Recycling concrete
What you must do
You can recycle concrete and use it as aggregate. Surplus or broken-out concrete will be waste if you discard it, intend to discard it or are required to discard it for any reason. As waste, the duty of care will apply to it.
Duty of care - your waste responsibilities
If you transport concrete and other materials off your site for crushing, you must make sure that you have the appropriate waste transfer documentation.
Waste carriers, brokers and dealers
Reprocessing concrete into usable material is a form of waste treatment and you may need:
- a waste management licence ,a pollution, prevention and control (PPC) permit or an exemption, in Northern Ireland
- an EASR authorisation, in Scotland
Crushing and screening
In Northern Ireland, if you crush, grind or reduce the size of concrete materials a paragraph 24 exemption may be relevant to you.
In Scotland, if you use crushing and screening equipment above ground to crush, grind, or any other size reduction (excluding cutting stone) of:
- a designated mineral or mineral product, or the grading, screening or heating of these materials
- waste bricks, tiles or concrete at the place where the waste is produced or at the place where the recovered aggregate will be used
you may not need to contact SEPA for authorisation, if you follow the rules of the relevant General Binding Rule.
Recover or dispose of waste at the place where it is produced
In Northern Ireland, if you recover or dispose of waste at the place where it is produced, as an integral part of the process, a paragraph 26 exemption may be relevant to you. This applies to facilities that produce semi-dry precast concrete products and that recycle aggregate within the process.
You must register this exemption with the NIEA.
NIEA: Paragraph 26 exemption - recovery of waste as an integral part of the process that produces it
You must still ensure that your activity does not:
- endanger human health or cause pollution to water, air or soil
- cause a risk to plants or animals
- cause a nuisance in terms of noise, dust, fumes, smoke or odour
- adversely affect the countryside or places of special interest.
In Scotland, an authorisation is not needed for materials that are by-products’ or comply with ‘end-of-waste’ criteria.
In Northern Ireland, if concrete is to be crushed at a processing plant on-site, you must ensure that the crushing plant has a PPC Part C permit from the local council.
GOV.UK: Process Guidance Note 3/16 (04) – Mobile Crushing and Screening (Scotland)
NIEA: GBN 3/3 – Mineral Processes (Crushing and Screening of Rock) (Adobe PDF - 132 KB)
Pollution prevention and control permits in Northern Ireland
Good practice
The Wrap Aggregates Programme promotes sustainable use of aggregates. It reduces the demand for primary aggregates by encouraging greater use of recycled and secondary aggregates.
The Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) has produced detailed guidance for the construction sector. This is free to download.
CECA: Waste classification and permitting in construction
Northern Ireland
The NIEA in association with the EA and WRAP have revised the end of waste Quality Protocol (October 2013) for the production of aggregates from inert waste. It reflects the latest approved industry standards, including factory production control, and incorporates other improvements and clarifications to make it easier for producers and users to ensure full compliance with the end of waste criteria.