Duty of care for business waste

Business waste can pose a risk to the environment and human health if it is not managed properly.

If you produce waste in your business, you have legal obligations to manage that waste safely. Following these rules will help your business to deal with waste more sustainably and avoid enforcement action.

Under duty of care legislation businesses producing waste must:

• store waste safely and securely
• accurately describe your waste
• segregate any hazardous or special waste
• use registered waste carriers
• use waste transfer notes and keep records for at least two years

This guide explains what waste is - it will help you to understand your legal obligations when storing, transferring and recovering, or disposing of business waste.