental part of the mix and removing it would be an isolated occurrence. In all other circumstances, pre-sorting is not covered by the exemption and the activity would need to be authorised by a waste management licence.
Q. Do I need to register a Paragraph 13 exemption for screening activities if I have a crushing plant which is regulated by the Local Authority as a Part B process?
A. Yes, you do need to register the screening activity as a Paragraph 13 (1) or (2) as the Local Authority authorisation would only cover the crushing activity but not any ancillary activities. Storage of waste prior to crushing under a Part B process should be registered with the local authority as a Paragraph 24 exemption.
Who do I speak to if I want a notification form to be sent to me by post or if I still have a query about this exemption that is not covered here?
For general enquires or to request a notification by post, you should phone our National Customer Contact Centre on 0370 8506506. If our advisors cannot answer your question they may pass you to someone in our area offices who will assist with more technical enquiries and who will be familiar with the place where your exemption is located.
