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Classifying waste using the EWC

Posted Date:2025/4/15

In the first instance, you should use the flowchart in Figure 1 to assign an appropriate code to your waste. In order to do this you will need to know:

• what type of business produced the waste;

• where the waste was generated, i.e. the process or activity that produced it;

• the description of the waste;

• if it is hazardous (special) waste (guidance on how to classify and assess hazardous (special)

waste can be found in Technical Guidance WM3 ).

Key:

*1 Use the two-digit subchapter code to identify the process or activity that produced the waste. Then use the last two digits to fully describe the waste.

*2. Exclude codes ending -- -- 99 “not otherwise specified”.

Use the following steps when choosing a code:

Step 1: Use chapters 01 to 12 and 17 to 20 to identify the chapter that best describes where the waste was produced, or the source generating the waste. You should ignore codes ending in ‘99’ at this stage.

Step 2: If an appropriate code cannot be found in step 1 then use chapters 13, 14 and 15 and identify the chapter that best describes where the waste was produced or the source generating the waste. You should ignore codes ending in ‘99’ at this stage.

Step 3: If these chapters cannot identify an appropriate code, use chapter 16 to identify the code that best describes where the waste was produced, the waste type or the source generating the waste. You should ignore codes ending in ‘99’ at this stage.

Step 4. If no suitable six-digit code has been identified - go back to step 1 and identify the appropriate code ending ‘-- -- 99’ in one of the chapters. You should only use 99 codes when you cannot classify waste using any other code.