What is a hazardous waste disposal license?

1. Concept of hazardous waste?

Hazardous waste is waste that contains substances or compounds. Has one of the characteristics that directly cause harm (flammable, explosive, toxic, corrosive, infectious and other hazardous characteristics). Or interacts with other substances to cause harm to the environment and human health.

2. What is a hazardous waste disposal license?

Pursuant to Clause 16, Article 3 of Decree 38/2015/ND-CP. Waste treatment is the process of using technological and technical solutions (different from preliminary processing) to reduce, eliminate, isolate, quarantine, incinerate, destroy, and bury waste and harmful elements in waste.

A hazardous waste treatment license is a license granted to a hazardous waste treatment facility to perform services of treatment, recycling, co-treatment, and energy recovery from hazardous waste (which may include transportation, transit, storage, and preliminary processing).

3. Basis for granting hazardous waste treatment license?

- Legal basis:

+ Clause 3, Article 3 of Decree 40/2019/ND-CP takes effect from July 1, 2019.

+ Article 10 of Decree 38/2015/ND-CP.

The licensing of hazardous waste treatment according to the latest regulations of current law is as follows:

- Organizations and individuals with projects and facilities for hazardous waste treatment that have completed environmental protection works according to the decision approving the environmental impact assessment report and meeting the conditions specified in Article 9 of this Decree shall prepare a dossier to register for a license to treat hazardous waste and submit it to the competent authority specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

- The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is the competent authority to grant Hazardous Waste Treatment Licenses nationwide.

- The license for hazardous waste treatment clearly stipulates the area of operation, quantity and type of hazardous waste allowed to be treated, means, systems, equipment for transporting and treating hazardous waste (including pre-processing, recycling, co-processing, energy recovery), and other requirements for the owner of hazardous waste treatment.

- The term of the hazardous waste treatment license is 05 years from the date of issue.

- The license for hazardous waste treatment replaces the certificate of completion of environmental protection works; in case the hazardous waste treatment facility uses imported scrap as raw materials for production, the dossier for granting a certificate of eligibility for environmental protection in importing scrap as raw materials for production can be prepared together with the dossier for granting a license for hazardous waste treatment at the request of the project owner or facility. The procedures for inspection and confirmation of completion of environmental protection works and the procedures for inspection and granting of a certificate of eligibility for environmental protection in importing scrap as raw materials for production are carried out according to the procedures for inspection and granting of a license for hazardous waste treatment.

- During the process of reviewing and granting the Hazardous Waste Treatment License, the licensing authority shall establish a team to conduct an on-site inspection at the hazardous waste treatment facility as a basis for considering approval for the trial operation. The written approval for the trial operation shall serve as a basis for organizations and individuals to sign contracts for the collection, transportation and treatment of hazardous waste for the trial operation, with the total volume of waste collected, transported and treated under the contract not exceeding the project's treatment capacity. The trial operation shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Article 16b of Decree No. 18/2015/ND-CP.

- The time limit for inspection and approval of the trial operation of a hazardous waste treatment project is 10 working days from the date of receipt of a complete and valid dossier. The time limit for inspection and issuance of a hazardous waste treatment license is 25 working days from the date of receipt of a complete and valid dossier. The above time limit does not include the time for organizations and individuals to complete the dossier as required by the licensing authority.

- Expenses for granting hazardous waste treatment licenses are covered by appraisal fee revenue.